Surprisingly the team almost did not come to fruition.
The legend goes that one night Dean Martin was performing in a nightclub. Smooth, polished and sophisticated and a member of the burgeoning troupe of male vocalists fashioned after Frank Sinatra, Dean’s career was solid but not necessarily outstanding.
At that same club (or entertainment venue) Jerry Lewis was struggling to make it as a stand-up comedian.
Somehow the duo met, the chemistry worked and soon Jerry’s slapstick and over-the-top comedic shenanigans and Dean’s smooth-as-silk straight man persona meshed and...success!
The duo would soon go on to guest star on various variety shows, host their own TV program, perform all over the globe, dominate radio and star in a string of movies.
But, the magic would not last forever and after a stormy professional head-butting the duo split and went their separate ways.
Mill Creek Entertainment has compiled a six-disc collection of the best-of-the-best of Dean’s and Jerry’s movie hits along with a special celebration of their award-winning and hilarious ‘The Colgate Comedy Hour’ appearances guest-starring an all-star cast of performers among them Frank Sinatra, Jack Benny, Rosemary Clooney and many more.
They may be gone now but the Martin and Lewis comedy team will never be forgotten and never duplicated.