Jerry Lewis drops anti-gay slur during telethon

NEW YORK — Jerry Lewis dropped an anti-gay slur — the same one that got Isaiah Washington of “Grey’s Anatomy” in trouble — during the 18th hour of his annual Labor Day telethon.

He apologized Tuesday for a “bad choice of words.”

The 81-year-old showman — prowling about the stage during the live telecast Monday in Las Vegas — was goofing around and dodging his cameraman, then went into a ramble about imaginary family members.

“Oh, your family has come to see you,” he said, speaking to the camera and gesturing toward thin air.

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“You remember Bart, your older son,” he said, and motioning toward another unseen character, “Jesse, the illiterate f-----.

“No,” Lewis said, quickly stopping himself before continuing.

Monday’s monologue prompted a critical statement Tuesday from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

Neil Giuliano, GLAAD president, called Lewis’ use of the term “simply unacceptable.”

“It also feeds a climate of hatred and intolerance that contributes to putting our community in harm’s way,” Giuliano said.

In a statement Tuesday, Lewis said he was making “a joking comment to a member of my production team.”

“I apologize to anyone who was offended,” he went on. “Everyone who knows me understands that I hold no prejudices in this regard. In the family atmosphere of the telethon, I forget that not everyone knows me that well.

“That something like this would distract from the true purpose of the telethon pains me deeply. ... I accept responsibility for what I said. There are no excuses,” he said.

Lewis’ telethon, in its 42nd year, set a new record by raising $63.7 million to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association, topping last year’s event by $3 million.