Above, movie poster for "Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla."Sammy Petrillo, a comedian who looked and acted like Jerry Lewis in the 1950s, died August 15 of cancer in a New York hospital.
Petrillo was teamed up with Duke Mitchell for a successful nightclub comedy act.
In a press statement, Petrillo's agent Rick Saphire wrote:
"Sammy was a clone of entertainer Jerry Lewis. Sammy didn't have to try to imitate Jerry Lewis. The resemblance was remarkable. They could have been twins.
Jerry Lewis was never kind to Sammy Petrillo. Although Lewis did book Petrillo for a comedy spot on the Martin and Lewis Colgate Comedy Hour, Jerry Lewis also used his influence to bar Sammy from appearing on other NBC comedy shows. Lou Costello had to inform Sammy that his appearance on the Abbott and Costello Colgate Comedy Hour was canceled, because Jerry Lewis complained to NBC that he didn't want Duke Mitchell and Sammy Petrillo to appear on any subsequent NBC shows."
According to Wikipedia:
In 1952 Mitchell and Petrillo were hired by movie producer Jack Broder to star opposite screen legends Bela Lugosi and Cheeta in a low-budget, jungle-themed comedy. Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (also known as The Boys From Brooklyn) presents Mitchell and Petrillo in their prime, and Petrillo's mimicry of Jerry Lewis is often uncanny.
Above, from left, Bela Lugosi, Charlita, Duke Mitchell and Sammy Petrillo in "Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla."
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