The place, which was filled with a thousand people, exploded with laughter, putting Lewis’s fears of not making it alone fully to rest.
His “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby” became a hit single, reaching #10, and his album “Jerry Lewis Just Sings” reached #3 on the Billboard charts. Lewis back and better than ever, and the audience was wild for it.
Feeling Shaky
After the split, Lewis was famously quoted saying, "I was unable to put one foot in front of the other with any confidence. I was completely unnerved to be alone." His fear was put on full display one night when he and his wife Patti Palmer were out in Las Vegas.
There, he received an urgent request from his friend Sid Luft (Judy Garland’s husband and manager), saying that she (Garland) couldn’t perform that night because of strep throat. He begged Lewis to fill in for her. Resistant at first, Lewis went for it.
Totally Solo
The big moment was about to arrive, and all Lewis could think of was the fact that he hadn't done a solo act in 25 years, the last time being when he was five years old.
The comedian stepped up nonetheless, and when he went up on that stage and stood in front of the audience, he transformed into classic Jerry Lewis, singing songs and clowning about. He famously sang a rendition of "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby" and "Come Rain or Come Shine."
Not the Typical Family Man
Women were one of his weaknesses. Before Lewis hit it big time, he was married to Patti Palmer. The two wed in the year 1944 and had six children together, five of them biological and the sixth adopted.
The big happy family was not all perfect, though, as Lewis strongly rejected fidelity. In fact, whenever it came up in interviews, he was vocally against it.
New Day, New Family
Considering all the affairs, the couple stayed married for 35 years, but finally, Patti called it quits and in 1980 filed for divorce, citing infidelity as the cause for the split. It was finalized in 1983.
That same year the actor married his second wife, SanDee Pitnick. Pitnick was a stewardess who played a small role in his film "Hardly Working." They then adopted a daughter and named her Danielle.