New York-born comedian and singer Joe E, Lewis (1902-1971) was known for drinking and staying up late in night clubs. He was not known for getting up at the crack of dawn. Lewis was quoted in a March 1962 Associated Press story:
“I always wake up at the crack of ice.”
The Lewis joke has been included in several quotations collections.
Wikipedia: Joe E. Lewis
Joe E. Lewis (January 12, 1902 – June 4, 1971), born Joseph Klewan in New York City, was an American comedian and singer.
4 March 1962, The Nashville Tennessean (Nashville, TN), pg. 2-F, col. 1:
High Life of Joe E. Lewis
He’s Long Been a By-Word on Night Club Trail
By JAMES BACON
HOLLYWOOD (AP)—
(...) (Col. 3—ed.)
Joe E. rarely gets hangovers. Some argue tht is because he’s not sober long enough. Not true. He averages eight hours sleep a day.
“And I always wake up at the crack of ice.”
Google Books
1,911 Best Things Anybody Ever Said
By Robert Byrne
New York, NY: Fawcett Books
1988
Pg. 164:
I always wake up at the crack of ice. —Joe E. Lewis (1902–1971).
Google Books
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Bartending, 2nd Edition
By Amy Zavatto
New York, NY: Alpha Books
2010
Pg. ?:
I always wake up at the crack of ice. —Joe Lewis
Google Books
The Snark Bible:
A Reference Guide to Verbal Sparring, Comebacks, Irony, Insults, and SO Much More
By Lawrence Dorfman
New York, NY: Skyhorse Publishing
2014
Pg. ?:
I always wake up at the crack of ice. —JOE E. LEWIS
Google Books
One For My Baby:
A Sinatra Cocktail Companion
By Tom Smith
London, UK: Peter Owen Publishers
2015
Pg. ?:
Much of his humour relied on his apparent fondness for booze – ‘I always wake up at the crack of ice’ – but this was no affectation. He (Joe E. Lewis—ed.) was a deeply serious drinker.
Twitter
MacCocktail
@MacCocktail
“I always wake up at the crack of ice.”
― Joe E. Lewis (born this day, January 12, 1902)
3:06 PM - 12 Jan 2017
Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.
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Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps. Stolen and missing, 2021-2024.
Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.
Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.
Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.
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