'Curb Your Enthusiasm' Star Richard Lewis Dies Aged 76
“He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob and for that I’ll never forgive him."
Larry David + Richard Lewis (HBO)
Stand-up comedian and Curb Your Enthusiasm star Richard Lewis has died aged 76.
Lewis died peacefully Tuesday night (Feb. 27) at his LA home in Los Angeles after suffering a heart attack, his publicist Jeff Abraham said.
In a statement shared by Lewis' publicist, his wife, Joyce Lapinsky, said she "thanks everyone for all the love, friendship and support and asks for privacy at this time".
Longtime friend and fellow Curb star Larry David also spoke out following Lewis’ death, saying, “Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me. He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob and for that, I’ll never forgive him.”
A HBO spokesperson shared in a statement, “We are heartbroken. His comedic brilliance, wit and talent were unmatched. Richard will always be a cherished member of the HBO and Curb Your Enthusiasm families. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family, friends and all the fans who could count on Richard to brighten their days with laughter.
Jamie Lee Curtis, Lewis’ co-star in the series Anything But Love, also paid tribute to him on Instagram, writing: “He also is the reason I am sober. He helped me. I am forever grateful for him for that act of grace alone.”
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“He found love with Joyce and that, of course, besides his sobriety, is what mattered most to him. I’m weeping as I write this. Strange way of saying thank you to a sweet and funny man. Rest in laughter, Richard.”
Last April, Lewis revealed that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and would retire from stand-up comedy.
“For the last three-and-a-half years, I’ve had sort of a rocky time,” he said on social media at the time, adding that he has suffered from back pain, and had both shoulder and hip replacement surgeries.
On being diagnosed with Parkinson’s, he said, “Luckily, I got it late in life, and they say you progress very slowly if at all, and I’m on the right meds, so I’m cool,” he said.
”I’m finished with stand-up. I’m just focusing on writing and acting.”
Among his comedic accolades and his appearance on Curb later in his career, he also appeared as recurring characters on TV’s Rude Awakening, ‘Til Death and Blunt Talk, The Larry Sanders Show, Tales From the Crypt, Two and a Half Men, George Lopez and Everybody Hates Chris; and appeared on the big screen in That’s Adequate (1987), Once Upon a Crime (1992), Wagons East (1994), Drunks (1995), Leaving Las Vegas (1995), The Elevator (1996), Hugo Pool (1997), Vamps (2012) and She’s Funny That Way (2014).
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