Jerry Lewis, the brilliant, sometimes divisive giant of comedy, died at his Las Vegas home Sunday morning at age 91. The news was first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal and then confirmed by Lewis’s agent.

Tributes came in from all corners of the showbiz world, including those who worked alongside Lewis and who were inspired by him.

Jerry Lewis just died. When I met him, I feel apart, just sobbed. I guess it's time for that again. — Penn Jillette (@pennjillette) August 20, 2017





How did my life get good enough that Jerry Lewis would smile at me? And how sad to lose him. pic.twitter.com/taPhl1utzO — Penn Jillette (@pennjillette) August 20, 2017





Jerry Lewis has passed on. I sincerely hope his afterlife is a warm, peaceful… …haven. — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) August 20, 2017





The French were right about him all along. RIP Jerry Lewis pic.twitter.com/jNLRPQeS4G — Gilbert Gottfried (@RealGilbert) August 20, 2017





Oh NOOOOO!!! Jerry Lewis just died! Another comic legend has left us. Martin&Lewis were the Beatles of comedy! Nobody was EVER bigger! — Rob Schneider (@RobSchneider) August 20, 2017





As a kid, I'm pretty sure I was the biggest Jerry Lewis fan in the world. Truly. R.I.P. Jerry Lewis. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) August 20, 2017





One of the greatest of all time. A legend. A showman. A comedic icon. A movie star. An activist. A one of a kind. RIP #jerrylewis pic.twitter.com/h3ODZgZjAa — Josh Gad (@joshgad) August 20, 2017





even tho u said women arent funny rest in peeeeeeeaaacccccceeeeee https://t.co/f4K8lav7zG — Chelsea Peretti (@chelseaperetti) August 20, 2017





Condolences to the family of Jerry Lewis. The world is a lot less funnier today. ☹️ — William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) August 20, 2017





We have lost a great comedian and even greater heart. Thank you for the laughs and the feels, Jerry Lewis. https://t.co/vdYCfd7atJ — George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) August 20, 2017





In a career that spanned nearly his entire life, Lewis played funnyman to Dean Martin; starred in, wrote, and directed the original Nutty Professor; and served as longtime host of TV’s most famous telethon.

Once Hollywood’s most bankable star, Lewis fronted more than 50 movies, from the light Martin-and-Lewis fare of Artists and Models to Martin Scorsese’s darkly funny The King of Comedy.

Born Joseph Levitch (or, per biographer Shawn Levy, Jerome Levitch) on March 16, 1926, in Newark, N.J., the future star was, like his idol, Charlie Chaplin, born into a show-business family. Lewis’s father was a Catskills entertainer; his mother, a pianist.

Lewis rated his first applause at 5. By the time he was a teenager, he had a full-fledged act, pantomiming his way through the popular songs of the day.

In 1946, Lewis, then 20, was playing an Atlantic City club when another act on the bill canceled. For a replacement, Lewis suggested a singer. His name: Dean Martin.

Onstage, Martin exuded slickness; Lewis acted like a monkey boy. Together they were were a hit. For a time, Martin and Lewis, as they were billed, were everywhere — TV, records, radio, and the movies. The duo cranked out 16 films in seven years.

After a red-hot decade together, the relationship cooled. Lewis became bent on becoming an auteur like Chaplin; Martin balked at being bossed around by the budding multihyphenate.

“I like the co-star but not the director, writer, and producer,” Martin sniped at the time.

After their 1956 split, the pair would reunite onstage just once, in 1976 at Lewis’s Muscular Dystrophy Association telethon. Mutual pal Frank Sinatra brokered the summit. Martin died in 1995.

“We loved one another more than any two men ever loved one another in their lives — period,” Lewis told the Toronto Sun.

Per conventional wisdom of the day, Lewis was the star of Martin and Lewis. And just as the pundits expected, Lewis was an immediate smash on his own, starring in and producing the 1957 hit The Delicate Delinquent.

The movie’s opening sequence was classic Lewis, depicting a 30-year-old grown man mugging and jutting around like a kid on a sugar high.

“He’s 9 years old. He’s forever,” Lewis once said of his movie persona.

As silly as it all looked, Lewis was dead serious about the work. He wrote, he produced, he directed — film after film after film, from The Bellboy to The Ladies Man to The Errand Boy. Behind the scenes, he was credited with improvising a video-playback machine to monitor his performances — a now-standard procedure on the movie set.</s>A total solar eclipse crossing the U.S. sky on Aug. 21, 2017 will be in peak view over Las Vegas, Nevada at 10:26 a.m. PDT. Viewers in Las Vegas can expect a partial view of the eclipse.

