A comic's comic, a pratfall master, a troubled talent and a sensation in France. All of those and more apply to Jerry Lewis, who has died aged 91.
Born Joseph Levitch in Newark, New Jersey in 1926, to show business parents, and picked up a knack for performing at an early age. He made his debut at the age of 5 in a hotel singing Brother Can You Spare A Dime. A natural wise-cracker, he began pantomiming opera and popular songs as a teenager, scoring bookings at burlesque houses and at Brown's Hotel in New York, where was making ends meet as a busboy. Irving Kane, a working comic, was impressed by his seemingly raw talent enough to represent him and work as his road manager.
Through his career, he worked on screens big and small, and had several shows named after him. Most famously, he partnered with Dean Martin for a series of comedy films, and had a successful run together for a decade before personal issues split them apart. In cinema, Lewis enjoyed some big hits, such as 1963's The Nutty Professor, and won praise for his won in The King Of Comedy before making his own stabs at writing, producing and directing his own output. But those rarely worked out, and he infamously made concentration camp comedy The Day The Clown Cried, which has entered into filmmaking legend. American audiences rarely had too much time for him, but he found a big following in France, where he received the Legion Of Honour in 1983. He also hit it big as a Vegas performer and recording artist, releasing several albums.
But Lewis' fortunes were never always positive – he battled bankruptcy, addictions and a reputation as a difficult person to work with. He also got into trouble for making racist jokes and, during one of his regular hosting gigs at his annual Muscular Dystrophy telethons, he got into trouble for making a gay slur on camera.
He's survived by his second wife, SanDee Pitnick, and their daughter.