Fox News commentator Alan Colmes dies at 66 after 'brief illness'

Fox News Channel commentator Alan Colmes, who often presented liberal counterpoints to his more conservative colleagues, died Thursday morning at age 66, the network confirmed.

Colmes died "after a brief illness," his family, including his wife, Jocelyn Crowley, said Thursday morning in a statement aired on Fox News.

"He was a great guy, brilliant, hysterical, and moral," his family said. "He was fiercely loyal, and the only thing he loved more than his work was his life with Jocelyn. He will be missed. The family has asked for privacy during this very difficult time."

Famously paired for years with conservative commentator Sean Hannity on the show "Hannity & Colmes," the left-leaning New York native earned the respect of his colleagues.

Hannity said in a statement that he was "truly heartbroken at the loss of a dear friend."

Colmes was "one of life's most decent, kind and wonderful people you'd ever want to meet," Hannity said. "When Alan and I started Hannity and Colmes, there wasn’t a day that went by where we didn’t’ say we were two most fortunate men in all television. Despite major political differences, we forged a deep friendship.  Alan, in the midst of great sickness and illness, showed the single greatest amount of courage I’ve ever seen."

Hannity narrated a tribute package aired on the cable news channel Thursday morning.

A 1971 graduate of Hofstra University, Colmes worked as a standup comedian for a time early in his career. He later joined several radio shows and eventually joined Fox News in 1996. In recent years, he returned to the airwaves in a show airing nightly on Fox News Radio.

Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.