Type in Las Vegas or your exact zip code in the interactive below to see what to expect as the solar eclipse passes.

Watch TIME's livestream of the total eclipse beginning at 12 p.m. ET on Monday.</s>Comedian Jerry Lewis, known for his work in film as well as hosting an annual telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, has passed away at 91.

Lewis' manager said the comedian died of natural causes with his family by his side in his Las Vegas home early Sunday.

Lewis earned a number of accolades during his storied career, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Comedy Awards in 1997.

Lewis, along with Dean Martin, had a unique relationship in entertainment. The duo hosted "The Martin and Lewis Show" for four years, and appeared in more than a dozen films together.

Celebrity deaths of 2017: Look back at those we lost this year

Outside of entertainment, Lewis was giving of his time, presenting the annual "Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon" for more than four decades. During Lewis' run as presenter, the telethon raised nearly $2.5 billion for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Lewis was presented with a Jefferson Award for Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged in 1977.

Announcement of Lewis' death came just hours after the passing of another legendary comedian. Dick Gregory also passed away this weekend at the age of 84.</s>Iconic Hollywood comedy star Jerry Lewis has died. He was 91.

Lewis died Sunday morning at his home in Las Vegas, NBC News confirmed. Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist John Katsilometes tweeted a statement from Lewis' family that read, "Legendary entertainer Jerry Lewis passed away peacefully today of natural causes at 91 at his home w/ family by his side."

Lewis rose to fame in the '50s as a comedian and slapstick comic actor and as the sidekick of iconic singer Dean Martin. He went on to star in movies such as The Bellboy and The King of Comedy and in the original The Nutty Professor film in 1963. Throughout his career, he was especially popular among the people of France, who nicknamed him "Le Roi du Crazy." In 1984, Lewis received the French Legion of Honor.

Lewis was also famous for hosting the annual Labor Day telethon benefiting the Muscular Dystrophy Association, of which he served as chairman, from 1952 to 2011. More than $2.7 billion was raised during that time. Lewis was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1977 for his efforts and received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2009 Oscars.</s>Rubber-faced comedian Jerry Lewis has died at his Las Vegas home of natural causes at the age of 91, his publicist says.

Jerry Lewis, the rubber-faced comedian and director whose fundraising telethons became as famous as his hit movies, has died.

Publicist Candi Cazau says Lewis died on Sunday morning of natural causes at age 91 in Las Vegas with his family by his side.

Lewis first became a star in a duo with Dean Martin, entertaining audiences in nightclubs, on television and in the movies.

After their split in 1956, he starred in and directed a slew of hit films such as The Nutty Professor.

Later generations in America knew him primarily as the tireless conductor of the Labor Day weekend telethons to raise funds for victims of muscular dystrophy.

Lewis retired from making movies in 1995, but returned as star of the 2016 drama Max Rose.</s>LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jerry Lewis, the manic, rubber-faced showman who jumped and hollered to fame in a lucrative partnership with Dean Martin, settled down to become a self-conscious screen auteur and found an even greater following as the tireless, teary host of the annual muscular dystrophy telethons, has died. He was 91.

Publicist Candi Cazau says Lewis died Sunday of natural causes in Las Vegas with his family by his side.

Tributes from friends, co-stars and disciples poured in immediately.

“That fool was no dummy. Jerry Lewis was an undeniable genius an unfathomable blessing, comedy’s absolute!” Jim Carrey wrote Sunday on Twitter. “I am because he was!”

Lewis’ career spanned the history of show business in the 20th century, beginning in his parents’ vaudeville act at the age of 5. He was just 20 when his pairing with Martin made them international stars. He went on to make such favorites as “The Bellboy” and “The Nutty Professor,” was featured in Martin Scorsese’s “The King of Comedy” and appeared as himself in Billy Crystal’s “Mr. Saturday Night.”

“Jerry was a pioneer in comedy and film. And he was a friend. I was fortunate to have seen him a few times over the past couple of years. Even at 91, he didn’t miss a beat. Or a punchline,” Lewis’ “The King of Comedy” co-star Robert De Niro said in a statement.

In the 1990s, he scored a stage comeback as the devil in the Broadway revival of “Damn Yankees.”

