"Careful, Young And Arrogant....St. Peter Is Very Likely A Very, Very, Very Old Dude..."

Many things, inevitably, go out of style.

Fashions.

Music.

Respect for elders.

That last one bubbled to the top recently when it was announced that the Muscular Dystrophy Association was no longer "associated" with Jerry Lewis.

If you're over the age of forty, no back story is necessary.

If you're under the age of forty, here's a couple of links to provide the background.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MDA_Labor_Day_Telethon


http://news.yahoo.com/jerry-lewis-saving-lives-mda-honor-035932114.html

Truth be told, I've never been a Jerry Lewis fan. There are moments in his work that I have enjoyed, most recently in a poignant turn as Munch's Alzheimer's afflicted uncle on "Law and Order, SVU".

For the most part, though, I've never been partial to his particular blend of juvenile coated slapstick/Vegas Rat Pack hipster.

And why the French think the guy is a genius remains, like Stonehenge, one of life's little mysteries.

Let's face it...the original "The Nutty Professor" isn't exactly Francois Truffaut.

All of that said, MDA's treatment of a guy who has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for them over nearly fifty years redefines the term low class.

And unless it comes to light that Jerry has been having a life long affair with the MDA CEO's wife, there is no reasonable justification for this episode of "here's your hat, what's your hurry?"

Time marches on.

All good things must end.

Out with the old, in with the new.

Like birth,death, puberty, adolescence and finding out that Leno and Letterman actually tape their shows at four in the afternoon, the passing of batons is an inevitable part of life.

But showing the old the door without so much as a "thanks for stopping by" from the new is, at best, rude and, at worst, deserving of protest and petition.

If you feel moved to donate this Labor Day for the benefit of the kids, knock yourself out.

And while you're on the phone with the volunteer, let them know you'll double the donation if they sack the sorry asshole(s) who decided to dis the guy who started raising dough for them forty nine years ago.