Jerry Lewis the following summer, and the audience was so enthusiastic that Kaye became Lewis' manager and guardian for Borscht Belt appearances. During World War II, he was rejected for military service because of a heart murmur. Lewis initially gained attention as part of a double act with singer Dean Martin, who served as straight man to Lewis' zany antics as the Martin and Lewis comedy team. They were different from other duo acts of the time because they played to each other and had ad-libbed improvisational segments within their planned routines. After forming in 1946, they quickly rose to national prominence,
Jerry Lewis nobody had ever seen a comedian as wild as Jerry Lewis." Placed in the context of the conservative era, his antics were radical and liberating, paving the way for future comedians Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, Andy Kaufman, Paul Reubens, and Jim Carrey. Carrey wrote: "Through his comedy, Jerry would stretch the boundaries of reality so far that it was an act of anarchy ... I learned from Jerry", and "I am because he was". Acting the bumbling and stammering 'everyman', Lewis used tightly choreographed, sophisticated sight gags, physical routines, verbal double-talk and malapropisms. "You cannot help but notice Lewis' incredible