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Jerry Lewis: Women are funny, but not as crude stand-up comics

LOS ANGELES

Jerry Lewis says women are funny, but not as crude stand-up comics.

The 88-year-old entertainer was criticized for expressing his distaste for female comedians a few years ago, but in clarifying his comments, he called Lucille Ball “brilliant” and said Carol Burnett is “the greatest female entrepreneur of comedy.”

Ball “went to the lowest level of the barrel, and she was brilliant because of it,” Lewis said Saturday after leaving his hand and footprints in concrete outside Hollywood’s Chinese Theatre.

“Seeing a woman project the kind of aggression that you have to project as a comic just rubs me wrong. And they’re funny — I mean you got some very, very funny people that do beautiful work — but I have a problem with the lady up there that’s going to give birth to a child — which is a miracle,” Lewis said. “But when you have women like Carol Burnett, that’s the greatest female entrepreneur of comedy. I just saw Carol at the Smith Center at home in Vegas, and I was stunned by how brilliant she is and how brilliantly she brings the audience right up to her.”

Lewis was accompanied by his wife and daughter at the Hollywood ceremony, during which he asked his daughter to take a bow.

“This is an incredible time for me,” he said. “I have never, ever had an experience like this and had my daughter present. And this is the first time I’ve ever asked her to join me.”

Danielle Sara Lewis is Jerry Lewis’ only daughter and the youngest of his seven children.

Outkast reunites, headlines Coachella

INDIO, CALIF.

Outkast reunited onstage after a near decadelong hiatus with a jam-packed set at the Coachella music festival, their first of many performances planned this year.

The rap duo headlined the first night of the music festival Friday in Indio, Calif., performing well-known hits such as “Hey Ya!,” “Ms. Jackson,” “The Way You Move,” “Elevators (Me & You),” and “So Fresh, So Clean.”

The Grammy winners performed two dozen tracks — seen via its live-stream on YouTube — as they celebrated 20 years in music since the release of their 1994 debut, “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik.”

Associated Press