It’s been almost 20 years since the legendary funnyman, 90, last appeared on-screen. In Max Rose, now in select theaters, Jerry Lewis makes a dramatic return in the title role of a retired jazz musician who discovers an intimate note written in 1959 to his late wife. Here are five facts about the New Jersey-born Oscar winner.
1. He turned down the star-making role played by Jack Lemmon in Some Like It Hot (1959).
2. His son Gary’s band, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, has eight gold records, including “This Diamond Ring.”
3. He was nominated for a Nobel Prize for his work to find a cure for muscular dystrophy.
4. Professor John Frink in The Simpsons was based on Lewis’ role in The Nutty Professor.
5. France formalized its fondness for Lewis by inducting him into the Legion of Honor in 2006.
View the original at Parade or follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Google+