In his 80s, he was still traveling the world, working on a stage version of “The Nutty Professor.” He was so active he would sometimes forget the basics, like eating, his associates would recall. In 2012, Lewis missed an awards ceremony thrown by his beloved Friars Club because his blood sugar dropped from lack of food and he had to spend the night in the hospital.

A major influence on Carrey and other slapstick performers, Lewis also was known as the ringmaster of the Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy Association, joking and reminiscing and introducing guests, sharing stories about ailing kids and concluding with his personal anthem, the ballad “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” From the 1960s onward, the telethons raised some $1.5 billion, including more than $60 million in 2009. He announced in 2011 that he would step down as host, but would remain chairman of the association he joined some 60 years ago.

“Though we will miss him beyond measure, we suspect that somewhere in heaven, he’s already urging the angels to give ‘just one dollar more for my kids,'” said MDA Chairman of the Board R. Rodney Howell on Sunday.

His fundraising efforts won him the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2009 Oscar telecast, an honor he said “touches my heart and the very depth of my soul.” But the telethon was also criticized for being mawkish and exploitative of children, known as “Jerry’s Kids.” A 1960s muscular dystrophy poster boy, Mike Ervin, later made a documentary called “The Kids Are All Alright,” in which he alleged that Lewis and the Muscular Dystrophy Association had treated him and others as objects of pity rather than real people.

“He and his telethon symbolize an antiquated and destructive 1950s charity mentality,” Ervin wrote in 2009.

Responded Lewis: “You don’t want to be pitied because you’re a cripple in a wheelchair, stay in your house!”

He was the classic funnyman who longed to play “Hamlet,” crying as hard as he laughed. He sassed and snarled at critics and interviewers who displeased him. He pontificated on talk shows, lectured to college students and compiled his thoughts in the 1971 book “The Total Film-Maker.”

“I believe, in my own way, that I say something on film. I’m getting to those who probably don’t have the mentality to understand what … ‘A Man for All Seasons’ is all about, plus many who did understand it,” he wrote. “I am not ashamed or embarrassed at how seemingly trite or saccharine something in my films will sound. I really do make films for my great-great-grandchildren and not for my fellows at the Screen Directors Guild or for the critics.”

In his early movies, he played the kind of fellows who would have had no idea what the elder Lewis was talking about: loose-limbed, buck-toothed, overgrown adolescents, trouble-prone and inclined to wail when beset by enemies. American critics recognized the comedian’s popular appeal but not his aspirations to higher art; the French did. Writing in Paris’ Le Monde newspaper, Jacques Siclier praised Lewis’ “apish allure, his conduct of a child, his grimaces, his contortions, his maladjustment to the world, his morbid fear of women, his way of disturbing order everywhere he appeared.”

The French government awarded Lewis the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1983 and Commander of Arts and Letters the following year.</s>Aside from starring in some of the classic comedy films of the past half century, Jerry Lewis will be remembered for his humanitarian work, especially the annual telethon he hosted for 45 years that raised money and awareness for muscular dystrophy.

The telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, for which the comedian served as national chairman of and spokesman from its inception until 2011, dated back to the 1950s, when the Jerry Lewis Thanksgiving Party for MDA raised funds for their New York City area operations.

From 1966 until 2010, Lewis appeared on television every Labor Day as host of the round-the-clock telethon to raise funds to fight neuromuscular diseases.

“After 61 years we raised 2.6 billion dollars,” he told Fox411. “I feel pretty satisfied about the 61 years of constant looking to make children better.”

The 1976 telethon also marked a special reunion for Lewis and Dean Martin, who were a popular comedy duo from 1946 until 1956. Lewis was completely surprised by the live appearance of his former partner, a reunion brokered by mutual pal Frank Sinatra.

Lewis’ fundraising efforts won him the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2009 Oscar telecast, an honor he said “touches my heart and the very depth of my soul.”

But the fundraising events were not without their share of criticism. They were chided as exploitative of the children, known as “Jerry’s Kids.”

Mike Ervin, one child who claims he was treated as an object of pity, later made a documentary called The Kids Are All Alright.

“He and his telethon symbolize an antiquated and destructive 1950s charity mentality,” Ervin wrote in 2009.

Lewis left the program after their 2010 fundraiser, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association choose to end their traditional telethon in 2015.

“They do what they have to do and I respect that,” said Lewis of the decision.

The comedy icon, whose manic style amused generations of fans died on Sunday, his agent confirmed to PEOPLE. He was 91.

