Ben Stiller's dad Jerry dies

Ben Stiller, left, and his father Jerry Stiller arrive at the Help Haiti benefit honouring Sean Penn hosted by the Stiller Foundation and The J/P Haitian Relief Organization, in New York. Picture: Photo/Charles Sykes, File

Ben Stiller, left, and his father Jerry Stiller arrive at the Help Haiti benefit honouring Sean Penn hosted by the Stiller Foundation and The J/P Haitian Relief Organization, in New York. Picture: Photo/Charles Sykes, File

Published May 11, 2020

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The "Seinfeld" actor's passing was announced on Monday by his son, Ben Stiller, who paid tribute to his dad for being a "great dad" and a "dedicated husband" to Anne Meara, who died in 2015.

Ben wrote: "I'm sad to say that my father, Jerry Stiller, passed away from natural causes. He was a great dad and grandfather, and the most dedicated husband to Anne for about 62 years. He will be greatly missed. Love you Dad."

Last year, Jerry was hospitalised after suffering a medical "episode", but reports he had had a stroke were dismissed.

A source said at the time: "He had some sort of episode and they wanted to be cautious. There's no evidence of a stroke."

Jerry met Anne in 1953 and they married the following year, going on to have Ben and daughter Amy together, as well as forging a successful comedy partnership and the 'Night at the Museum' actor previously admitted he was keen to make a documentary about his parents, who made frequent appearances on various TV programmes, including 30 times on 'Ed Sullivan'.

Ben previously said: "I'm actually right now putting [together] all footage of my parents [to] try and maybe make some sort of documentary. It's crazy to watch it all. There's so much stuff...

"Our living room was their office . . . I would hear them sort of working and improvising. Sometimes arguing. We didn't know if the argument was a sketch or real."

Jerry - who was also known for his role in "King Of Queens" - appeared alongside his son in a number of movies, including "Zoolander" in 2001 and its 2016 sequel.

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