Dean Martin's Final Days Filled With Alcohol, Tobacco & Opioids To Be Examined In REELZ Documentary

 

Hey pallies, likes we wanna 'lert all youse Dino-philes that 'nother  vivid viewin' of REELZ's  documentary, "Autopsy… The Last Hours of: Dean Martin" will be aired on REELZ this Sunday evening, August 1, at 10 PM ET/PT.  It's the Dino- documentary that we first reported on June 19 in a Dino-gram found  HERE and was watched by our own Danny-o who pattered 'bout it sayin'......"Well pals...I watched the Reelz show last night “Autopsy-The Last Hours of Dean Martin”.

Obviously was depressing & extremely saddening to see & hear how Dino lived the last 10 years of his life. However it was an interesting & seemingly fact based show. Definitely worth a viewing for all Dino-fans. Just do as I do & ‘member our main pal for the fun, cool, smart, talented, charismatic & handsome fella he was! Forever my main man!"

Likes below is 'nother amazin' announcement of this Dino-program scribed by Miss Bernie Zilio (pictured 'bove on the right) for the online presence of a pad tagged "RADAR - FRESH INTELLIGENCE."  We share this with all youse Dino-holics in case any of youse wanna catch this newest Dino-doc and cause we delightfully digs Miss Zilio's wise writeup that includes quintessential quotations from the small screen special.  We particularly primo 'ppreciate the Dino-images that Bernie has chosen to energetically enhance her prose.  Likes we don't remember ever sweetly settin' our eyes on any of 'em before...and we always largely loves valiantly viewin' each and every Dino-pose that we come 'cross.

So all youse Dino-diggers who have access to REELZ make Dino-note to tune in and turn on tomorrow Dino-night for your Dino-edification.  ilovedinomartin thoughtfully thanks Miss Bernie Zilio and all the pallies at "RADAR - FRESH  INTELLIGENCE" for sharin' this Dino-announcement with swank style.  To checks this out in it's original source, likes simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report. btw pallies, likes if you clicks on the tag youse will also be able to view the intro video to the Dino-doc which is truly quite Dino-edifyin' in itself.

We Remain

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

Dean Martin's Final Days Filled With Alcohol, Tobacco & Opioids To Be Examined In REELZ Documentary

By:Bernie Zilio

Jul. 30 2021, Published 10:15 a.m. ET

Dean Martin was a victim of both his profession and his generation, as 50 years in the spotlight – starting in the 1940s – took its toll on the late entertainer.

On Christmas Day 1995, the "King of Cool" died at the age of 78, leaving behind a legacy in music, movies and television.

But Martin was famous for other things, too; for example, he was rarely seen not smoking a cigarette.

His lifelong habit eventually led to emphysema and later lung cancer, but that alone didn't kill him.

As record producer Jimmy Bowen points out in Radar's exclusive sneak peek of REELZ's upcoming documentary, Autopsy… The Last Hours of: Dean Martin, the star was also a "heavy, heavy drinker," which Bowen believes was an "image that America loved at that time" because "that was a manly thing to do."

"Dean loved being that very loose, fluid, easygoing character," adds actress Ruta Lee, a friend of the late legend.

 Martin's alcohol consumption – which morphed into more than just trying to keep up his "drunk" stage persona – escalated exponentially in the last eight years of his life, and he eventually became dependent on opioids.

"Dean Martin's death certificate states respiratory arrest as the cause of death," explains medical examiner and forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Hunter. "It appears that after he was diagnosed with emphysema, he continued to smoke heavily, which further damages the lungs and worsens the disease."

"But his death certificate also lists heart failure as a contributing factor," adds the expert. "Throughout his life, Dean had a reputation as a legendary drinker. Alcohol is well-known to increase blood pressure, which weakens the heart muscle. So I want to investigate whether this is, in fact, the key to why he died."

 Unfortunately, drinking and smoking simply came with the territory of working the bar, club and casino scene where Dean Martin started out, and he took those habits with him everywhere he went.

Soon enough, Martin shot to international stardom as a singer. He released more than 30 albums and even knocked The Beatles out of the top spot on the charts with his hit, Everybody Loves Somebody.

He started his acting character as one-half of the comedy duo, Martin and Lewis, alongside Jerry Lewis. But after 10 years, Dean decided to break off and go about it alone.

He subsequently starred in more than 40 movies – from westerns with John Wayne, to Oceans 11 with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr., with whom he would continue to join forces in movies, on stage and in television. They were known at the time as "The Rat Pack."

Martin went on to land the dream gig: host of his very own TV show. The Dean Martin Show earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Male Television Star, but behind the star's sparkly and fun facade was a dark fate.

All this and more will be revealed when Autopsy... The Last Hours of: Dean Martin premieres on Sunday, August 1 at 10 PM ET/PT on REELZ.

Watch REELZ on DIRECTV 238, Dish Network 299, Verizon FiOS 692, AT&T U-verse 1799 and in HD on cable systems and streaming services nationwide. Find REELZ on your local cable or satellite provider at www.reelz.com.

Dino welcomed everyone into his world.

 Hey pallies, likes we are totally totally thrilled to be able to offer all youse Dino-phile yet a third huge helpin' of the most awesomest of awesome adulation of our Dino from one of the primo-est of primo Dino-holics, Mr. Rosario Iaconis who powerfully perfect praisin' of our one and only Dino has really truly set us on the highest of Dino-high the last couple of Dino-days.  In researchin' the amazin' annals of ilovedinomartin we discovered that we had first shared Mr. Iaconis' Dino-devotion HERE on June 1 in the year of our Dino 2018.  It's a powerfully potent post that Rosario shared on June 12, 2017 in huge homage of our Dino's 100th anniversary of his descent to our planet, tagged as ""Everybody loved Dean Martin all of the time." and published by the pallies at "northjersey.com."

Likes likes the other two of Mr. Iaconis' proud proclamations of the life, times, and teachin's of our Dino, this too as you will soon see below is the deepest of deep  Dino-devotion from this incredible Italiano Dino-hearted Dino-devotee.  We knows all youse Dino-holics will deeply delight in drinkin' deeply of Mr. Rosario Iaconis' absolute appreciation of our most most most beloved Dino!

ilovedinomartin supremely shouts out our deep, pure, and true appreciato to Mr. Iaconic for his once 'gain reverent raisin' of the powerful praisin' of our mighty marvelous majestic DINO!  

