Jerry Lewis is a well known comedian with a career that has spanned over 50 years. He was first noticed when he was doing comedy with Dean Martin in 1946. Lewis was only 20 years old at the time. He has done numerous stand up comedy acts as well as comical movies. He has earned many awards over the span of his career for both his movies and his comedy acts.

Jerry Lewis has long been associated with charitable organizations. Since 1966 he has been the spokesman for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. On Labor Day he hosts the telethon to bring awareness to this dehabilitating illness. People want to be able to help so they call in to donate money. Some of the children that are affected by Muscular Dystrophy join Lewis for the event. Many celebrities donate their time and talent for this worthy cause as well.

More than $10 million is raised annually from this telethon. It is the largest fundraiser for the ongoing research, education, and develop in the area of Muscular Dystrophy. He is able to get large companies and private donors to continually donate large sums of money to the cause. Lewis also encouraged people to donate to the Red Cross after Hurricane Katrina. The donations immediately started pouring in after his encouragement.

Even though Lewis has always been know to viewers as a very fun person, his own life has been a struggle. He has dealt with severe back pain since he was 40 years old. The back injury resulted from a comedy scene that didn’t go according to plan. He has also been diagnosed with diabetes and prostate cancer. Even though he eats a healthy diet and gets plenty of exercise, Lewis has suffered from two heart attacks.

Still, he continues go get back out there and continue entertaining crowds. Many comedians credit Lewis with paving the way for others because he has never been afraid to try new things. He is also highly honored for his dedication t the Muscular Dystrophy Association. He continues to work with them behind the scenes all year long rather than just being in the spotlight during the Labor Day telethon.