One of cinema’s most sought-after films is set to be screened in public for the first time.
Comedian Jerry Lewis’s controversial holocaust film The Day the Clown Cried, shot in 1972 but never released due to myriad issues with the production, has never been made available in any form, leading the project to reach mythical status in the global film community.
The project, potentially in a semi-unfinished form, is set for a June screening due to a stipulation from Lewis himself. Several years before he died in 2017, a copy was given to the Library of Congress in the US with an agreement it could not be screened in any capacity until this year, though it has since been reported that it may be a rough version.
The film tells the story of a German circus clown who is imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp for mocking Adolf Hitler and is then forced to lure children to their deaths as punishment.
In addition to directing the film, Lewis plays the role of the clown Helmut Doork. The film’s cast also includes French and Swedish actors.
Why the film was never released
While there were several alleged issues during the shoot itself, problems reportedly arose between Lewis and producer Nat Wachsberger once filming stopped, the main catalyst for the film being shelved.
Lewis was reportedly unhappy with the film’s financing and announced that Wachsberger did not fulfill his obligations. Hearing this, Wachsberger threatened to sue Lewis for breach of contract, resulting in a fallout between the two that caused Lewis to leave with a rough cut of the film, according to a 2018 feature in The New York Times.
While never shown in public, Lewis showed it to some friends and colleagues in private over the years. Harry Shearer, one of The Simpsons' voice actors, told Spy Magazine in 1992 that he watched the rough cut and branded it a “perfect object”.
In an interview with The New York Times in 2018, Chris Lewis, Lewis’s son, said: “It was something that was very close to his heart."
At other times, however, Lewis denounced the film. In 2013, footage of Lewis surfaced on YouTube in which he stated: "It was bad, and it was bad because I lost the magic. No one will ever see it, because I'm embarrassed at the poor work."
Lewis apparently had a change of heart, as an agreement was reportedly struck with Rob Stone, the library's moving image curator, in 2014 for a screening 10 years later.
Some have suggested that part of his mixed feelings is the personal cost the film's production took on him. After shooting wrapped, Lewis reportedly found out that cheques from the producer were bouncing and that staff went unpaid. In attempting to close the gaps himself, Lewis lost approximately $2 million, according to his memoir.
Chris recalls the ordeal, saying: “I know my mom was unhappy that he sold our beachfront property on Vancouver Island.”
Where and when will Jerry Lewis's The Day the Clown Cried screen?
No details have been announced however, in 2015, film archivists told New York Post the screening would be held at the National Audio-Visual Conservation Centre, Virginia in June of 2024.
Who will be able to attend is not yet clear. Many have hope that it will receive wider distribution than a single screening, though no announcement has been made as of yet.
Lewis said “the picture must be seen” in his autobiography from 1982.
Looking back at cinema's lost works
The Day the Crown Cried is an example of one of the many films that were once thought lost for ever or not fit for public screening.
Similar films include 1976’s Chess of the Wind by Iranian director Mohammad Reza Aslani.
Until it was rediscovered in 2020, the film could only be watched on low-quality VHS tapes. Since then, the film has been restored and screened around the world.
One of the best-known lost films is The Passion of Joan of Arc from 1928. After being lost for years, a copy was found in a Norwegian hospital in the 1980s. The film is now considered one of the most important historical film artefacts.
London After Midnight, a 1927 horror film directed by Tod Browning starring Lon Cheney, is still a veritable white whale for fans after the last known copy was destroyed in the 1965 MGM vault fire.
Other films that have not yet screened because of filmmaker stipulations include 100 Years starring John Malkovich. The short film is from 2015 but has been placed in time-locked safes which won’t open until 2115, 100 years after the film was made.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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*November 15 to November 24
*Venue: Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
*Tickets: Start at Dh10, from ttensports.com
*TV: Ten Sports
*Streaming: Jio Live
*2017 winners: Kerala Kings
*2018 winners: Northern Warriors
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Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
UAE cricketers abroad
Sid Jhurani is not the first cricketer from the UAE to go to the UK to try his luck.
Rameez Shahzad Played alongside Ben Stokes and Liam Plunkett in Durham while he was studying there. He also played club cricket as an overseas professional, but his time in the UK stunted his UAE career. The batsman went a decade without playing for the national team.
Yodhin Punja The seam bowler was named in the UAE’s extended World Cup squad in 2015 despite being just 15 at the time. He made his senior UAE debut aged 16, and subsequently took up a scholarship at Claremont High School in the south of England.
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Match info
UAE v Bolivia, Friday, 6.25pm, Maktoum bin Rashid Stadium, Dubai
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
More on animal trafficking
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
FIXTURES
Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan
The top two teams qualify for the World Cup
Classification matches
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.
Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place play-off
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