We Remain

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

 

 

Hey pallies, likes how time flies when your supremely smitten by our most beloved Dino and eager to share your Dino-happiness with others.  Today is June 1 and the start of our awesome annual coolest of cool celebration of the month in which our most most beloved Dino was birthed.  We tag our delightful Dino's birthday, The Day That Coolness Came To Earth, and 'cause it is so so special to all Dino-holics we can't help by take the whole month of June each year to proudly praisin' our King of Cool.

Likes we always invite Dino-philes likes youse to consider contributin' your own Dino-prose to this Dino-fest of deepest of deep devotion to our Dino and likes if any of youse pallies woulda likes to partake of this Dino-action simply send us an email to kentsmokerguy@yahoo.com to eagerly express your Dino-intention, and know we will respond to youse ASAP and get you on the Dino-schedule.

Well on to our Dino 1 Dino-gram!  Likes we wanted somethin' extra Dino-special to get the Dino-celebration goin' and we uncovered this sweetest of sweet salutation to our one and only Dino that we knows is simply primo perfecto for this Dino-occasion!   From the awesome annals of "northjersey.com" comes the tremendously touchin' 'n tender thoughts of  Mr. Rosario A. Iaconis, the "adjunct professor in the Social Sciences Department of Suffolk County Community College in New York."  Mr. Iaconis' premier prose is lovin'ly titled, "Everybody loved Dean Martin all of the time."

Mr. Iaconis' wonderfully wise words were written in huge homage of our Dino's centennial last year, and not discovered by ilovedinomartin until most recently.  We are supremely sorry not to have shared 'em before this, but we are totally totally thrilled to share 'em as we begin our 2018 celebration of The Day That Coolness Came To Earth.  Likes each and every syllable of each and every word that Rosario has stunnin'ly selected to lift up the life, the times, and the teachin's of our Dino is beautifully brimmin' with the most awesome of awesome adulation of our one, our only Dino and brings the deepest of deepest Dino-happiness to our hearts as we soak all this Dino-amore into our bein's!

We were stupendously struck by Mr. Iaconis' depth of devotion to our Dino and we chose our fav of fav remarkable reflections form this learned scholar for the title of this post, " Dino welcomed everyone into his world."  What a perfectly profound Dino-truth for all us Dino-holics to ponder pallies!  Indeed our Dino welcomes all of us pallies into his world and all we have to do is accept his incredible invitation!

Likes, of course, we coulda goes on and on 'bout how beautifully blown 'way we are by Mr. Roasrio Iaconis' deep devotion to our Dino, but we, of course, whats all youse Dino-devotees to drink in all his Dino-praise for yourselves.  We express our appreciation to Professour Iaconis for publicly professin' his amazin' apprecation to our Dino, certain to have won many readers of this fine publication to walkin' the Dino-way.  To checks this out in it's original format, simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report.

We Remain,

Yours in Dino,

Dino Martin Peters


Everybody loved Dean Martin all of the time

Rosario A. Iaconis Published 7:18 p.m. ET June 12, 2017



As centenary celebrations go, June 7, 2017, was the proverbial kick in the head.

Elvis Presley has left the building. Ol’ Blue Eyes is gone. Bing Crosby bid us farewell long ago. Only Tony Bennett remains. But the cultural legacy of Dino Paul Crocetti, a. k. a. Dean Martin, endures on the 100th anniversary of his birth.

Of all the troubadours who once ruled the airwaves in the 20th century, only Steubenville, Ohio’s favorite son conquered stage, screen, radio and television with the sprezzatura (or effortless mastery) of a true Renaissance talent.

In addition to being “The King of Cool,” as Elvis Presley so unerringly dubbed him, Dean Martin was the quintessential triple-threat entertainer: a consummate thespian, a gifted comedian of great wit and drollery, and a sophisticated crooner whose mellifluous Italianate baritone charmed audiences around the globe.

More ingratiating than the icily aloof Bing Crosby and warmer than the perennially surly Frank Sinatra, Dino welcomed everyone into his world. And Hollywood was no different.

Lauded by the likes of Howard Hawks, Vincente Minelli and Billy Wilder, Dino was a director’s dream – a conscientious actor whose cinematic appeal was equaled only by an indefatigable dedication to his craft. Though not an adherent of the Stanislavski “Method,” Dean Martin brought an uncommon emotional intensity to his roles. This was especially evident in such films as “Rio Bravo,” “The Young Lions” and “Some Came Running” – movies in which Dino stole the show from such film icons as John Wayne, Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift and Frank Sinatra.


In “Rio Bravo,” Dean Martin’s bravura performance as the disgraced alcoholic deputy brought a gritty sensibility to what might otherwise have been a formulaic western. Martin eschewed the drunken pagliaccio. Instead, he depicted Dude as a fallen hero in search of redemption – a lawman who reclaims his honor and the kinship of his peers.

In “Career,” Dean played a conflicted opportunist-cum-communist-sympathizer. And in “Ada,” he depicted a cynical (Bill) Clintonesque southern governor. Dino also turned in a masterful performance in the film adaptation of Lillian Hellman’s “Toys in the Attic.”

Martin jammed with the Mills Brothers, Nat King Cole, Lena Horne and Louis Armstrong. A staunch civil-rights advocate who refused to entertain in venues that discriminated against African Americans and Jews, Martin was fiercely proud of his Italian heritage. Indeed, he abhorred “The Godfather”: “I hated that movie, what it did to the Italian people. There was no call for that.”

In “Mr. Ricco,” his final starring role, Martin portrayed a progressive Italian-American defense attorney who stands on principle in championing civil liberties and upholding the rule of law.
During the turbulent 1960s, America turned to Dean Martin’s variety show every Thursday night for solace, merriment and dulcet melodies. Truth be told, everybody loved Dino – the legendary scion of Italy whom Jerry Lewis recalled as “the boy with the tall, dark, and handsome voice” – sometime.

Now that’s amore.

Rosario A. Iaconis is an adjunct professor in the Social Sciences Department of Suffolk County Community College in New York.

Christmas is Dean Martin’s domain.

 Hey pallies, likes it's Christmas In July here at ilovedinomartin this very Dino-day 'cause we are once 'gain totally totally thrilled to share 'nother absolutely awesome amorin' of our most most most beloved Dino by that swankest of swank scriber Mr. Rosario A. Iaconis (pictured on the right), whose powerfully passionate pontification of his deepest of deep Dino-devotion was shared yester-Dino-day in his perfect prose "OpEd: Martin and Lewis — A Comedy Duo For the Ages" from the "LONG ISLAND PRESS."

