Top 10 Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis Comedies

In the 1950s, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were the Beatles and Elvis of comedy—conquering stage, TV, and movies with ease and electricity. Sadly, friendship eventually turned to feud and the magic of their partnership ended. Thankfully, the 16 films they made in their seven years as a comedy twosome live on. Here are the ten best of the bunch.

01
of 10

"Sailor Beware" (1951)

The film poster for "Sailors Beware" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
 Huluwood

The buddy formula gels nicely in their fifth feature. The guys set sail in a submarine, except Jerry happens to be outside swabbing the deck when the sub dives. Oops!

This service comedy features music, girls, and shtick, including an insane boxing sequence. James Dean and Betty Hutton appear briefly in this remake of "The Fleet's In" (1942), the movie that made her a star.

02
of 10

"Living It Up" (1954)

The film poster for "Living It Up" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Moviepostershop

This film is a glossy reworking of the classic screwball movie "Nothing Sacred" (1937) and Broadway musical-comedy, "Hazel Flagg" (1953). Dr. Dean and reporter Janet Leigh hustle a dying Jerry to New York on a big publicity tour, but there's a catch. He's not even sick. The film is a series of wacky mix-ups and fix-ups, with Martin & Lewis performing "Every Street's a Boulevard," one of their signature pieces.

03
of 10

"You're Never Too Young" (1955)

The film poster for "You're Never Too Young" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
 Moviepostershop

A grown-up Jerry poses as an 11-year-old lad in Dean Dean's girls school for this energetic remake of Billy Wilder's "The Major and the Minor" (1942). There's a memorable, wild-stepping production number on the tennis court, plus some swift shenanigans with villain Raymond Burr.

04
of 10

"Hollywood or Bust" (1956)

The film poster for "Hollywood or Bust" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
 Moviepostershop

This was the last Martin and Lewis picture show. The comedians' feud was raging at full tilt during the production and it was so bitter, they would only speak to each other on camera. At one point, frustrated director Frank Tashlin fired Jerry off the film! Ironically, this cross-country road trip is one of their best packages—a pleasing, underappreciated musical, which Lewis claimed to never have seen.

05
of 10

"Artists and Models" (1955)

Via Huluwood.

In this film, former Warner Bros. animator Frank Tashlin helmed the first of eight couplings with Lewis. As co-writer and director of this splashy musical-comedy, his cartoon-like gags begin in the opening scene and are extra-appropriate since the boys are propelled into the world of comic book publishing. Warm and giggly, this film gets strong support from Eddie Mayehoff and Shirley MacLaine in her second film.

06
of 10

"The Caddy" (1953)

The film poster for "The Caddy" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Grenada Movie Posters

The pals play through this golf romp, with divots on and off the green, eventually tossing the clubs to become club entertainers. You may recognize Donna Reed as Dean's love and "That's Amore," the Oscar-nominated tune. The bookended song-and-dance scenes capture the live Martin and Lewis experience better than their other films and shots of crowds overflowing into the street are from actual hysteria for the team.

07
of 10

"Scared Stiff" (1953)

The film poster for "Scared Stiff" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Doctor Macro

Clumsy cut-ups snoop through a weird haunted mansion with plenty of laughs and ladies in hand in this remake of Bob Hope's "The Ghost Breakers" (1940). Here, Martin and Lewis meet Carmen Miranda and get eerie for Lizabeth Scott and reprise their crooner and bumbling busboy bit from their concert act, believed to have been hatched during their first professional performance together.

08
of 10

"At War With the Army" (1950)

The film poster for "At War With the Army" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Bored and Dangerous Blog

At War contains the first quintessential Jerry sketch: a battle with an ornery soda pop machine. The infectious rap "The Navy Gets the Gravy, but the Army Gets the Beans" originates here, too.

09
of 10

"Pardners" (1956)

The film poster for "Pardners" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Growtobe

This update of Bing Crosby's "Rhythm on the Range" (1936) was the penultimate Martin and Lewis picture, produced at the height of their personal conflict and the public's fear of a divorce. Damage control for the franchise was important because the stars interrupt the film's climactic moment to address the camera, promising fans they'll be partners for a long time to come.

10
of 10

"My Friend Irma" (1949)

The film poster for "My Friend Irma" starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
Film Affinity

This film is the popular network radio sitcom, jumped to the screen. Along the way, producer Hal Wallis devised a detour to introduce his newly-contracted comedy franchise to movie audiences: Martin and Lewis stole the film in their relatively short appearance. By the next year, a sequel and a better movie, "My Friend Irma Goes West," would reverse the equation, with Irma and pals barely along for the ride.