Seinfeld star Jerry Stiller dies aged 92, son Ben pays tribute

Actor and comedian Jerry Stiller has died.

His son, movie star Ben Stiller, broke the news on Twitter on Monday, writing:

"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."

[Stiller senior once said:]

"You wonder about where your kids, where they're going to go with it. You have to be lucky with children. You also have to give them some sort of guidance and you just have to hope that it's going to turn out okay."

Jerry Stiller is probably best known for his role in the 1990s comedy series Seinfeld, where he played Frank Costanza, the cantankerous father of Jason Alexander's character George Constanza.

Stiller appeared in just 26 of the series' 172 episodes, but is forever remembered for screaming "serenity now," trying on a bra for men, and inventing an alternative to Christmas called Festivus.

After Seinfeld, Stiller moved into another sitcom dad role on "The King of Queens."

"And my dad is my dad. He's, you know, you don't have to really direct him. He's just so funny and so, he's been in the business for a long time."

Family long played a role in Jerry Stiller's career.

He was part of a 1960s comedy team with his wife Anne Meara, appearing 36 times on the "Ed Sullivan Show."

And he appeared alongside his son Ben in the films Zoolander and the Heartbreak Kid.

"I think he got the right stem cells, let's put it this way. I mean, I don't know if he got 'em from me or from my wife or they picked it up at the hospital."

[Ben also joked:] "I think nepotism is great if you have talented family members. How about that?"

Jerry Stiller was 92 years old.