Las Vegas Review Journal columnist John Katsilometes confirmed the news on Twitter on Sunday, writing that Lewis’ rep told him in a statement that he died at 9:15 a.m. on Sunday morning in his home in Las Vegas.

Despite his age and mounting health problems, Lewis told PEOPLE last year that he never stopped doing what he loved. “I never stop working,” he explained. “You always have your hand in it somewhere. I’m always thinking about future projects and at the same time trying to finish the project you’re in the middle off.”

Still, after performing for over 80 years, Lewis admitted his age had become an obstacle. “You do feel limited … I can’t take a fall now like I did when I was 20,” he explained. “You think about getting old, but when you get there it’s not what you thought it would be. The thing I think disturbs me more than anything is I can’t take those falls anymore. That disturbs me, but at 90 you don’t fall – at least you don’t mean to fall,” he quipped.

One thing that never changes, Lewis added, is the excitement of being in front of the camera. “That never stops. That’s what drives you: the joy and excitement of doing what you love,” he said.</s>Comedy legend Jerry Lewis has passed away at age 91.

Lewis died peacefully at his Las Vegas home at 9:15 a.m., with his family by his side, Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist John Katsilometes reported.

CNN confirmed the news with his agent.

Here’s a look at the life of comedian and actor Jerry Lewis.

Children: with Sandra Lewis: Danielle; with Patti Palmer: Joseph, Anthony, Christopher, Scott, Ronald and Gary

Other: Made his debut at age five, singing “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” at a resort.

Was nominated for an Emmy Award.

Became a spokesperson for the Muscular Dystrophy Association in the 1940s.

Often talks about himself in the third person.

Timeline: 1946-1956 – Partners with Dean Martin for nightclub acts, television appearances and 16 movies.

1963 – The film “The Nutty Professor,” in which Lewis acted and directed, is released.

1966 – Hosts his first televised Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Labor Day telethon. This becomes an annual event.

1967 – Teaches a graduate course in film at the University of Southern California.

1976 – Frank Sinatra orchestrates a surprise reunion between Lewis and Dean Martin on a MDA telethon.

1983 – The film “The King of Comedy,” which features Lewis’ first dramatic role, is released.

1984 – Inducted into the French Legion of Honor.

1995 – Begins traveling to medical schools to present, with Dr. Clifford Kuhn, a seminar on laughter and healing.

September 2005 – Receives the Governors Award at the Creative Emmy Awards in recognition for his work on behalf of muscular dystrophy.

June 11, 2006 – Suffers a mild heart attack on a flight from New York to San Diego.

September 3, 2007 – In the 18th hour of the annual Labor Day Telethon for Muscular Dystrophy, Lewis uses an anti-gay slur while cracking jokes. He later apologizes in a written statement.

February 22, 2009 – Receives the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy Awards ceremony.

August 3, 2011 – The MDA announces that Lewis is retiring as national chairman.

September 14, 2015 – The Library of Congress announces it has acquired Lewis’ personal archive.</s>LAS VEGAS (AP) – Jerry Lewis, the comedian and director whose fundraising telethons became as famous as his hit movies, has died.

Publicist Candi Cazau says Lewis passed away Sunday morning of natural causes at age 91 in Las Vegas with his family by his side.

Lewis first became a star in a duo with Dean Martin, entertaining audiences in nightclubs, on television and in the movies. After their split in 1956, he starred in and directed a slew of hit films such as “The Nutty Professor.”

Later generations knew him primarily as the tireless conductor of the Labor Day weekend telethons to raise funds for victims of muscular dystrophy. Lewis retired from making movies in 1995, but returned as star of the 2016 drama “Max Rose.”</s>FILE - In this Sept. 2, 1990, file photo, entertainer Jerry Lewis makes his opening remarks at the 25th Anniversary of the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon fundraiser in Los Angeles.(AP Photo/Julie Markes, File)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jerry Lewis, the manic, rubber-faced showman who jumped and hollered to fame in a lucrative partnership with Dean Martin, settled down to become a self-conscious screen auteur and found an even greater following as the tireless, teary host of the annual muscular dystrophy telethons, has died. He was 91.

Publicist Candi Cazau says Lewis died Sunday morning of natural causes at age 91 in Las Vegas with his family by his side.

Lewis' career spanned the history of show business in the 20th century, beginning in his parents' vaudeville act at the age of 5. He was just 20 when his pairing with Martin made them international stars. He went on to make such favorites as "The Bellboy" and "The Nutty Professor," was featured in Martin Scorsese's "The King of Comedy" and appeared as himself in Billy Crystal's "Mr. Saturday Night."

