LOS ANGELES - Kenneth Kahn, a criminal defense attorney with a side career as a comedian, known for his work with high-profile clients such as Larry Flynt, has died. He was 66.

The recently retired Santa Monica resident died Wednesday in a hospital in Cuzco, Peru, after falling while climbing alone on the mountain above the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu, Kahn's public relations consultant, Bob Mazza, told the Los Angeles Times.

In his legal role, Kahn may best be known for defending convicted spy Andrew Daulton Lee, portrayed by Sean Penn in the 1985 movie "The Falcon and the Snowman." He also was Ike Turner's defense attorney, representing the musician on a probation violation.

And he defended Larry Flynt when the Hustler magazine publisher was charged with desecrating the American flag for wearing a flag as a diaper in a courtroom.

Kahn began moonlighting as a standup comedian in the mid-'90s. His business card read "Kenny Kahn. World's Funniest Attorney."

His comedic explorations began after a brush with death in 1987 when he was stabbed in the chest with an ice pick in a Torrance courtroom by a man he had defended for assault on a police officer.