As is most often the case here at ilovedinomartin, once we find some delightful Dino-prose from a wise writer who truly "gets Martin" we just have to see if this Dino-proser has shared more Dino-devotion on the ol' world wide web.  So, likes when we typed the noteworthy name of Mr. Rosario A. Iaconis we found that Iaconis had potently posed 'nother OpEd on the pages of the "LONG ISLAND PRESS."  Likes as we reference in the openin' of this Dino-gram, Rosario opined on our Dino's wonderful wintery croons his December 13, 2020 coolest of cool column, "OpEd: Dean Martin’s Christmas Classics Reign Supreme."

Likes we didn't want to wait 'til this Dino-wintery season ('though we may very well share this amazin' affirmation of our Dino's wintery tunes at the end of this Dino-year) to let all youse Dino-holics incredibly imbibe Mr. Iaconis sweet salute to our Dino in this seasonal selection.  So, below are Rosario's rich reflections that include neat nods to not only our Dino's wintery wisdom, but to some awesome adulation of our Dino's actin' abilities on the big screen.

Permit us to briefly share a few of Iaconis' touchin''n tender thoughts......

"Christmas is Dean Martin’s domain."

"As Christmas crooners go, Dino Paul Crocetti evokes the warmth of a hearth fire on a snowy winter’s morn"

"Dean Martin remains evergreen in our hearts."

This trinity of Rosario's raisin' of the Dino-praisin' are just a few of the extremely extraordinary  elegant expressions of this incredible Italiano's awesome adulation of our King of Cool.  Likes we gotta 'fess up that we had only a wee bit of Mr. Iaconis' great gifts for puttin' pen to paper to lovin' lift up our main man in the most marvelous of marvelous wise ways.  We thank him with the hugest of huge, greatest of great gratitude for perfectly purely poetically usin' his great gifts to share his powerful passion for our Dino with his remarkable readership.  To checks this out in it's original source, likes simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report.

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

OpEd: Dean Martin’s Christmas Classics Reign Supreme

ROSARIO. A. IACONIS

DECEMBER 13, 2020

 

 

Original studio publicity photo of Dean Martin for the film Bells Are Ringing (1960)

 

 Make way, Mariah Carey. Hit the road, Jose Feliciano. Bye-bye, Bing Crosby.

Christmas is Dean Martin’s domain.

Yes, winter is coming. But it need not be a season of unremitting gloom and doom. Let’s put aside our political differences and pandemic fears — at least for one day — and celebrate a festive Yuletide Saturnalia with Dean Martin, the King of Cool.

And Long Island, which boasts a bevy of Dean Martin impressionists, is wall-to-wall Dino country.

As Christmas crooners go, Dino Paul Crocetti evokes the warmth of a hearth fire on a snowy winter’s morn. Listening to his mellifluous Italianate baritone has long been a Christmas tradition in households around the world. From “Let It Snow” to “Marshmallow World” to “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer,” Dean’s wintry melodies embody both the mirth and the majesty of the holiday season.

Social distancing has made it difficult for families to congregate this year, but Dino’s rendition of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” will warm the cockles of even the most Scrooge-like relative’s heart. Not to mention Dean’s “Silver Bells.” And his melancholy “Blue Christmas” puts the Elvis Presley platter to shame.

Throughout his fabled career, Dean Martin was no stranger to outperforming other musical stars. In 1964, he topped the Beatles’ “Heart Days Night” on the music charts with his smash single, “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime.”

In 1977, Dino sang a heartfelt “White Christmas” on his Christmas in California TV special. Afterward, Greg Garrison, Dean’s longtime producer-director, received a telephone call from Irving Berlin, who’d penned the iconic song long ago: “Mr. Garrison, I just want to tell you I just love your (show’s) star, and I want you to know that the White Christmas Dean did on the air was the best version I have ever heard.”

So there, Der Bingle!

And Dean Martin’s “Silent Night” is a reverential ode to the season’s spirituality.

On the cheeky side of Christmas, Dino warbles “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” a saucy take on a snowbound couple’s duet of flirtation and love. Politically correct pundits who rail against this holiday classic are nothing more than modern-day Ebenezers.

Manning a one-horse open sleigh, the Dean of Christmas takes us for a frolicsome trek through a winter wonderland in his jaunty version of “Jingle Bells.”

At the 75th anniversary celebration of the NBC television network, comedian Bob Newhart poignantly praised Dean as “the most talented man” he’d ever known. Along with his films, which throughout the 1960s were never out of the top ten at the box office, Dean Martin hosted a TV variety show for nearly a decade — making him an American icon.

During Apollo 7’s mission in space, Commander Wally Schirra echoed Dean Martin’s bon- homie by holding aloft a sign for all of Earth to see: “Keep those cards and letters coming in, folks.”(It was Dino’s tag line, which he invoked at the end of his hourly variety show every Thursday night.)

In truth, Dean Martin was a multi-threat entertainer whose image as a boozing bon vivant belied an artist of considerable range and diversity. Whether starring with John Wayne or Montgomery Clift in classic Hollywood films, recording smooth romantic ballads, or hosting one of television’s greatest programs, Dino Paul Crocetti achieved international stardom by holding true to his inner creative voice.

When Howard Hawks needed a highly emotive actor to play the drunken deputy to Duke Wayne’s stolid sheriff in “Rio Bravo,” the last person he envisioned was the singing straight man of a disbanded comedy team. Yet Dino’s nuanced Oscar-caliber performance as the fallen lawman who reclaims his honor — and the respect of his peers — wowed the veteran director.

Vincente Minelli, Billy Wilder and George Seaton also found Dean Martin to be a conscientious thespian whose cinematic appeal was equaled by a strong commitment to his craft.

Though not a practitioner of the Stanislavski “Method,” Dean brought an uncommon emotional intensity to his roles. This is especially evident in such dramatic films as “Rio Bravo,” “The Young Lions,” “Some Came Running,” “Ada” and “Career.”

Dino also delivers a powerful performance in the film adaptation of Lillian Hellman’s play, “Toys in the Attic.”

Martin is superb as Captain Vernon Demarest, a debonair, nerves-of-steel airline pilot who must contend with a morose bomber aboard a flight to Rome in “Airport.” This film is as suspenseful today as it was in the movie theaters half a century ago.

And in “Mr. Ricco,” his last starring movie role, Dean Martin plays a principled defense attorney who champions civil liberties and upholds the rule of law while solving a bizarre murder mystery.

After a cozy Yuletide dinner — serenaded by Dino’s dulcet holiday tunes — kick back and relax with a classic Dean Martin film. Though he passed away on Christmas Day twenty-five years ago, Dean Martin remains evergreen in our hearts.