In the 1990s, he scored a stage comeback as the devil in the Broadway revival of "Damn Yankees." And after a 20-year break from making movies, Lewis returned as the star of the independent drama "Max Rose," released in 2016.

In his 80s, he was still traveling the world, working on a stage version of "The Nutty Professor." He was so active he would sometimes forget the basics, like eating, his associates would recall. In 2012, Lewis missed an awards ceremony thrown by his beloved Friars Club because his blood sugar dropped from lack of food and he had to spend the night in the hospital.

In his 90s, he was still performing standup shows.

A major influence on Jim Carrey and other slapstick performers, Lewis also was known as the ringmaster of the Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy Association, joking and reminiscing and introducing guests, sharing stories about ailing kids and concluding with his personal anthem, the ballad "You'll Never Walk Alone." From the 1960s onward, the telethons raised some $1.5 billion, including more than $60 million in 2009. He announced in 2011 that he would step down as host, but would remain chairman of the association he joined some 60 years ago.

His fundraising efforts won him the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2009 Oscar telecast, an honor he said "touches my heart and the very depth of my soul." But the telethon was also criticized for being mawkish and exploitative of children, known as "Jerry's Kids." A 1960s muscular dystrophy poster boy, Mike Ervin, later made a documentary called "The Kids Are All Alright," in which he alleged that Lewis and the Muscular Dystrophy Association had treated him and others as objects of pity rather than real people.

"He and his telethon symbolize an antiquated and destructive 1950s charity mentality," Ervin wrote in 2009.

Responded Lewis: "You don't want to be pitied because you're a cripple in a wheelchair, stay in your house!"

He was the classic funnyman who longed to play "Hamlet," crying as hard as he laughed. He sassed and snarled at critics and interviewers who displeased him. He pontificated on talk shows, lectured to college students and compiled his thoughts in the 1971 book "The Total Film-Maker."

"I believe, in my own way, that I say something on film. I'm getting to those who probably don't have the mentality to understand what ... 'A Man for All Seasons' is all about, plus many who did understand it," he wrote. "I am not ashamed or embarrassed at how seemingly trite or saccharine something in my films will sound. I really do make films for my great-great-grandchildren and not for my fellows at the Screen Directors Guild or for the critics."

In his early movies, he played the kind of fellows who would have had no idea what the elder Lewis was talking about: loose-limbed, buck-toothed, overgrown adolescents, trouble-prone and inclined to wail when beset by enemies. American critics recognized the comedian's popular appeal but not his aspirations to higher art; the French did. Writing in Paris' Le Monde newspaper, Jacques Siclier praised Lewis' "apish allure, his conduct of a child, his grimaces, his contortions, his maladjustment to the world, his morbid fear of women, his way of disturbing order everywhere he appeared."

The French government awarded Lewis the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1983 and Commander of Arts and Letters the following year. Film critic Andrew Sarris observed: "The fact that Lewis lacks verbal wit on the screen doesn't particularly bother the French."

Lewis had teamed up with Martin after World War II, and their radio and stage antics delighted audiences, although not immediately. Their debut, in 1946 at Atlantic City's 500 Club, was a bust. Warned by owner "Skinny" D'Amato that they might be fired, Martin and Lewis tossed the script and improvised their way into history. New York columnists Walter Winchell and Ed Sullivan came to the club and raved over the sexy singer and the berserk clown.

Lewis described their fledgling act in his 1982 autobiography, "Jerry Lewis in Person": "We juggle and drop a few dishes and try a few handstands. I conduct the three-piece band with one of my shoes, burn their music, jump offstage, run around the tables, sit down with the customers and spill things while Dean keeps singing."

Hollywood producer Hal Wallis saw them at New York's Copacabana and signed them to a film contract. Martin and Lewis first appeared in supporting roles in "My Friend Irma" and "My Friend Irma Goes West." Then they began a hit series of starring vehicles, including "At War With the Army," ''That's My Boy" and "Artists and Models."

But in the mid-1950s, their partnership began to wear. Lewis longed for more than laughs. Martin had tired of playing straight man and of Lewis' attempts to add Chaplinesque pathos. He also wearied of the pace of films, television, nightclub and theater appearances, benefits and publicity junkets on which Lewis thrived. The rift became increasingly public as the two camps sparred verbally.

"I knew we were in trouble the day someone gave Jerry a book about Charlie Chaplin," Martin cracked.

