The Joker Is Wild
Frank Sinatra plays Joe E. Lewis, a famous comedian of the 1930s-50s. When the movie opens, Lewis is a young, talented singer who performs in speakeasies. After he bolts one job for another, the mob boss who owns the first speakeasy has his thugs try to kill Lewis. He survives, but his vocal cords are cut and he cannot sing. Several years later, his buddy tracks him down and tries to help him, with little success. That attempt, though, leads to Lewis meeting Letty Page (Jeanne Crain). They fall in love and she inspires him to follow up on an offer to become a comedian (a result of his buddy's failed attempt to rejuvenate his singing career). Lewis has problems, though. The assault that nearly cost him his life also helped turn him into an alcoholic and an inveterate gambler. These two character defects become the basis for his act and help to make him a smash success. Unfortunately, they also work to wreak havoc in his personal life.
10 February 1936, New York City, New York, USA
11 November 1917, Seattle, Washington, USA
3 December 1900, Illinois, USA
20 September 1917, USA
9 July 1906, New York City, New York, USA
22 January 1908, China
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29 April 1918, New York, USA
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October 17, 1926 in Los Angeles, California, USA
1925, Brooklyn, New York, USA
1 April 1906, Radom, Mazowieckie, Poland
29 September 1905, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
August 21, 1929 in San Francisco, California, USA
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March 16, 1918 in Richmond, New York, USA
1892, New York, USA
2 May 1903, Tacoma, Washington, USA
26 January 1891, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
5 December 1909, New York City, New York, USA
8 October 1904, Malden, Massachusetts, USA
28 July 1899, Beresford, South Dakota, USA
1 October 1897, Chester, Pennsylvania, USA