 .

It was a love story between two goofy men who endeared themselves to a nation.

Hey pallies, likes we are bein' beautifully blown 'way by a neat number of delightful Dino-'lerts comin' our way from our pallies at google that are awesomely accentin' the coolest of cool comedic teams of all times, none other then our most beloved Dino and his most beloved partner, Mr. Jerry Lewis.  Likes the remarkable reason for this seems to be that this year on July 25  was the 75th anniversary of our Dino and Jerry beginnin' their potent partnership and July  24 was the 65th anniversary of our Dino and Lewis partin' ways.   Likes how many entertainers have the stayin' partnerships, we dare ask, have the supreme stayin' power of our Dino and Jerry that powerful pads are still proudly proclaimin' their larger then life legacy?!?!?!?

Today we are perfectly pleased to take you to the home base of the "LONG ISLAND PRESS" where Mr. Rosario A. Iaconis (pictured 'bove on the right) offers his OpEd reverent reflections taggin' our Dino and Jerry as "A Comedy Duo For All the Ages."  Mr. Iaconis  credentials include that he "is Chairman of The Italic Institute of America and an Adjunct Professor of Social Sciences Department at Suffolk County Community College," as well as scriber for the "LONG ISLAND PRESS."

Likes is is crystal clear that Rosario knows mucho 'bout puttin' pen to paper to lovin'ly laud our Dino and Mr. Lewis.  'Though we have read pretty much all of the information that Mr. Iaconis powerfully proclaims....we greatly grooves on readily readin' it one more time 'cause of the fantastic flair that Rosario has of terrifically tellin' the life and times of Martin and Lewis.  Likes our most fav of fav swanker then swank statements that Mr. Iaconis shares we have chosen to tag this Dino-report..." It was a love story between two goofy men who endeared themselves to a nation."  Likes Rosario has the coolest of cool creativity in sharin' his obvious awesome adulation for our Dino and his lovin' relationship with Jerry Lewis.

Truly, truly we coulda goes on and on 'bout this extraordinary essay completely chocked full of randy retellin' of the Dino and Jerry decade, but we wants all youse Dino-philes to immensely intergrate into your Dino-devotion for your Dino-selves.  ilovedinomartin is totally totally thrilled to share Mr. Rosario's wonderful work a la Dino and we sweetly shouts out our Dino-appreciato to him and to the pallies at the LONG ISLAND PRESS."   To checks this out in it's original source, likes simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report.  btw pallies we have uncovered more of Iaconis' Dino-praisin' prose which we hope to freely feature here in the not to distant Dino-future.

We Remain

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

 

OpEd: Martin and Lewis — A Comedy Duo For the Ages

ROSARIO. A. IACONIS  JULY 25, 2021

 

 Lewis and Martin 

 Following the Great Depression and a cataclysmic global war, America hungered for laughs. And on July 25, 1946, nearly one year after General Douglas MacArthur accepted Japan’s formal surrender aboard the U.S.S. Missouri, comedy made a comeback.

Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis debuted at the 500 Club in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

No one in attendance, including the two on-stage protagonists, had any inkling that this unlikely pair would become the greatest comedic duo in show business history.

Unlike other teams — Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello, or even Crosby and Hope — Dino Crocetti and Joseph Levitch brought a madcap, unpredictable dynamism to the stage.

In addition to breaking the fourth wall with abandon, Dean and Jerry interspersed mirthful mayhem and irreverence with rich verbal humor. Their extemporaneous two-man revue spoofed societal norms while providing singing, dancing, and sotto voce satire.

But that’s just the tip of the slapstick.

Martin and Lewis supplied guffaws by the bellyful, pioneering a brand of zaniness that would influence comedy well into the 21st century. Steve Martin, Saturday Night Live, Jerry Seinfeld, and David Letterman owe a great debt to Dean and Jerry.

Rather than simply recycling hoary vaudeville routines, the boys played off their physical differences: the suavely handsome Italian singer-cum-straight man pitted against a pratfalling Jewish pagliaccio.

Shattering conventional show business wisdom, these wacky revelers introduced a combustible commedia dell’arte dimension to the proceedings — all the while evincing a genuine, almost brotherly affection for one another.

It was a love story between two goofy men who endeared themselves to a nation.

The boys clowned around as much with themselves as with band leaders and the audience. In between trading impromptu quips, Martin & Lewis overturned tables, cut ties, sheared suits, and spritzed seltzer on one and all in a frenetic pursuit of fun. Both critics and fans could see that Dean and Jerry were having as much of a ball as the audience.

As Carl Reiner noted, spontaneity was their mantra: “I saw what I thought was the funniest ad-libbed thing I had ever seen. It was a riot and we never stopped laughing.”

Martin and Lewis were the kings of all media, conquering radio, nightclubs, television, and the silver screen. From 1949 to 1953, the partners headlined the Martin & Lewis radio series. Having made their initial TV appearance in 1948 on The Toast of the Town (which later became The Ed Sullivan Show), Dean and Jerry periodically co-hosted The Colgate Comedy Hour. Moreover, from 1950 to 1956, the Martin and Lewis-led programs frequently beat Sullivan in the ratings. These episodes set the highest record of any NBC show at that time.

The 60-minute Martin and Lewis extravaganzas, which were televised live, brought the boys’ theater-of-the-absurd hilarity directly into the homes of everyday Americans. (Luigi Pirandello would have been proud indeed.)

It wasn’t long before Hollywood beckoned. In 1949, Dean and Jerry finally made it to the big screen in My Friend Irma. The film’s success engendered a sequel — My Friend Irma Goes West. Audiences simply couldn’t get enough of the daffy duo, clamoring for even more Martin and Lewis flicks. All told, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis starred in 16 motion pictures together, not counting a cameo in The Road to Bali (a Bob Hope and Bing Crosby film.)

The Martin and Lewis oeuvres were veritable cash cows at the box office. Sailor Beware, which cost less than $750,000, amassed $27 million worldwide — a heady sum in 1952. However, in pursuing the bountiful bottom line, producer Hal Wallis tended toward the formulaic: before he gets the girl, debonair Dean must contend with the antics of Jerry, his needy nebbish of a sidekick.

Still, there were more than a few gems in the duo’s body of filmic work. Though Jerry remained the peripatetic clown, Dean’s smooth-as-silk persona, innate acting prowess, and ingratiating on-screen charm centered the celluloid narratives.

Indeed, Jerry always understood that his partner was the fulcrum around which the act pivoted, calling Dean “the greatest straight man in the history of show business” and a “genius.”

