The Big Why is still unanswered as MDA Telethon plays out without Jerry Lewis

By John Katsilometes

Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011 | 4:08 p.m.

The question was posed in a TV studio located, of all places, near Dean Martin Drive and Jerry Lewis Way.

“MSNBC Sunday” host Alex Witt asked it: How can it be that Jerry Lewis won’t be onstage at the South Point this evening to say a proper goodbye at the MDA Telethon?

“Do we know if this is health related?” Witt asked, reasonably, as Lewis is 85 years old and as recently as June had to miss an appearance on behalf of the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation of Australia, citing physical exhaustion.

But no, Lewis certainly seems healthy enough to appear on television for 10 minutes, physically robust enough to sing a song and say goodbye. His appearance Aug. 20 at the Nevada Broadcasters Association dinner at Red Rock Resort reinforced that he is in good shape, and his omission from the telethon is not for failing health.

“It is somewhat inconceivable that the MDA Telethon will go on without Jerry Lewis,” Witt added, with mounting incredulity. “When you talk to people, are they scratching their heads and saying, ‘Really? The telethon with no Jerry Lewis?’ ”

Simple answer: Yes.

Officially, the Big Why remains unanswered. What can be said at this moment is Lewis is not part of the 46th MDA Telethon because MDA officials and he never could arrive at an agreeable context and format for what would be Lewis’ historic final appearance. A late-arriving effort to record Lewis performing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” with an orchestra Thursday at South Point collapsed Wednesday morning.

Thirty-three musicians were ready to record that clip. Lewis, evidently, was not.

The overriding issue is Lewis and the MDA are clearly at odds and have been at least since the initial announcement in October that the telethon would be condensed from 21 ½ hours to 6. The proverbial red flag was not that the MDA had decided to streamline the show, though Lewis was never in favor of the shorter format.

Nope, the eyebrow-raising development was that no role for Lewis was specified in that announcement. His name was edited out of the telethon’s official title, “Jerry Lewis” didn’t appear anywhere in that news release until the third of four pages -- and only when Lewis’ 1976 reunion with Dean Martin was revisited.

It’s a strange way to refer to a legendary entertainer and philanthropist, to put it mildly. At that point, even Mr. Magoo could see there were fissures in the relationship between Lewis and the MDA. It is not at all a stretch to say that both sides want to run the telethon, and if they can’t agree on format and procedure, it’s the host who either complies or departs.

And Jerry Lewis is anything but compliant, especially when it comes to raising money for “his kids.”

But there will be a telethon, of course, and there will be a high complement of stars. For tonight’s show, airing on KTNV Channel 13 from 6 p.m. to midnight, Celine Dion is scheduled to perform during the opening hour. Jennifer Lopez, Lady Antebellum and Boyz II Men also are expected to take part. The quartet of hosts filling the role Lewis has held for five decades are “American Idol” executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, “The Biggest Loser” host and “Days of Our Lives” cast member Alison Sweeney and celebrity reporters Jann Carl and Nancy O’Dell.

Closing the telecast, a moment traditionally reserved for Lewis singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” Jordin Sparks, Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi and Jon Secada will sing with the Las Vegas Mass Choir.

As for the legendary now-former telethon chairman and host, Lewis is not saying anything, nor has he for several months, about the MDA and his role with the organization. Today, his affiliation with the MDA can only be viewed in past tense, though, by his measure, he has led a historic fundraising effort that has garnered more than $2 billion for the organization.

Predictably, the treatment of Lewis by the MDA has sparked response from his supporters in the entertainment industry, chiefly his longtime friend Richard Belzer. As The Associated Press has reported, a group of comics in Los Angeles, who attempted to have Lewis reinstated as a performer on the telethon, has planned a Web-athon on Monday to collect donations for an award on Lewis’ behalf. That award would be presented each year to scientists working to find a cure for Muscular Dystrophy. That effort is being headed up by Laugh Factory owner Jamie Masada.

Tonight’s telecast is without question the end of an era. Maybe there will be a mention of Lewis’ peerless role in the organization by one of the celebrity guests. There is one theory that the events of the past several weeks are part of a vast publicity stunt and that Lewis might well appear in person on the show after all, a moment that would rival his onstage reunion with Martin.

If that were to happen, and I cannot believe it would, it would be one of Lewis’ greatest performances. But as they say in Vegas, don’t bet on it. Not today. Not ever.

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