Joseph Levitch, better known as Jerry Lewis, was a famous American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker, and humanitarian. Jerry Lewis earned $50 million. Throughout the ’50s and ’60s, Jerry Lewis was one of the highest-paid actors in the world. His films routinely made millions of dollars at the box office and in the years after their initial release.
Lewis earned the title “The King of Comedy” due to his prominence in popular culture as a comedian and philanthropist. His partnership with singer Dean Martin began in 1946, and they became a legendary comedic combination. In 1956, Martin and Lewis were already a successful theatrical act, which led to them being top-grossing movie stars, television regulars, singers/recording artists, and movie directors.
He was a pioneering figure in the use of video assist, which offers instantaneous feedback on the camera’s view of a situation. In his role as national chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), Jerry Lewis sponsored The Jerry Lewis Telethon to raise money for MDA’s ongoing research into the disease.
Jerry Lee Lewis’s Net Worth
At the time of his death, Jerry Lee Lewis was worth $50 million. Throughout the ’50s and ’60s, Jerry Lewis was one of the world’s highest-paid performers because of the huge salary he could demand and the subsequent box office success of his films.
After rising to prominence with Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis forged a successful solo career as a comedian. After that, he went on to star as a lead in movies and television shows, as well as pursue careers in singing, directing, and producing. The singer gave his first public performance in 1949 and quickly found work in area nightclubs and eateries.
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Scandal and Drop in Earnings
It was reported that Jerry was initially generating $10,000 per night from his live appearances. But, that all changed after his scandalous marriage. The musician, who married seven times in his lifetime, married his first cousin once removed when she was just 13 years old in December 1957.
The allegations damaged his reputation and career to the point where he was only making $250 per night from live performances. The singer, however, quickly regained his popularity and continued putting out new material.
Jerry Lee Lewis Early Life
Lewis entered this world on March 16th, 1926, in Newark, New Jersey. Lewis was reared in a Jewish home by his Jewish parents. His Russian immigrant parents helped raise his father, Daniel Levitch, a master of ceremonies and vaudevillian. His mother Rachael was a Polish pianist and musical director who hailed from Warsaw.
Lewis’s given name was Joseph, but he went by Jerry to avoid being confused with comedian Joe E. Lewis and boxer Joe Louis. He was a popular prankster at Irvington High School, where he studied until the tenth grade when he decided to leave school.
Jerry Lee Lewis Journey
When Jerry Lee Lewis took up the guitar at a young age, he never stopped. Throughout the 1950s, he became famous for pioneering a new kind of rock & roll. The more successful he became as a musician and the more he toured the world, the more his net worth became.
Music was the primary source of income for Jerry Lee Lewis, accounting for the bulk of his fortune. There were almost 30 studio albums he put out during his lifetime, many of which were critically and commercially acclaimed. His concerts were extremely popular, and he traveled frequently to sell out crowds around the country and the world.
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Jerry Lee Lewis was successful in other areas of business as well as music, which added to his musical riches. Jerry Lee Lewis had a lot of success, but his life was not without hardships. He had seven marriages and several high-profile affairs, so his private life was anything but smooth.
There was a direct correlation between his drug and alcohol abuse and the decline in his health and financial stability. Yet, Jerry Lee Lewis was able to retire with a net worth of $10 million, which is a reflection of his enduring fame and brilliance. Jerry Lee Lewis was a founding father of rock and roll.
His groundbreaking style and imposing attitude blazed a trail for musicians to follow. He had a difficult existence, but he nonetheless managed to leave behind a musical and financial empire. According to reports, Jerry Lee Lewis’s estate was valued at around $50 million at the time of his passing.
Lewis’ Career Took Off with Million Dollar Quartet
A month after signing with Sun recordings, Jerry jammed in the studio with guests Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley. The session was recorded and included on their CD Million Dollar Quartet a year later. That was the beginning of the end of the singer’s career.
It was in 1957 that he first released songs under the moniker Jerry Lee Lewis and his Pumpin’ Piano. Thereafter, he released Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On, which was later added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry. Big Balls of Fire was another one of his songs that catapulted him to stardom.
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Jerry Lewis Personal life
The famous comedian only tied the knot twice in his entire life. With his first wife, Patti Palmer, he had six sons. They tied the knot in ’44, but divorced in ’83, with Lewis remarrying the following year. Following his second marriage to Sandra Pitnick, the actor adopted a daughter they named Danielle because they were unable to produce children of their own.
In spite of the star’s fame and fortune, Jerry Lewis and Sandra Pitnick stayed married until his death in 2017. Jerry Lewis’s first wife, Patti Palmer, gave birth to six children, all sons. Joseph (1959), Christopher (1957), Anthony (1959), Gary (1946), and Ronald (1949) (1964).
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