Some of the most notable Martin & Lewis films include: The Caddy, Artists and Models, You’re Never Too Young, Living It Up, The Stooge, and That’s My Boy.

Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis gave their final performance at the Copacabana in New York on July 25, 1956 — 10 years (to the day) after they’d teamed up as a comedic duo.

Though Dean and Jerry crossed paths in a humorous cameo on The Eddie Fisher Show in 1958, the two officially reunited in 1976 when Dino strode onto the stage and surprised Jer at the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon.

Jerry returned the favor in 1989 when he joined Dean at Bally’s Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas to celebrate the King of Cool’s 72nd birthday. Wheeling out a huge cake, Jer sang “Happy Birthday” and said, “Why we broke up, I’ll never know.” Touched by his old partner’s gesture, Dean replied “I love you, and I mean it.”

Now that’s truly amore.

Martin and Lewis - "A Moment of Love"

 

Hey pallies, likes July 24 and July 25 are two of the hugest of huge days in all of Dino-history....the beginnin' (July 25) and the endin' (July 24) of the powerfully potent perfect partnership of our most beloved Dino and his most beloved partner, Mr. Jerry Lewis.  Likes never before, and never 'gain will there be anythin' likes the tremendous team of Martin and Lewis.

What our Dino and Mr. Lewis has together, in the words of Mr. Lewis was "a love affair" and today we are proudly pleased to share a wonderful youtube vid created by a pallie tagged "FandomMisfit."
Likes it is the coolest of cool almost 4 minutes of mighty memorable moments of our Dino and Mr. Lewis makin' funny, with tons of brief clips from both their silver screen classics and their small screen antics.

We gotta 'fess up pallies that this vid, touchin' 'n tenderly tagged, "Martin and Lewis - "A Moment of Love," makes our hearts yearn to return to the days when our Dino and Jerry perfectly partnered together to make us sweetly smile and lovin'ly laugh to our hearts content.  Enjoy relivin' so so many of  our Dino and Jerry's decade of delight.  We thanks Mr. "FandomMisfit" for the terrific time and enormous energy put into this wonderful vid.

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters


 

Martin and Lewis - "A Moment of Love"

FandomMisfit

Yesterday In Dino-history: July 25, 1946

Hey pallies, likes yesterday was a day of  reverent rememberin'  the last time that our most beloved Dino and his most beloved partner, Mr. Jerry Lewis performed on stage together, and today is that hugest of huge  historic day in all of Dino-history that Martin and Lewis began their decade long partnership of comedy. seventy-four years 'go this very day, July 25, 1946 our great great man and the ever ever funny Jerry Lewis did their first nightclub performance in Atlantic City together at the Club 500...and the world was never ever the same 'gain...and likes never ever will be!

Today's Dino-remembrance comes from the blog pad "Triviazoids - Day-To-Day Look At History Links" by Mr. Brad Williams.  (Once 'gain this particular post is no longer posted at the Triviazoid's site.)  Likes everythin' our Dino does it likes purely purely perfect...to the point that the team of Martin and Lewis performed for exaxtly 10 years to the day.... beautifully beginnin' July 25, 1946 and endin' as we shared yesterday on July 24, 1956. Certainly this was the decade of comedic brilliance between our beloved Dino and  Mr. Lewis.

So so loves rememberin' and honorin' these incredibly important days in the life and times of our amazin' King of Cool. ilovedinomartin sez our thanks to Mr. Brad Williams for reverently rememberin' and hugely honorin' this very very special day in the life and times of our most beloved Dino!

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

 

“Layyyyyy-deeee!” Did you know the comedy team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis performed together for the first time on 25th in 1946 at a club in Atlantic City? Martin and Lewis also officially broke up on July 24th, 1956.

Danny G's Sunday Serenade with Dino: "Home"

 Welcome back, mi amici. 

Home sweet home. 

To us, Dino-diggers...anyway. 

A home away from home & a place to hang our hats...at day's end. 

A quick stop...just to chill & collect our thoughts. Soak in the good & the not so great thins', that the day has shown. 

Maybe...just a place to clear your minds & listen to some cool cool Dino-jams. 

I'm hopin' that's what ilovedinomartin.com is to ALL the lovers of Dino out there. 

I know it is for me, mi amici. 

I thinks we ALL can use a place like that. Youse 'gree, pals? 

Just a comfy little spot to find out where our pal has popped up now. Or whose life was touched...in some way...by our one & only, Dino. 

I know that I look forward to just relaxin'...& seein' what our fearless leader, DMP, has picked to share with us, day to day. 

So, my friends...as we float our way through Summer...let's start to thinks 'bout the nice...peaceful times...that Dean brings our way. 

Everyday. Every week. Every year. 

How lucky we are, my friends...to have a place like this, to call "Home". Our own place. Away from the world's chaos. 

To just drift...& let life's stress melt away. 

Just for a moment or two. 

So...all that in mind...let's sit back...clear our thoughts....& float away. 

This is 'nother fave o' mine, off Dino's "The Dean Martin Show", vinyl masterpiece..."Home".  

Enjoy the Serenade, pals. 

Dino had the right idea for sure! 

"Though fortune may forsake me...sweet dreams will ever take me home". 

Ahhhhh, so true, pallies. 

Ciao. 

On This Day In Dino-history: July 24, 1956

 

Hey pallies, likes 65 years  'go this very Dino-day, July 24, in 1956 our most beloved Dino had likes his hugest of hugest endin' and likes his newest of newest beginnin' when he called it quits with his partner, Mr. Jerry Lewis...exactly a decade after they had created the greatest comedic partnership in all of world history.

Likes it has becomes likes a touchin' 'n tender tradition on this hugely historic of historic Dino-day to revisit a reverent retellin' of what happened on that last night   Martin and Lewis took the stage at the Copacabana....truly some deeply heart-felt and incredible insights 'bout our Dino and Mr. Lewis' last gig together  shared at the blog "Frontier Net."  (Unfortunately this post no longer exists there.)

From the writings, "The Copacabana, An Illustrated History" by Kristin Baggleaar  comes some deeply deeply devoted details of our Dino and  Mr. Lewis' swan song.  So, once 'gain, let's sit back and reflect on the  meanin's of likes this most bitter-sweet day in all of Dino-history.

 Likes as we often do on this day, 'gain likes gotta 'fess up pallies, likes for years we had zip, zero, nadda  appreciato for Mr. Jerry Lewis whatsoever, and felt that the split-up was exactly what Lewis deserved.  But, ever since readin' and rereadin'  Lewis' touchin' and tender tome "Dean and Me: A Love Story," we have greatly greatly grown in our ubber understandin' and awestruck  appreciato of just how much Mr. Lewis loved, and continued to love our most beloved Dino!

