In the year 1956, Jerry Lewis was the star of Las Vegas, regularly performing at the Sands Hotel and Casino, and he was cashing it in. The comic signed a five-year contract with the Sands nightclub and paid him the same amount of money they paid Martin and Lewis as a duo. The live performances made up most of his career.
Lewis steadily continued with the casino and theater performances and, in 1957, even followed Judy Garland at New York’s Palace Theater. His success was unprecedented, even prompted his long lost pal Dean Martin and to call him up and congratulate him. His success then took him to TV, where he appeared on the show “What’s My Line?” between 1956 and 1966.
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.
Some High Profile Affairs
Being a high-profile celebrity himself, Lewis naturally rubbed shoulders with some of the biggest stars out there. In a 2011 interview with "GQ Magazine," the comedian revealed some of the women in his life and included names like Marylin Monroe and Marlene Deitrich. Interestingly. during the interview, he insisted that the Monroe and Kennedy affair never happened.
Lewis was met with skepticism by the interviewer, but the comedian doubled down, saying that the reason he knows is that was because he too was involved with Monroe and that they each other pretty well.
Hungry Jerry
Lewis hosted the Academy Awards consecutively in 1956 and 1957, and then a third time in 1959. The third time, the Oscars ran short, and so he improvised for 20 minutes, putting the audience in stitches. When his contract with Paramount Pictures ended, Lewis started searching for the next step.
Lewis loved comedy but felt that was lacking pathos. According to the comedian, "funny without pathos is a pie in the face. And a pie in the face is funny, but I wanted more."
Raking It In
Lewis wanted to flex those creative muscles, but first, he was going to secure a deal with Paramount Pictures. In 1959 the production company signed a new contract with Jerry Lewis Productions stipulating that he would get $10 million-plus 60% of profits for 14 movies over seven years.
That contract made Lewis the highest-paid Hollywood star at the time. It also gave him complete creative control over the final cut and guaranteed film rights after 30 years of release. This new studio power made him incredibly powerful. Barney Balaban, head of the production at Paramount, even told the media, “If Jerry wants to burn down the studio, I’ll give him the match!”