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The comedian, who is the older brother of Eddie Murphy, died in a New York hospital, according to his manager.

The funnyman had been going through chemotherapy.

Charlie is most famous for his performances as cast member and writer on Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show.

He appeared in the notorious Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories sketches, where he told tales of being part of his brother Eddie's entourage – having run-ins with stars including Prince and Rick James.

(Image: GETTY)

The sketches have gone down in comedy history, with the Rick James episode of the series spawning the catchphrase: "I'm Rick James bitch!"

The late Prince seemed to be a fan of the sketch too, with the star using Dave Chappelle's impersonation of him as the artwork of his single Breakfast Can Wait.

Charlie also had his own sketch series called Charlie Murphy's Crash Comedy, and played Vic on Adult Swim's Black Jesus from 2014 until 2015.

The New York native is survived by his three children.

(Image: GETTY)

(Image: GETTY)

Murphy was married to Tisha Taylor Murphy from 1997 until she tragically died from cancer in 2009.

Before getting into comedy and acting, Charlie enlisted in the United States Navy following 10 months in jail as an 18-year-old.

He served for six years as a boiler technician, and witnessed a mushroom cloud from the aftermath of the Beirut barracks bombing.

Upon news of Charlie's passing, colleagues and fans took to social media to pay their respects.

(Image: COMEDY CENTRAL) (Image: TWITTER)

Chris Rock tweeted: "We just lost one of the funniest most real brothers of all time . Charlie Murphy RIP."

Comedian Robin Thede tweeted: "Devastated to hear of Charlie Murphy's passing. I hope he and Prince are playing basketball and eating pancakes right now."

And Kevin Smith wrote: "NO! Charlie Murphy is one of the greatest storytellers I've ever heard in my life! My heart goes out to his family and all who loved him!"

One fan wrote: "Charlie Murphy's true hollywood stories is the best comedy skits I've ever seen. Rest in peace."

(Image: GETTY)

(Image: TWITTER)

Prior to the news of his death, Charlie's battle with leukaemia was not public knowledge.

The star was tweeting just hours before he passed away.

Following his trend of tweeting posts "to sleep on", he wrote: "One to Sleep On: Release the past to rest as deeply as possible."