In fact, likes we once 'gain gotta 'fess up that  we have become likes totally totally jealous of Mr. Lewis 'cause he got to spend 10 intimate and glorious years with the coolest person ever to walk the face of the earth...and got to know our Dino better then any other person alive ever has or ever will.  What coulda be more wonderful then that!   In fact, we remember in readin' in Tosches' outstandin' Dino-bio that Lewis was jealous of Jeanne and Jeanne was equally jealous of Lewis...and who could blame 'em...they each wanted our Dino for themselves...and don't we all likes feel likes that same Dino-way?!?!?!

Anyway, on this special Dino-day in Dino-history we remember the lovin' legacy that our Dino and Mr. Lewis had together, and see this endin' as a hugely important new beginnin' for our most beloved Dino.  We are  Dino-rememberin' with youse.

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters



The Copacabana

An Illustrated History by Kristin Baggelaar
.

By summer 1956, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis officially announced that they were breaking up as a team; however, together they were committed to one last engagement at the Copacabana.  Perhaps because it was the last time they would ever work together, Martin and Lewis' final two-week stand at the Copa did a record-breaking business.

The diminished floorshow space was a tribute to their draw and mass impact.  The Doug Coudy production numbers were curtailed as the acts, including the personable dance team of Conn & Mann, were stage waits for the headliners.  Martin & Lewis worked with smoothness and no apparent personal friction despite all the press about their rift, but some dissension was evident with their Pardners bit, a cafe trailer for their soon-to-be released Paramount film of the same name.  To their professional credit they played it straight, with Lewis foiling for Martin's crooning, and likewise, Martin foiling for his partner's clowning.  While both were well received, it was felt that solo or team, the impact was not as resounding as in the past until their final night.  Every celebrity in Manhattan was in the audience to witness the pair's swan song of one of the greatest comedy acts in history.  They pulled out every schtick in their comedy bag for the star-studded crowd, from squirting seltzer down Milton Berle's shirt front to cutting off Monte Proser's necktie.  The sophisticated cafe crowd wouldn't let them quit.

The final moments of the last show of their farewell engagement at the Copa on a hot Tuesday night, July 24, 1956, are pressed indelibly in the minds of those who were present.  Martin's face was impassable, cool to the end.  They finished with the final crescendo from Pardners:  "You and me, we'll be the greatest pardners, buddies, and pals!"  They joined hands for a last bow.  Martin hugged Lewis.  The audience exploded in an emotional uproar.  Jackie Gleason jumped up and grabbed the mike, wiped away a tear, and said, "Folks, this can't be allowed to happen."  The audience roared its approval, but Martin & Lewis just shook their heads, no.  It was over.  There was no encore.  Martin took one aisle away from the floor; Lewis took the other.

Hey pallies, today we are greatly gratified to sweetly share a third helpin' of Dino-centric devotion from our " down under " pallie Mr. Alan Royle (pictured on the left) who the last two days has provided us with mucho delightful Dino-pleasure with his incredible insights into Martin and Lewis gladdenin' the hearts of all us Dino-diggin' Dino-philes.

Likes today we return to Alan's  self tagged pad " Historian Alan Royle  - Historical Movie Info - Movie Trivia - Fascinating Hollywood Facts."

As previously noted Mr. Royle hails from Fremantle, Western Australia and has a fantastic fascination with flicks and has authored a pleasin' plethora of books on the topic.  If youse clicks HERE youse can view Royle's Amazon Author's page to checks 'em out.
 

Today we will be appreciatively offerin' Royle's   July 8, 2015 Dino-post  tagged "Dean Martin – funny and nice." tha amazin'ly taccent some our Dino's early career, his comedic partnership with Mr. Jerry Lewis, the Dean Martin Show, and thoughts on our Dino's passin' from our presence.  We learned at least one new Dino-truth (see if youse can figure out what that is pallies).  We likes 'specially appreciated the pixs that Alan chose to share.

We once 'gain salute Mr. Alan Royle and thank him for his obvious appreciation for our most beloved Dino as expressed in this post as well as the others that we have previously shared.  To checks this out in it's original source, likes simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report.

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

Dean Martin – funny and nice.

July 8, 2015  

In his youth Dean Martin delivered bootleg liquor, ran numbers and craps games for hoodlums, and fought as a prizefighter under the sobriquet of ‘Kid Crochet’. He worked at the Club Alabama in New York City, an establishment owned by Louis Buchalter (a.k.a. Louis Lepke), the killer who ran Murder Incorporated. When Lepke went to the electric chair, Martin sat with his family throughout the execution. .

Louis Lepke – Murder Inc.

He was ten years older than his comedy duo partner Jerry Lewis. When Sinatra first saw their act at mobster Frank Costello’s Copacabana Night Club in 1948, he was unimpressed by Dean. ‘The Dago’s lousy’, he observed, ‘but the little Jew is great’. At the Copa the duo earned $5,000 a week at a time when the average national income was just $1,500 per annum! When they took their show from the east coast to California, they did so with financial backing from gangster Mickey Cohen. In fact, most of their early bookings were in Mob establishments. Lewis initially had no idea who his employers were, but Dino knew most of them from way back. They were his friends and associates. They did favors for him and he did favors for them.

Martin & Lewis

Jerry’s over-weening ambition was in direct contrast to Dino’s lackadaisical approach to everything, including his career. Whereas Dino just wanted to enjoy himself, his partner was on an ego trip that spiraled out of control. Jerry took charge of everything, even selecting the musical arrangements for Dean’s songs. In fairness to Lewis, however, if he had not done so their extraordinarily successful rise to the top might never have happened. Martin was just too laid back to initiate anything. If the duo was approached in a bar or restaurant and offered work at some club or casino, Dean would simply jerk his thumb at Lewis and say, ‘talk to the Jew”. He had no interest in details. Only in having a good time.

Their break-up was inevitable and it was not an amicable one. By then, Lewis was virtually treating Martin as his employee, ordering him about and criticizing his lack of zeal. The final straw came when he told Dean to don a policeman’s uniform for a comedy sequence in The Delicate Delinquent. Dean had grown up in tough neighborhoods, hating policemen, and had no intention of wearing the uniform. Heated words were exchanged and Martin walked out. Once the duo had fulfilled certain contractual obligations they went their separate ways. They did not speak again for twenty years.

