Me and Aajjgg discuss his work on Slapstick of Another Kind

Great intrview, thanks for sharing! I really liked to hear your point of views on Jerry's films and the way he played his characters. That is interesting to me, how he sometimes really turned into his character, but sometimes he was just Jerry. I guess that is one of the reasons my favorite of his is "The Nutty Professor" because he played those parts so well.

aajjgg As for Dean not getting funny lines in the M&L films: Norman Lear stated that he and his writing partner, Ed Simmons, tried several times to give Dean funny lines, but it was producer Hal Wallis who always rejected them. He wanted Jerry to be the funny one. And the producer has the last word.

Another remark, on Jerry not accepting the role in Some Like It Hot: I think Kat mentioned that at the same time, Jerry was filming Don't Give Up the Ship. That was for Hal Wallis, and I think Jerry did not have much say in when filming would take place. He still had to work off his "film debt" to Wallis after the split from Dean. Even if he had wanted to take the role, I don't know if and how long Billy Wilder could/would have waited until Jerry was available. Jerry also had his own film projects in the pipeline.

My point being re with Hal Wallis he could have fought for Dean to get better parts and better lines and I am sure it would have happened. Instead Jerry was demanding more solo songs for their movies and Deans songs be reduced. If anything it has been documented if Dean got a funny ad-lib in rehearsel on The Colgate Comedy Hour for the live show Jerry would steal the line. He would also be "sick" if Dean got to many laughs or to much attention . You can actually hear Jerry say in A Colgate Comedy Hour to the band " I told you not to laugh" when Dean ad-libs a funny line. You can say he was kidding but as Jerry has said himself "There is allot of truth in comedy." Anyways hope you enjoyed the interview.

I wonder what adlibbed lines were "stolen" on CCH. Most of the adlibbing seemed to happen in the moment with accidents happening during the live show. None of Jerry's adlibs seemed to be other than what was in the moment, and you never once see a look from Dean at Jerry to imply that Jerry had stolen his funny adlib from rehearsal. The dramatic look in the Martin and Lewis biopic that Dean gives Jerry when his line was stolen, is ridiculous and overdramatic. And the real life sketch that they did, Dean never even looks at Jerry during the supposedly stolen "Nuremburg trial" line. It's also interesting to note that Dean and Jerry both would continually use that joke/line other times, especially Jerry throughout the decades. Dean does say some funny stuff occasionally on CCH, and you can see when Jerry laughs. I think he got sensitive from time to time, but not all the time. Maybe part of his comment "I told you not to laugh" was in jest, and the rest was him being insecure. You can hear him saying similar things on the radio show and other tv episodes.

I think it would have been a great idea for the writers to have a sketch in which Dean and Jerry switched talents or bodies, and Jerry got to sing straight and Dean got to be the crazy funny one. Then they both would have got what they really wanted to do. I wonder if they would have gone for an idea like that.

I would have loved a sketch or even a film with that idea. Imagine the thetrical poster being like: MARTIN is LEWIS - LEWIS is MARTIN.