The Total Film-Maker

New York: Random House, 1971. First Edition [stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. ix, [3], 208, [4] pages. Illustrations. Minor edge soiling. DJ has minor wear and soiling. A frank, personal story of the joys and pitfalls of making movies by a world famous film-maker. Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 - August 20, 2017), nicknamed "The King of Comedy", was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian, who appeared in over sixty films and live performances, from his partnership of Martin & Lewis with singer Dean Martin to his prime as a soloist. Lewis then worked behind the scenes as director, producer and screenwriter, appeared in numerous television programs and released album recordings as a singer. Lewis helped develop and popularize "video assist", the closed-circuit apparatus enabling film directors to see what had been shot without waiting for developed film footage. The Total Film-Maker-Jerry Lewis' book on filmmaking, taken from 480 hours of audio tape, recorded as Jerry taught filmmaking at the University of Southern California, 1971. It's apparently one of the best books written about filmmaking ever. It was printed in 1971 and has been out-of-print since then. In 1959, a contract between Paramount and Jerry Lewis Productions was signed specifying a payment of $10 million plus 60% of the profits for 14 films over seven years. This contract made Lewis the highest paid individual Hollywood talent to date and was unprecedented in that he had unlimited creative control, including final cut and the return of film rights after 30 years. Lewis' clout and box office were so strong (his films had already earned Paramount $100 million in rentals. During production of The Bellboy, Lewis pioneered the technique of using video cameras and multiple closed circuit monitors, which allowed him to review his performance instantly. This was necessary since he was acting as well as directing. His techniques and methods of filmmaking, documented in his book and his USC class, enabled him to complete most of his films on time and under budget since reshoots could take place immediately instead of waiting for the dailies. Man in Motion, a featurette for Three on a Couch, features the video system, named "Jerry's Noisy Toy" and shows Lewis receiving the Golden Light Technical Achievement award for its development. Lewis stated he worked with the head of Sony to produce the prototype. While he initiated its practice and use, and was instrumental in its development, he did not hold a patent. This practice is now commonplace in filmmaking. Starting in 1967, Lewis taught a film directing class at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles for a number of years. His students included George Lucas, whose friend Steven Spielberg sometimes sat in on classes. Lewis screened Spielberg's early film Amblin' and told his students, "That's what filmmaking is all about." The class covered all topics related to filmmaking, including pre and post production, marketing and distribution and filming comedy with rhythm and timing. His book The Total Film Maker (1971), was based on his class lectures. Lewis traveled to medical schools for seminars on laughter and healing with Dr. Clifford Kuhn and also did corporate and college lectures, motivational speaking and promoted the pain-treatment company Medtronic.