User Reviews

I saw this show on its original air date, 19 October 1982. I was hypnotized by the disinterest Bill Cosby showed to Jerry Lewis. Jerry was pulling out all the stops, including his trademark physical shtick, but Cosby never cracked a smile. In fact it seemed to me that there was an underlying hostility emanating from the veteran Cosby towards the legendary Lewis. I am a fan of both these comedians. As a kid my family always watched Cosby's TV shows, starting with "I Spy", and "The Bill Cosby Show" (in which he played a bachelor gym teacher). My dad had a collection of Cosby comedy albums. As for Jerry Lewis, I remember watching & loving his comedy movies on TV while growing up, like "The Delicate Delinquent", "Cinderfella", and "The Nutty Professor" (featuring his Buddy Love role). So I've always been haunted by the question, since the day I saw these two stellar funny-men on the Tonight Show (with Cosby guest-hosting), why Bill Cosby seemed like he would not give Jerry Lewis the time of day?

I also watched this episode and was amazed at how Jerry Lewis wasn't able to say a word. When they went to commercial break you could see how upset Lewis was. It was a very strange situation. It appeared that Cosby was purposely trying to hurt Lewis. Every time Lewis tried to say something Cosby would cut him off. I always remembered this show and looked for it recently to see if my memory was accurate. The fact that someone else had the same reaction makes me sure that my original impression was correct. Cosby was a guest host and you wouldn't think that something like this would happen especially with a big star like Jerry Lewis.