On July 24, 1956, Martin and Lewis closed shop, at the Copa, and remained estranged for years. Martin, who died in 1995, did make a dramatic, surprise appearance on Lewis' telethon in 1976 (a reunion brokered by mutual pal Frank Sinatra), and director Peter Bogdonavich nearly persuaded them to appear in a film together as former colleagues who no longer speak to each other. After Martin's death, Lewis said the two had again become friendly during his former partner's final years and he would repeatedly express his admiration for Martin above all others.

The entertainment trade at first considered Martin the casualty of the split, since his talents, except as a singer, were unexplored. He fooled his detractors by cultivating a comic, drunken persona, becoming star of a long-running TV variety show and a respected actor in such films as "Some Came Running," ''The Young Lions" and "Rio Bravo."

Lewis also distinguished himself after the break, revealing a serious side as unexpected as Martin's gift for comedy.

He brought in comedy director Frank Tashlin for "Rock-a-bye Baby," ''Cinderfella," ''The Disorderly Orderly," ''The Geisha Boy" and "Who's Minding the Store?", in which he did a pantomime of a typist trying to keep up with Leroy Anderson's speedy song "The Typewriter."

With "The Bellboy," though, Lewis assumed the posts of producer, director, writer and star, like his idol Chaplin. Among his hits under his own direction was the 1963 "The Nutty Professor," playing a dual Jekyll and Hyde role, transforming himself from a nerdy college teacher to a sexy (and conceited) lounge singer, Buddy Love, regarded as a spoof of his old partner Martin.

He also directed "The Patsy," ''The Errand Boy," ''The Family Jewels" and "The Big Mouth." Lewis' more recent film credits included such low-budget releases as "Arizona Dream," co-starring Johnny Depp, and "Max Rose," which came out in 2016. He had a guest shot on television's "Mad About You" and was seen briefly in Eddie Murphy's remake of "The Nutty Professor."

He was born Joseph Levitch in Newark, New Jersey, on March 16, 1926. His father, billed as Danny Lewis, was a singer on the borscht and burlesque circuits. His mother played piano for Danny's act. Their only child was often left alone in hotel rooms, or lived in Brooklyn with his paternal grandparents, Russian Jewish immigrants, or his aunts in New Jersey.

"All my life I've been afraid of being alone," Lewis once said. In his later years the solitude haunted him, and he surrounded himself with an entourage at work and at home.

Joey Levitch made his professional debut at age 5, singing the Depression tearjerker "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" to great applause. He recalled that he eventually lost all interest in school and "began to clown around to attract people's attention."

By 16, Jerry Lewis (as his billing read) had dropped out of school and was earning as much as $150 a week as a solo performer. He appeared in a "record act," mouthing crazily to the records of Danny Kaye, Spike Jones and other artists. Rejected by the Army because of a heart murmur and punctured eardrum, Lewis entertained troops in World War II and continued touring with his lip-sync act. In 1944 he married Patti Palmer, a band vocalist.

The following year he met Martin, on a March day in 1945 in Manhattan, Broadway and 54th to be exact. Lewis was on his way to see an agent, walking with a friend, when his friend spotted an "incredibly handsome" man wearing a camel's hair coat. Lewis and Martin were introduced and Lewis knew right off that this new acquaintance, nine years older than him, was "the real deal."

"'Harry Horses,' I thought," Lewis wrote in the memoir "Dean and Me," published in 2005. "That was what we used to call a guy who thought he was smooth with the ladies. Anybody who wore a camel's-hair overcoat, with a camel's-hair belt and fake diamond cuff links, was automatically Harry Horses."

Lewis couldn't escape from small-time bookings. The same was true of Martin, who sang romantic songs in nightclubs. In 1946, Lewis was playing the 500 Club, and the seats were empty. Lewis suggested hiring Martin to bolster the bill, promising he could do comedy as well as sing.

Fame brought him women and Lewis wrote openly of his many partners. After 36 years of marriage and six sons, Patti Lewis sued her husband for divorce in 1982. She later wrote a book claiming that he was an adulterer and drug addict who abused their children. Son Gary became a pop singer whose group, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, had a string of hits in 1965-66.

In his late 50s, Lewis married Sandra Pitnick, 32, a former airline stewardess. They had a daughter, Dani, named for Jerry's father.

___

The late Associated Press writer Bob Thomas in Los Angeles and AP National Writer Hillel Italie in New York contributed to this report.
American comedian and Muscular Dystrophy Association chairman Jerry Lewis dies in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the age of 91.