Tributes flow for ‘King of comedy’
HOLLYWOOD MOURNS AS SLAPSTICK COMEDY LEGEND JERRY LEWIS DEAD AT 91
Jerry Lewis (right), the slapstick performer who became a comedy legend through his odd couple partnership with Dean Martin and went on to make dozens of movies of his own has been remembered as “a perfect clown”. Actor Jim Carrey who also forged a comedy career out of contorting his face and body, paid tribute on twitter: “That fool was no dummy. Jerry Lewis was an undeniable genius ... I am because he was.”
JERRY Lewis, the slapstick performer who became a comedy legend through his odd couple partnership with Dean Martin and went on to make dozens of movies of his own, has been remembered as “a perfect clown”.
Lewis died on Sunday morning at home in Las Vegas, surrounded by family. He was 91.
Lewis was also considered the father of the celebrity charity telethon in the US, raising millions for his chosen cause, muscular dystrophy.
Robert De Niro, who starred with Lewis in 1983 movie The King of Comedy, had caught up with the comedian several times in recent years.
“Even at 91, he didn’t miss a beat ... or a punchline,” De Niro said in a statement.
King of Comedy co-star Sandra Bernhard described Lewis as “tough but one of a kind”.
Actor Jim Carrey, who like Lewis forged a comedy career out of contorting his face and body, paid tribute on Twitter: “That fool was no dummy. Jerry Lewis was an undeniable genius an unfathomable blessing, comedy’s absolute. I am because he was.”
Born Joseph Levitch in 1926 in Newark, New Jersey, Lewis first appeared on stage aged five. But he was just another struggling performer when he paired up with crooner Dean Martin in 1946. Combined on stage, in films and on TV, their fame soared to Beatlemania heights.
“Other comedy teams never generated anything like the hysteria that Dean and I did, and that was because we had that X factor – the powerful feeling between us,” Lewis wrote in his book Dean & Me (A Love Story). “And it really was an X factor, a kind of mystery.”
Martin’s daughter, Deana Martin, was among those who paid tribute to Lewis on Twitter yesterday: “I’m heartbroken at the loss of our lifelong friend (Uncle) Jerry Lewis. I’ve loved him all my life and will miss him greatly.”
Lewis very proudly received an honorary Oscar in 2009 for his humanitarian work. His work aiding muscular dystrophy also extended to Australia, where in 2014 he was made an honorary member of the Order of Australia.
But Lewis was also famously cantankerous. He could be mean to fans and was a frequently combative interviewee. His sit-down with The Hollywood Reporter last year was headlined “The Most Painfully Awkward Interview of 2016.”