In the Martin and Lewis duo, Lewis' comedic persona was viewed as effeminate, weak, and inexperienced, which in turn made the Martin persona look masculine, strong, and experienced. The Lewis character was unconventional, in regards to gender, and that challenged what masculinity was. There are a couple of Martin and Lewis films that present the Lewis character in gender-swapped roles, but it was Lewis' solo films that posed questions about gender and gender roles. Aside from "Cinderfella" (1960) that cast him in the Cinderella role, films such as "Rock-A-Bye Baby" (1958) and "The Geisha Boy" (1958) showed his interactions with children that put him less in the authoritative father role and placed him more in the nurturing mother role. In the 1965 film "The Family Jewels", Lewis takes on the dual role as protector, the father role, and nurturer, the mother role. Through his comedic persona and films, he showed that a man can take on what are considered feminine traits without that being a threat to his masculinity.