Jerry Lewis Cause of Death: Family Confirms Comedian Died of Natural Causes
Slapstick comedian Jerry Lewis died on Aug. 20 at age 91. His death was confirmed by his family, who revealed that the actor had died of natural causes in his home in Las Vegas.
In a statement, Lewis' family confirmed that he had passed away at 9:15 a.m. of Sunday with the people closest to him by his side. The actor is survived by his wife SanDee Pitnick and his six children. He initially had seven children but one of them, Joseph Lewis, died in 2009 as a result of a narcotics overdose.
According to reports, before his death, Lewis had been hospitalized for a long period of time starting last June. He was initially admitted so he could get treatment for a urinary tract infection, but this condition led to several more complications during his stay. Despite that, his family confirmed that the complications that had resulted from his UTI did not have anything to do with his passing.
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Following the announcement of Lewis' death, several actors in the industry have expressed their condolences to the actor's family. Actor John Katsilometes retweeted the statement made by his family, saying, "Statement: Legendary entertainer #Jerry Lewis passed away peacefully today of natural causes at 91 at his home w/ family by his side." Among the other actors who took to Twitter to pay tribute to the late actor were Jim Carrey and William Shatner, who, after news about Lewis' death had surfaced, described the world as "a lot less funnier" that day.
Lewis rose to fame due in part to his decade-long tandem with Dean Martin. Widely known for his fundraising telethons and for being the national chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, he started his career at age 20 after he was paired with Martin and eventually became internationally-known comedy stars. Some of his projects are "The Bellboy" and "The Nutty Professor." He was also part of "The King of Comedy" and Billy Crystal's "Mr. Saturday Night."
