Emmanuel Lewis, for a period of time, was one of the most famous TV actors in the world in the 1980s courtesy of his popular ABC sitcom “Webster.”
He was pals with Michael Jackson and a regular fixture in tabloids.
But Lewis has long since stepped away from the spotlight, preferring to stay behind the scenes. He still loves the entertainment business and helped organize the second annual Radio, Music and Film Summit at the Hilton Atlanta Airport in Hapeville from Aug. 16 to 18. (It’s sold out.) He is also president of the Radio, Music & Film Alliance of Georgia, which put the summit together.
He said about 500 people came last year.
“We wanted to do something interesting again for radio, music, film and TV,” he said. The summit will feature educational workshops, book signings, a gala, a celebration of bass music and a presentation honoring the family of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, who died 22 years ago.
Lewis, now 53, began residing in metro Atlanta in 1987. “I was still living between New York and L.A.,” he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a recent interview at Thrive in downtown Atlanta. “This was my summer home at the time when I started going to Clark Atlanta University.” (He eventually graduated in 1997 with a theater arts degree.)
He purchased a home way outside of metro Atlanta with horses and peace and quiet. The paparazzi “followed me everywhere I went” in the other cities, he said. “Here was a way I could figure out whatever normal is, have fun and enjoy myself. Atlanta was a safe haven.”
He is chairman of the board of the Thomas W. Dortch Jr. Foundation. Dortch, an influential Atlanta businessman and civic leader who Lewis saw as a mentor, died in 2023 at age 72.
“I make personal appearances around the world,” he said. “I do conventions.”
He also runs a production company Emmanuel Lewis Entertainment Enterprises in Fayetteville, though IMDb, which tracks films, has not shown any films or TVs attached to his company. He said he is working on possible projects.
Lewis said he is a private person and has turned down numerous reality show offers in recent years including “Dancing with the Stars.” “I’m in a different space,” he said. “Nothing knocking them. I watch those shows.”
But more than two decades ago, Lewis did appear on the WB’s “The Surreal Life” that also featured Vince Neil, Corey Feldman and bunkmate Hammer. “Reality shows are what’s going on right now,” he told The AJC in 2003.
He hasn’t acted in a movie or TV show since 2007, when he was part of a low-budget comedy called “Kickin’ It Old Skool” starring Jamie Kennedy.
“I’m retired from acting,” Lewis said. “It was never about staying at one thing. I like to grow and move toward different areas I find intriguing.”
He still gets residuals for “Webster” but wouldn’t say how much he gets now 35 years after the show ended. All six seasons of the sitcom are available on demand on Pluto TV.
“The show’s great life lessons still hold up today,” Lewis said. “We had the ‘Uh Oh’ episode. One of our producers was molested as a child, so we addressed that. It was very emotional.” He did a PSA at the time also addressing that issue. On a Canadian talk show, Justin Bieber’s mother Pattie Mallette said she saw that PSA as a child and it gave her strength to confront her abusers.
“The messages still stand the test of time,” he said.
And 15 years after Michael Jackson died, Lewis still can’t believe his friend is gone. “When I heard the news, I thought it was a joke,” he said.
He was unable to make it to the funeral: “It was too emotional.”
IF YOU GO
Second Annual Radio, Music & Film Summit
Aug. 16-18. Sold out. Hilton Atlanta Airport, 1031 Virginia Ave., Atlanta, eventbrite.com
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