EXCLUSIVE: 'The Jerry Lewis Only I Knew' — Comedy Icon's Son Remembers Funnyman Dad… And Tells Why He Made Him Laugh so Hard He Couldn’t Eat
Jerry Lewis always kept his children laughing at home amid his massive career.
April 1 2025, Published 6:45 p.m. ET
Jerry Lewis made fans laughs for years on stage, the small screen, films, and even the radio in a career spanning almost 70 years, but it's the comedy at home that really put him at the top.
The comic's son Christopher Lewis said his famous father left his best jokes for the dinner table, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Jerry's career spanned nearly 70 years.
Christopher said: “I can’t tell you how many dinners I sat at that I couldn’t eat because I was laughing so hard. My mom would be so mad at him. She’s like, ‘Would you stop and let them eat?’ Which would inspire him more to make us laugh.”
Jerry shared Christopher and five more sons with his wife, singer Patti Palmer. The couple were married from 1944 to 1980.
The funnyman was launched into superstardom thanks to being half of the comedy pair Martin and Lewis with Rat Pack member Dean Martin. However, he went on to have a very successful solo career after the duo parted ways in 1956.
The comic's son Christopher revealed his legendary father always kept them laughing at home.
He also became the host of the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon to benefit muscular dystrophy research.
Christopher recalled of his dad: "He was on top of everything – every aspect of his life. Number one, he was a genius. But number two, he was a pain in the butt.”
While Christopher revealed his father was all about the laughs, he also acknowledged he could be strict when the moment called for it.
"If I was a half hour late, he was in my face about it the next morning wanting to know why,” Christopher said.
He made clear: “He never did hit me, but, oh my God, could he yell. You didn’t want him yelling at you.”
Three years after Jerry and Palmer split, the comic then tied the knot with SanDee Pitnick and they remained married until his death at the age of 91 in 2017.
Lewis was also known to yell at Christopher and his brothers if the moment called for it.
Christopher began volunteering at the annual Labor Day telethon at age 14 and he explained how he feels it represents his late father.
“Watching him on the MDA telethon, working with him on the telephones and seeing the love between him and the families that he was helping – it was something that I looked forward to every year,” Christopher said.
He added: “I think those were the times he was being his most honest, and you were seeing the true him.”
Jerry was ousted from hosting the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association's telethon in 2011, and was said to have exploded in a fit of rage and threatened the charity's president over program cuts and control of the TV fundraiser.
Sources claimed bosses were fed up with Jerry's "mean spirited" behavior off-camera.
The Real Jerry Lewis Story author Rick Saphire previously said: "Jerry was very angry because the new president of the MDA made decisions without his input.
"They cut the time of the telethon without conferring with him and Jerry got into a heated battle with the president and said, 'You, and not the kids, belong in a f------ wheelchair,' before he stormed out of the office.
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The comedian also hosted a fundraiser to benefit muscular dystrophy research.
He added: "Right after that they gave Jerry his walking papers."
Jerry helped raise over $2.6billion for the charity.
