LOS ANGELES – Jerry Lewis wanted a word with producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who were at work on a television movie about Lewis’ early, ill-fated partnership with Dean Martin.

“Neil and I put off calling for weeks because we thought, ‘We don’t want to get screamed at,”‘ recalled Zadan. “We thought he’d blast us.”

Turned out they were unduly concerned about Lewis, who had gotten hold of a copy of the script for “Martin and Lewis” (airing 9 p.m. Sunday on CBS).

“He loved it. He was incredibly emotional,” Meron said. “To have that happen, what better validation is there?”

The producers and CBS could find further assurance in solid ratings for the two-hour movie that stars Sean Hayes of “Will & Grace” as Lewis and British actor Jeremy Northam (“Enigma,” “Emma”) as Martin.

Will viewers, especially younger ones, respond to the lushly produced story of the suave pop singer and manic comedian who achieved success in the 1940s and ’50s as an unlikely nightclub and movie act?

Yes, say Zadan and Meron. They argue that Martin, who died in 1995 at age 78, and Lewis, still going strong at 76 with his Labor Day telethon, each have their own contemporary cachet.

Frank Sinatra’s fabled “rat pack” of buddies, including Martin, has become a retro symbol of cool for new generations, the producers said.

“There’s a cognizance of who he was, his songs and that style that Dean represents,” Zadan said of the crooner whose “Everybody Loves Somebody” was one of the few non-rock hits in 1964.

When it comes to Lewis, promotional spots for the movie have touted his influence on today’s most popular comic actors, including Jim Carrey and Robin Williams.