Celebrities

‘Jerry Lewis was an angel to me.’ Celebrities pay tribute to comic legend

By Don Sweeney

dsweeney@sacbee.com
Jerry Lewis interacts with the press at the Friars Club before his 90th birthday celebration in New York in 2016. Lewis, the comedian and director whose fundraising telethons became as famous as his hit movies, died Sunday. He was 91.
Jerry Lewis interacts with the press at the Friars Club before his 90th birthday celebration in New York in 2016. Lewis, the comedian and director whose fundraising telethons became as famous as his hit movies, died Sunday. He was 91. Brad Barket The Associated Press file

Celebrities paid tribute to Jerry Lewis online Sunday as news broke that the comic legend had died at age 91.

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, died Sunday morning at his Las Vegas home, according to The Associated Press.

This story was originally published August 20, 2017 at 11:47 AM with the headline "‘Jerry Lewis was an angel to me.’ Celebrities pay tribute to comic legend."

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