Lewis goes it alone

As a solo performer, one that was not in demand, Dean devised his ‘drunk’ persona for his stage act. It was a roaring success. He did not actually have a drinking problem until his later years, but to stay in character he always carried a glass with him even on the golf course. It usually contained apple cider. Oddly enough, virtually everybody he worked with agreed that, off camera, he was by far the funnier of the duo, a fact Lewis’s fragile ego could never come to terms with. In 1957, within a year of the breakup, Dean debuted solo at the Sands in Vegas. An instant success, he found himself doing six-week stints there, twice yearly, for the next thirty years. He was paid $300,000 a year for just twelve weeks work, a workload that suited him to perfection.

He was one of only a few people who could talk back to Sinatra and still retain his friendship. Very much his own man, he would often wander off to his hotel room to read comics or watch westerns on TV, rather than join Frank and his cronies in all night binges and partying. When his hit song ‘Everybody Loves Somebody’ knocked the Beatles off the number one spot on Billboard, he good-naturedly cabled Elvis Presley who had long been an admirer of his. ‘If you can’t handle the Beatles, I’ll do it for you, pally’, the cable read.

The Dean Martin Show began on TV in 1965 and remained the most successful program on the tube throughout the next decade. Initially, he didn’t want to do it, but the salary of $40,000 a week for one day’s work changed his mind. In fact, he rarely needed more than about three hours in the studio each week to fulfil his commitment. By 1967 the pay per episode had jumped to an unprecedented $285,000! Not bad for just 3-4 hours work.

The Dean Martin Show

His daughter Deana recalled the day his XKE Jaguar broke down on Sunset Boulevard ‘for the umpteenth time’. He stepped out of the vehicle, produced a derringer from his boot and shot it as he would a horse with a broken leg. It was typical of his zany brand of humor.

In 1987, his son, Dino Jr, flew his Air National Guard Phantom Jet into the side of Mt San Gorgonio near Palm Springs and was killed. He was thirty-five. By a strange coincidence, ten years earlier Dolly Sinatra, Frank’s mother, died when the airplane in which she was a passenger collided with the same mountain.

Dino Jr.

Martin never got over his son’s death. In his final months he would sit in his private booth at his favorite bar, preferably alone, listening to his albums being played in the background and drinking quietly. When asked what he was doing he would reply, ‘waiting to die’. After declining major liver and kidney surgery to prolong his life, he passed away on Christmas Day, 1995.

On December 28, 1995 the city of Las Vegas turned off the lights on the Strip for one minute as a sign of respect for the popular entertainer. The only previous time this had happened was when Sammy Davis Junior died. Dean was buried in a crypt at Westwood Village Memorial Park a few yards from Marilyn Monroe. The plaque on his tomb reads: ‘Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime’.

As from the year 2002, the date June 7 has been declared a public holiday in the state of Ohio. Martin was born in Steubenville, Ohio on that day in 1917. It was the first time anywhere in the United States that an entertainer had been so honored.

 

Hey pallies, likes we return this very Dino-day with a swank second helpin' of powerfully potent prose from the pen of literary luminary Mr. Alan Royle awesomely accentin' the classic comedic team of our most most beloved Dino and Mr. Jerry Lewis.   If likes youse imbibed yester-Dino-day's Dino-gram then youse will knows that Mr. Royle, an Australia native,  is a prolific proser with tons of titles to his cool credit, many awesomely accentin' Hollywood's rich and famous entertainers past and present. 

Today's Dino-reflection frankly focuses on a number of Martin & Lewis' big screen epics and the deeper and deeper divide that developed between our Dino and Jerry  with our Dino's deeper and deeper  discontent with bein' the fall guy for Jerry.   Likes 'gain Alan shares some intriguin' insights combined with some incredible images....truly truly a fantastic feast for both our readin' and viewin' pleasure.  

Likes one of our most fav tender and touch' thoughts from Mr. Royle is Alan's remembrance of how Jerry shelled out 30 thou of his own bread to get the  "Oscar-winning songwriter Harry Warren and his lyricist Jack Brooks" "to pen a hit song for Dean for their upcoming feature film, The Caddy."  That coolest of cool croon was, of course, that classic of classic Dino-croon, "That's Amore."  While truly truly our Dino and Jerry had their ups and downs throughout their ten year partnership, it is crystal clear how deeply and truly that Mr. Lewis truly and deeply loved our main man.  

Our fav image and remembrance from this Dino-devotional is, of course, the 1976 reunion that our Dino and Jerry had at the annual MD telethon hosted by Mr. Lewis.  The  last incredible image shared in this poetic prose shows the huge happiness on both our Dino and Jerry's faces as Mr. Frank Sinatra brought our Dino and Jerry together for the first time in two decades.

Likes pallies, all youse Dino-philes for deeply dig this dreamy Dino-read for Dino-certain!  Once 'gain, ilovedinomartin supremely shares our Dino-delight with these energetic efforts by Mr. Alan Royle on behalf of our most beloved Dino and his most beloved partner, Mr. Jerry Lewis.  To checks this out in it's original source, likes simply clicks on the tag of this Dino-report.

We Remain,

Yours In Dino,

Dino Martin Peters

DEAN MARTIN & JERRY LEWIS – PT2.

August 3, 2019 Alan Royle  

Jerry Lewis (L) & Dean Martin

One of Dean Martin’s & Jerry Lewis’s connected ‘friends’ in the fifties was the gangster Willie Moretti, a long-time associate of mob boss Frank Costello. Willie was the man who allegedly ‘convinced’ Tommy Dorsey to let Sinatra out of his contract with the bandleader, by poking a gun in Tommy’s mouth and having him sign the necessary paper – ‘or else’. That was back in the thirties. In the early fifties he met and formed a fondness for Dean & Jerry, even extending an invitation to them to attend his daughter’s wedding. They could scarcely refuse and performed gratis at the reception. Willie never forgot a favour and, soon afterwards, invited them to lunch with him at his favourite restaurant, Joe’s Elbow Room in Cliffside Park, New Jersey. They promised to be there but Jerry came down with a severe case of the mumps the day before and the duo had to cancel. Later that afternoon they heard on the radio that Willie had been shot to death as he dined that day at Joe’s Elbow Room!

