#RIP: Today, “The Clown Cried”

Comedy legend Jerry Lewis has died.

Lewis, who teamed with Dean Martin in the 50s was one of the most successful partnerships in the history of show business, died this morning at his home in Las Vegas, John Katsilometes of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, citing a statement from Lewis’ family.

At the peak of their popularity, Martin & Lewis ruled nightclubs, radio and then the box office with their breezy yet physical comedy act, reigning as the top draw at theaters from 1950-56.

After a bad break-up with Martin, Lewis remained as the No. 1 movie draw through the mid-60s on the strength of classics like The Bellboy (1960) and The Nutty Professor (1963). He was Paramount’s biggest star, and had the creative freedom to make the moves he wanted to make.

Lewis was also known for Jerry Kids. As the national chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, he devoted more 50 years to fighting the neuromuscular disease, hosting the annual Labor Day telethon — and raising nearly $2.5 billion — from 1955 until he was ousted before the 2011 telecast. Lewis was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1977 for his efforts.

Extremely popular throughout Europe, especially in France where he was considered a “genius”, he became known as “Le Roi du Crazy.” The fact that the French continued to celebrate his talent despite his waning popularity in the states became something of a running gag.

In 1984, Lewis was presented with the French Legion of Honor and in 2009 was honored with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award; he kept the trophy from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on a platform above a TV in his Las Vegas home, where it rotated at the push of a button.

His 1972 film The Day the Clown Cried was a drama set inside a Nazi concentration camp that was never released. He donated a copy to the Library of Congress in August of 2015, with the agreement the film not be shown for a decade.

In 1991, he was presented with the Comic Life Achievement Award at the National Academy of Cable Programming’s ACE Awards. The American Comedy Awards gifted him with a lifetime achievement award in 1998 and in 2004 the Los Angeles Film Critics Association presented him with its career achievement honor.

Lewis married his second wife, SanDee Pitnick, in 1983.

Jerry Lewis was 91.