The Patsy (1964)

When a star comedian dies, his comedy team, decides to train a nobody to fill the shoes of the Star in a big TV show (a Patsy). But the man they choose, bellboy Stanley Belt, cant do ... See full summary »

Director:

Jerry Lewis

Writers:

Jerry Lewis, Bill Richmond

Stars:

Jerry Lewis, Ina Balin, Everett Sloane

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jerry Lewis	...	Stanley Belt / Singers of the Trio
Ina Balin	...	Ellen Betz
Everett Sloane	...	Caryl Fergusson
Phil Harris	...	Chic Wymore
Keenan Wynn	...	Harry Silver
Peter Lorre	...	Morgan Heywood
John Carradine	...	Bruce Arden
Hans Conried	...	Prof. Mulerr
Richard Deacon	...	Sy Devore
Scatman Crothers	...	Shoeshine Boy (as Scat Man Crothers)
Del Moore	...	Policeman
Neil Hamilton	...	The Barber
Buddy Lester	...	Copa Café MC
Nancy Kulp	...	Helen, Theatergoer
Lloyd Thaxton	...	Lloyd

Storyline

When a star comedian dies, his comedy team, decides to train a nobody to fill the shoes of the Star in a big TV show (a Patsy). But the man they choose, bellboy Stanley Belt, cant do anything right. The big TV show is getting closer, and Stanley gets worse all the time.

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Plot Keywords:

bellboy | patsy | redheaded woman | slapstick comedy | written and directed by cast member | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 September 1964 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Son of Bellboy

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures,Patti Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The plane crash scene at the beginning of the movie was taken from The Mountain (1956).

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Quotes

[Ina Balin, as Ellen, is bawling after seeing Jerry's character Stanley fall over the balcony of his apartment. Jerry Lewis appears from the right, behind her]
Stanley Belt: Aren't you overacting a little bit, Miss Bawling... Balin... Balin? It's a movie, you see? I'm fine. Uh, the people in the theater know I ain't gonna die. Here, it's a movie stage. Here, look at this, see? There's wires and lights and I'm gonna make more movies, so I couldn't die. It's like a "make-believe." It's a dumb city.
Ellen Betz: Mr. Lewis, ...

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Connections

Featured in 100 Years of Comedy (1997)

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Soundtracks

I Lost My Heart in a Drive-In Movie
Lyrics by Jack Brooks
Music by David Raksin
Performed by Jerry Lewis

User Reviews

The Patsy has co-writer, director, and star Jerry Lewis in both hilarious and not-so mode

This Jerry Lewis comedy, which he also co-wrote and directed, begins with an unusual premise: a movie star has died and his staff of handlers (Keenan Wynn, Everett Sloane, John Carradine, Phil Harris, Ina Balin, and Peter Lorre who died before this was released) are discussing if they should split up. That would become "no" when Jerry, as bellhop Stanley Belt, shows up and clumsily drops his ice and glasses which makes the team try to make him a star. I'll stop there and just say that while I know that Lewis tends to overdo his shtick, I usually find it funny maybe both because and despite him doing so. I mean, when he mouths in the wrong places his recorded lyrics to his hit song (which I personally don't think would have been a hit even as a novelty tune) or has a disastrous encounter with music teacher Hans Conried (a veteran player of Lewis' movies), I'm so there laughing my head off! And a couple of silent sequences are pretty amusing if not as funny. But when we see Stanley at his night club debut, his accident-prone and mixed-words performance is painful to watch not only to the characters watching but to the actual film audience as well though it's possible Lewis meant it that way. There's also some entertaining tap dancing by The Four Step Brothers and some cool shoe shine-bopping by Scatman Crothers even though his character borders on an African-American stereotype though even there you get something of an edge in modern humor at the end of that bit. After the aforementioned night club bit, it loses some steam but the ending more than makes up for it. Oh, and cameos by the likes of Hedda Hopper and Ed Sullivan are also fine for the good sports they show up as. So on that note, The Patsy is well worth a look for any Lewis fan out there. P.S. This is one of the few movies that both Keenan and his father, Ed Wynn, both show up in though in this case, they have no scenes together. Oh, and Sullivan mentions both Martin & Lewis and The Beatles as among those that made their TV debut on his show, having filmed his scene not long after The Fab Four's first appearance with him on February 9, 1964.