Born in Steubenville, Ohio, on June 7, 1917, to Italian immigrants, Dean Martin entered the nightclub circuit and landed a contract with MCA to sing in New York City. There he met Jerry Lewis and they started a long-running comedy partnership on radio, television and film. The team split in 1956, and Martin joined the Rat Pack—also including Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford—in Las Vegas stage shows and on film. Martin died on December 25, 1995, in Beverly Hills, California.