Leaving Las Vegas

We all knew the day was coming, especially the last few years when the ringmaster of the annual 24-Hour event disappeared from sight during the wee small hours of the morning, but after 45 years, Jerry Lewis is retiring as host from the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Labor Day Telethon. That’s right, the now 85-year-old ‘Nutty Professor’ has but one more chance to try and get through his anthem song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from the Rodger’s and Hammerstein musical “Carousel,” without having an emotional meltdown— Speaking of meltdowns! They’re knocking down the Sahara Hotel in Vegas where the MDA show first originated, which was announced on the same day that Jerry said he was leaving as the MDA host. You don’t suppose they’re trying to kill two birds with one stone, do you?

 

Nah… Jerry’s a tough old bird, with a foul mouth to boot. In 2007, the then 81-year-old dropped an anti-gay slur in the 18^th hour of his annual event, when he went into an imaginary rant about family members, calling one of them (Jesse) “the illiterate faggot.” And they wondered why the pledges from West Hollywood came to a screeching halt.

 

Obviously, the comment sparked a frenzy amongst the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLADD), whose president, Neil Giuliano, called Jerry’s use of the term “simply unacceptable,” adding, “it also feeds a climate of hatred and intolerance that contributes to putting our community in  harm’s way.” Lighten up, Neil, Jerry’s a comedian – well, according to the French – besides, the man
apologized and said that he was directing the comment to a member of his production team. Atta boy, Jerry. Nothing like throwing your prejudice off on some poor sap behind the camera so that you look good. (FYI, the cameraman should’ve used a soft focus lens over the past few years to make Jerry look good.)

 

In Jerry’s defense, he’s made MDA the most famous long-running nationwide telethon to date, ever since its debut in 1966, and has served as chairman of the MDA since its inception in 1950, raising a record $65 billion dollars to date. Hey, that’s almost as much as the Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra, raked in after founding Reprise Records… Or was that how much he raked in after offing members of the mob? Ah, who cares. They’re all dead. Same as the memories of the annual MDA Labor Day Telethon from ‘Back in the day.’

 

Growing up in the ‘70’s, I couldn’t wait to send away for my Ronald McDonald Carnival Kit to raise money for the MDA in my own backyard. I was proud to send in the measly $100 I raised on some cheesy ring toss game and pick-up-ducks. (For the record, I DID send in the money.) Then, afterwards, I’d stay up all night to watch the celebrities of yesteryear who performed on Jerry’s show, which was as thrilling as being the poster boy seated in the wheelchair next to Jerry! (God forbid.)  But now…  Well, that $100 seems like a drop in a hat compared to the 6-to-7 figure pledges that kids and fireman raise today, keeping in mind there was no internet or youth organizations like there are today. And gone are the celebrities of yesteryear, like Steve & Eydie, Shields & Yarnell, Captain & Tennille, or Charo, Jack Jones and Maureen McGovern… Okay, so the latter three, like the Ever Ready Bunny, keep on going, and going, just like Jerry has… until now. However, Jerry has stated that he would continue to serve as the national MDA chairman, even after his departure, which leaves behind the burning question: Who will replace him as host? … Why does the name Ryan Seacrest come to mind?