Jerry Lewis

Jerry Lewis
Lewis in 1957
Born	Joseph Levitch (1926-03-16)March 16, 1926 Newark, New Jersey,U.S.
Died	August 20, 2017(2017-08-20)(aged 91) Las Vegas, Nevada,U.S.
Occupations	Comedian actor singer director humanitarian
Years active	1931–2017
Spouses	Patti Palmer ​ ​ (m.1944;div.1980)​ SanDee Pitnick ​ (m.1983)​
Children	7, includingGary
Website	jerrylewiscomedy
Signature

Jerry Lewis,born asJosephLevitch,(March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, director and humanitarian. He was ofJewishdescent. He was best known for acting incomedymoviesin the 1950s and 1960s such asThe Nutty Professor.He also helped to raise money for people withmuscular dystrophy,through the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Lewis was born inNewark, New Jersey.He studied atIrvington High Schoolthough he dropped out in his sophomore year.

Lewis first became famous as part ofMartin & Lewis,working with singerDean Martin.They worked together for ten years. They appeared on stage,radioandtelevision,and in movies. They stopped working together in 1956 and did not speak for years. They reunited a few times from the 1970s to the 1990s.

Lewis directed of many of his movies. He was the first director to usevideocameras with movie cameras, to help with filming scenes. Film takes time to process, but videotape can be played back right away, saving time and work if a scene needs to be redone. Other directors soon started using his technique, and it is still used today.

During the 1970s, Lewis' movies became less popular. He moved away from acting and directing. In the 1990s, he returned to performing onstage. He continued to perform during the 2000s.

Lewis was aRepublicanthough he was friends with PresidentJohn F. Kennedy.He supported PresidentsRonald ReaganandDonald Trump.

Lewis died at his home inLas Vegas,Nevadaat 9:15 AM ofcardiomyopathyon August 20, 2017 at the age of 91.

Movies

Jerry Lewis acted in many movies, including:

• The Stooge(1952)
• Hollywood or Bust(1956)
• The Bellboy(1960)
• The Errand Boy(1961)
• The Patsy(1964)
• The Disorderly Orderly(1964)
• Three on a Couch(1966)
• Way... Way Out(1966)
• Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River(1967)
• The Big Mouth(1967)
• Silent Treatment(1968)
• Hook, Line & Sinker(1969)

Other websites

• Official Jerry Lewis websiteArchived2006-08-30 at theWayback Machine
• Jerry LewisonIMDb
• Italian Jerry Lewis fansiteArchived2009-05-20 at theWayback Machine