Lewis made it no secret that he was Jewish, yet he was criticized for hiding his Jewish heritage. Although many of Lewis's films—both with Martin and solo—hint at his Jewish identity in passing, it was never made a defining characteristic of his onscreen persona. Aside from the 1959 television movie "The Jazz Singer" and the unreleased 1972 film "The Day the Clown Cried", Lewis never had a film or film role that had any ties to his Jewish heritage. When asked about this lack of Jewish portrayal in a 1984 interview, Lewis stated, "I never hid it, but I wouldn't announce it and I wouldn't exploit it. Plus the fact it had no room in the visual direction I was taking in my work."