Willie Moretti

Movie-wise, 1952 &1953 were arguably the comic duo’s best years with Sailor Beware and Jumping Jacks in ’52, and The Stooge, Scared Stiff and The Caddy released the following year. Hal Wallis produced these films and, more importantly, edited them as well. As an editor of dramas he had few equals, his shining moment being when he turned Casablanca (1942) into the classic it has since become. But the man had not the faintest idea about comedy and was not one to be told of his shortcomings. ‘I’ve been making films for forty years’, was his usual response. He knew the Martin & Lewis comedy formula was a successful one but, as the years rolled by, Dean became more and more disillusioned by his part in their success. Critics raved about Jerry’s performances, yet all but ignored Martin’s hugely important role. And it grated on him. Not at first, but later.

Joe’s Elbow Room, New Jersey 1951

Jerry was a massive fan of his partner’s singing, so much so that, in 1952, he secretly approached Oscar-winning songwriter Harry Warren and his lyricist Jack Brooks, paid them $30,000 out of his own pocket, and asked them to pen a hit song for Dean for their upcoming feature film, The Caddy. They came up with the iconic That’s Amore and it was a monster hit. Huge. It sold two million as a single and was nominated for an Academy Award. Suddenly, Dean had become a serious recording artist.

It is little wonder that Dean became sick and tired of being demeaned and humiliated in print by critics who considered Martin & Lewis to be a ‘one-man show’, and that one man was not Dino. Thomas O’Malley, a staff writer for a fifties magazine called TV Forecast, wrote a scathing piece typical of the items that began to get to the crooner: ‘Although Martin is probably the best partner Jerry could ever have teamed up with, let’s face it, Lewis could have paired off with Walter Brennan and been a sensation. He IS the team. If his stuff ever becomes ho-hum material, Dean certainly wouldn’t be able to carry the slack.’ In August ’54, Jerry was diagnosed with hepatitis and was ordered to bed for several weeks. Rather than cancel their engagement at Ciro’s altogether, Dean decided to perform solo – and he knocked them dead! He sang in his own voice and in Jerry’s, cracked jokes and played to the microphone as if it was his absent partner. The audience applauded, whistled and stamped their feet.

The partnership was in its death-throes when the duo travelled to Arizona in 1955 to shoot the ironically titled Pardners. It is one of their weaker vehicles, plagued by a seemingly endless parade of cold and rainy days that delayed filming, not to mention a couple of stars who spoke to each other only when the script demanded they do so. At the conclusion of the picture, however, they stepped out of character to assure patrons that everything was fine between them. ‘We have something to say to you, right, Dean?’ said Lewis. ‘We sure do, Jer’, Martin replied. ‘We want you folks to know we sure enjoyed workin’ for ya, and we hope you enjoyed the picture.’ ‘Yeah’, and we hope you’ll keep coming to see us’, chipped in Lewis, ‘because we like seeing you.’ The movie was released on July 25, 1956 – the day after the comedy duo officially broke up!

Jerry & Dean with producer Hal Wallis

Their final film together was Hollywood or Bust (1956). Off the set they never spoke to each other. Pardners had been produced by their own company York Productions, so costly delays and disruptions had been kept to a minimum. This one, however, was a Hal Wallis production. Any delays cost him money, not Martin & Lewis – and Jerry was in a bloody-minded mood. In short, he was completely off the rails, constantly picking fights with Wallis, the director Frank Tashlin, and members of the cast and crew. Tashlin reached breaking point one afternoon and stopped production. ‘I want you off the set’, he told a flabbergasted Jerry. ‘You’re a discourteous, obnoxious prick – an embarrassment to me and a disgrace to the profession.’ A stunned Lewis left the set and went home where he did some soul-searching. Later that evening he rang Tashlin and begged to be reinstated, vowing to behave himself. They completed the picture. Jerry maintained he never saw Hollywood or Bust because it stirred up too many negative memories.

Dean in The Young Lions (1958)

Martin & Lewis still had contractual commitments to complete after they officially broke up. These included ten nights at the 500 Club in Atlantic City; a 21-hour muscular dystrophy telethon broadcast from Carnegie Hall; and three shows a night for thirteen days at the Copa, winding up on July 24, the tenth anniversary of their time together as a team. And then it was over. Hal Wallis had lost his big money-spinning team but he barely skipped a beat. Ten days later he started shooting Love Me Tender with his newest discovery, a young and eager Elvis Presley. Wallis knew as much about music as he did about comedy. Nothing. But he again made a fortune.

Jerry with Judy Garland at the Frontier Hotel ’56

The word on the street was more or less unanimous. Jerry would continue to succeed on his own but Dean would not make it without his goofy partner. And the initial indications tended to vindicate that prognosis. Dean’s first picture as a solo was the very ordinary Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1957). His second, however, The Young Lions (1958), provided him with a good opportunity to really act and he surprised everyone. The following year he made Rio Bravo alongside John Wayne and he never looked back. Then someone had the good sense to tap into his marvellous sense of humour. Before long he was a hit on stage in Vegas, and that led to his own enormously popular TV show, one that kept him at the top of the television pile for almost a quarter of a century. And all the while he kept churning out hit singles and albums. In 1964, he did something that no other recording artist had been able to do to that point. His single, ‘Everybody Loves Somebody’, knocked the Beatles off top spot on the American charts!

In the summer of ’56 Jerry was asked to go on for an ill Judy Garland at the Frontier Hotel in Vegas in front of a thousand people. He was quite brilliant and even rounded off the show by singing ‘Rock- a -Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody’. Never one to underestimate his talents, he approached Capitol Records about a recording contract. They turned him down but Decca picked him up. His first album reached # 3 on the LP charts! He made 16 movies during the sixties, either starring in, directing, producing – or all three. Some were hits. Most were not so good. His son Gary became a chart-topping singer until he enlisted in the Army and saw action in the Vietnam War, action that affected him psychologically.

After slipping and injuring his back while dancing on TV in 1965, Jerry became addicted to the painkiller Percodan. He also lost millions in failed business ventures, particularly a chain of Jerry Lewis Cinemas around the US that lost money. In 1973, he locked himself in his bathroom and put a .38 pistol in his mouth, intending to end it all. But he did not go through with it. Then, at the Sahara in Vegas, he was performing for Telethon, raising money to fight muscular dystrophy, when his guest star Frank Sinatra brought Dean onto the stage to surprise him. The former partners hugged for the first time in 20 years and the audience went wild.

Dean Martin lost interest in life after his beloved son Dino died in a plane crash in 1987. Diagnosed with lung cancer in September 1993, the aging singer quit smoking but refused major lung and kidney surgery that may have prolonged his life. Dean died on Christmas Day 1995. He was 78. Jerry Lewis outlived him by 22 years, passing away at 91 in 2017. He was once nominated for a Nobel Prize for his fifty years of raising money for muscular dystrophy!