End of the MDA Telethon – A scant 4 years after removing Jerry Lewis as the host of the MDA telethon, the telethon is now going off the air.
Quoting from the New York Daily News:
The Muscular Dystrophy Association is ending its annual Labor Day telethon, a television tradition for decades that has slowly disappeared from view since the sudden end of Jerry Lewis’ role as host following the 2010 show.
The telethon was a relic from a different age, a tuxedoed Lewis oozing show biz schmaltz and hosting stars from Frank Sinatra to Jennifer Lopez over 45 years, pushing through his exhaustion to sing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” as a tote board rang up millions of dollars in donations.
From 21 and a half hours in Lewis’ final year, the show had been reduced to two hours the last two years on ABC.