20 Movie Talents We Lost In 2017

Actor, director, comedian and singer Jerry Lewis got his big break in the entertainment industry as the slapstick half of double act Martin and Lewis alongside crooner Dean Martin which led to their own TV show and a multi-picture deal with Paramount.

After the pair parted ways in the mid-1950s, Lewis embarked on successful solo career with parts in The Ladies Man, The Nutty Professor and The Family Jewels all of which he also directed. In his later career he received acclaim for his roles in Martin Scorsese’s 1982 black comedy The King of Comedy and Emir Kusturica’s surreal indie comedy Arizona Dream in 1993.

Lewis is one of a small number of entertainers to be honoured with not one but two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame which recognise both his contributions to television and the motion picture industry.