Did Jerry Lewis Get The Shaft From The MDA?

This being the Labor Day weekend, a tradition in my home growing up was being subjected to watching the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.Yeah, when you are a kid in a one television house, on this one occasion mom and dad said this they will watch. Like it or not.
Yet over the years, and now they are both off to the Glory, I find myself watching with a certain nostalgia. Many of the acts are well beyond their time. Yet it is the one time of year I can watch Norm Crosby.
But this year it is different.
The one time 21 hours beg-a-thon is down to six hours. And there is no Jerry Lewis to be found.
And this is where it is a real unknown how or why it happened.
Some say that Mr. Lewis retired abruptly from the telethon and the MDA. Others say that he was forced out by the MDA and they decided to sever all ties to Mr. Lewis.
Well, there is my school of thought.
That it was both. That Mr. Lewis was being told that this would be it for him. And he did not like being forced out. There was a hubbub and the MDA said please leave and do not let the door hit you on the way out.
But this is how Mr. Lewis is rewarded for giving 60 years of his life to a cause that seemed to be near and dear to his heart?
Yeah, I think that it is crappy.
Sure, one can say that Mr. Lewis was exploitative about what he put on the air. Especially the children. But hey, it is a telethon. People want to see what their money is going to go to, right? And yeah, people do react more positive to giving money if children are shown.
And another critique is that he was way too involved in the show itself.
Well, it did have Mr. Lewis name on it right? I should think that he would have at least some involvement.
My critique is that Mr. Lewis did not get updated acts. That his mindset was stuck somewhere in about 1976. That he needed to go with the times. And that is why the telethon was becoming dated and without a doubt fewer people watching. Or giving cash.
Something right though was being done. After all, it was but three years ago, 2008, that the telethon raised $65,031,393, the all time record. That does not take into account the hundreds of millions raised over the years.
The MDA does owe something better than this to Mr. Lewis. To the many fans of Mr. Lewis. And to those that he tirelessly helped by raising so much money to find a cure.
This year, I do not feel that watching the MDA Labor Day Telethon would be subjection, but affirming a bad decision that helps no one involved.