It was in the 18th hour of the telethon that the 81-year-old actor apparently forgot where he was and called a person "the illiterate faggot." Lewis immediately realized his faux pas and tried to take back his words by mouthing "no." But by then the damage had already been done.

Similar to actor Isaiah Washington, who had called his Gray's Anatomy co-star T.R. Knight a "faggot." Washington paid dearly with the loss of his role on the series.

Lewis though realized the impact of his casual remark early on. However the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) caught it early on and demanded an apology from the actor.

"Jerry Lewis' on-air use of this kind of anti-gay slur is simply unacceptable," Neil G. Giuliano the GLAAD president said. "Our nation's media have done an admirable job this year holding public figures accountable for their use of anti-gay slurs, and I hope they continue to do so with Mr. Lewis."

Lewis took steps to rectify his error immediately and issued an apology through the MDA. "I obviously made a bad choice of words. 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," he said, adding that the success of the telethon must not be masked because "of one unfortunate word. I accept responsibility for what I said. There are no excuses. I am sorry."

GLAAD accepted the apology and in a statement to celebrity website TMZ.com said, "We join millions of Americans in applauding the important work of the Muscular Dystrophy Association and wish MDA and Mr. Lewis much continued success in their efforts."

Despite the controversy, the MDA telethon was a massive success raining $63.8 million this year; an increase of $3 million from last year's telethon. This was the 42nd such telethon held by Lewis ever since he began the show way back in 1966.

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