In an interview with the Las Vegas Review Journal, Jerry Lewis said that he was hoping that the stage musical adaptation of The Nutty Professor, with book and lyrics by Rupert Holmes and music by Marvin Hamlisch, is aiming for a Broadway opening in October or November this year. Lewis, who will direct the show, also had the following to say:

I’m bringing a helluva goddamn show to Broadway. It’s going to be a blast. It’s unbelievable…. I’d love to get the Marquis Theater on Broadway. It’s where I did Damn Yankees in the mid-1990s. I’m directing the show in a manner in which you need space.

Lewis, of course, has an intimate history with the The Nutty Professor, having co-written the original film with Bill Richmond and starring in the titular role. The original is a classic and was remade as a vehicle for Eddie Murphy. One presumes – with more than a modicum of thanks – that the musical takes its inspiration solely from the earlier film. The Murphy vehicle, whilst popular and spawning a sequel of its own, was a crass and over-the-top take on the material. Film remakes like that snap into focus America’s sometimes almost obsessive nostalgia for the past and the art that was created in days gone by.

Purchases from Amazon.com

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
1. The Nutty Professor 1963 Film on DVD.
2. The Nutty Professor 2008 Animated Sequel on DVD.