The Family Jewels (1965)

A young heiress must choose between six uncles, one of which is up to no good and out to harm the girl's beloved bodyguard who practically raised her.

Director:

Jerry Lewis

Writers:

Jerry Lewis, Bill Richmond

Stars:

Jerry Lewis, Sebastian Cabot, Neil Hamilton

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jerry Lewis	...	Willard Woodward / James Peyton / Everett Peyton / Julius Peyton / Capt. Eddie Peyton / Skylock Peyton / 'Bugs' Peyton
Sebastian Cabot	...	Dr. Matson
Neil Hamilton	...	Attorney
Jay Adler	...	Mr. Lyman, Attorney
Robert Strauss	...	Pool Hall Owner
Jesslyn Fax	...	Airline Passenger
Renie Riano	...	Airline Passenger
Ellen Corby	...	Airline Passenger
Frances Weintraub Lax	...	Airline Passenger (as Frances Lax)
Marjorie Bennett	...	Airline Passenger
Herbie Faye	...	Joe
Milton Frome	...	Pilot
Gene Baylos	...	Clown
Donna Butterworth	...	Donna Peyton (as Miss Donna Butterworth)
John Lawrence	...	Chief Petty Officer

Storyline

Nine-year-old Donna Peyton is orphaned when her father dies and leaves her with a $30 million fortune. Her late father's attorney, John Wyman, explains that she must visit each of her six uncles (all played by Jerry Lewis) and decide which of them will become her new "father."

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Plot Keywords:

cigarette smoking | man wears eyeglasses | apology | kidnapping a child | kidnapping a girl | 

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Taglines:

Jerry is seven times nuttier in seven gems of character portrayal!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 October 1965 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Das Familienjuwel

Filming Locations:

Ontario International Airport - 2900 E. Airport Drive, Ontario, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jerry Lewis Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

About eight minutes into the film, Jerry Lewis (as the chauffeur) sits down to listen to a phonograph record. It's his son's band's (Gary Lewis & The Playboys) biggest hit, "This Diamond Ring."

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Connections

Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Une vague nouvelle (1999)

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Soundtracks

Little Miss Go-Go
Written by Leon Russell (as Russell), Lou Brown (as Brown) and Snuff Garrett (as Leslie)
Sung by Gary Lewis & The Playboys

User Reviews

Beginning of Lewis' fatal decline as director and funnyman.

One has nearly always gotten the impression from watching the antics of Mr. Lewis that the humor is being undermined by a fatal egotism which knows no reasonable or acceptable boundaries. 1965's The Family Jewels marks the beginning of Lewis' long decline--his wish to play seven roles, far from constituting a bravura tour de force, is simply a sign of his nauseating hubris and megalomania. What better way to dominate the proceedings and garner all the attention for oneself than to occupy seven of the eight principal roles? Also, Lewis at this stage is teetering indecisively between being a director of kiddie flicks and turning out films designed to appeal (or at least be tolerated by) a mature audience. Here he fails dismally. The kiddie humor is mostly forced; the adult content betrays Lewis' all-consuming flaws of cloying sentimentality, self-righteousness, and hackneyed plot devices. You KNOW the little girl will pick the chauffeur to be her "father," you KNOW the foppish Brit will turn out to be a pool shark, the thug will have a heart of gold, etc. I get the impression that it is at about this point Mr. Lewis should have sought long-term psychotherapy so that he could have combatted the inner demons built up during the course of his (admittedly harrowing) childhood. Even at the self-expressed risk of losing his sense of humor, this move would have been cost-effective--his film previous to this, The Disorderly Orderly, was, in many respects, his last hurrah. Sadly, The Family Jewels (note the smirkingly referential title; note the poster in which a cloyingly "cute" moppet with a soft fuzzy beret is surrounded by seven phallic Jerry Lewises) deserves its reputation as a flop. But at least it's a very interesting case study.