Las Vegas legend’s family ‘didn’t know anything about’ home foreclosure

Forget the house. Let’s talk “Nutty.”

That’s the message from Jerry Lewis’ family, which has moved on since moving out of their Las Vegas home five years ago. Lewis’ widow, Sam, and daughter, Danielle, both say they were fully unaware Lewis’ longtime home in the Scotch 80s had been sold in foreclosure in September.

“We didn’t know anything about it. The first we heard of it was when we saw your text,” Sam Lewis said in a phone chat Tuesday night, referring to a text of the RJ story on Monday.

Danielle Lewis later said she was also unaware of the sales status. “That place has gone through a lot of changes since we left.” The family did not like the cutting down of the trees in the front yard, for starters.

As reported this week, the foreclosure company Nevada Trust Deed Services sold the residence to Brumbies Capital Inc., a private lending company, for just over $2 million in September. The residence might well return to the market, and soon.

Sam Lewis had sold the property to investor Jane Popple in 2018 and has had little interest in the property since. Jerry Lewis bought the property in 1982 as his primary residence until his death in August 2017.

Over time, the family has auctioned Lewis’ collection of personal belongings. At one point, as it was being listed for sale, the home showed up on Airbnb.com.

Currently, the Lewises are immersed in another piece of Jerry’s legacy: “The Nutty Professor” musical. The stage adaptation of Jerry Lewis’ 1963 comedy masterpiece runs July 1-Aug. 24 at Hale Centre Theatre in Salt Lake City. This is the regional premiere of the musical, which also ran at Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine from July-August 2022.

Tony Award-winning composer Rupert Holmes, who sailed to the top of the charts with “Escape: (The Pina Colada Song)” wrote the script, and the late Marvin Hamlisch composed the score.

“We have the same team back together, with the Holmes and Hamlishes and li’l ol me,” Sam Lewis said, as the group continues to seek backers and a theater for a Broadway run. “This is a gorgeous theater, and we can’t wait for people to have another chance to see ‘Nutty.’”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.