Legendary comedian Jerry Lewis has passed away, aged 91.

A master of low-brow comedy for both stage and screen, Lewis died on Sunday of natural causes.

Entertainment reporter Pete Ford told 3AW Breakfast he was a complicated character.

“We throw these words around very easily, but he was an icon; he was show business royalty,” Pete said.

“He came into 3AW on many occasions. Off air, he could be – to be nice about it – very off-hand with people.

“If I wanted to be less generous, I’d say ‘vile’.”

Pete said Jerry just stopped caring about the act in his later years, leading to some entertaining interviews.

Lewis also raised US$2.5 billion for muscular dystrophy.

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