Comedian and Curb Your Enthusiasm actor Richard Lewis has died today at 76. The stand-up comic was best known for playing the fictionalized version of himself in the Larry David HBO series, which just had its final season. He had a heart attack in his Los Angeles home last night.
Before diving into acting, he got his start doing stand-up in L.A. and New York in the 1970s. He was rising in the scene with other comics like Andy Kaufman, Richard Belzer, and Elayne Boosler. His hilarious persona on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was what broke him into new territory to make for a sustainable and successful career.
Actor and Comedian Richard Lewis Died Less Than a Year After Parkinson’s Reveal
The news comes almost a year after he revealed that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He had announced his retirement from comedy due to his diagnosis.
For 24 years, Richard Lewis played his exaggerated self on Curb Your Enthusiasm. He planned on not joining season 11 due to three surgeries but was asked by the show’s creator and leading star, so he decided to make the surprise appearance. He starred in the final season, which hit HBO earlier this year.
By the late ’70, he had started to balance stand-up and acting. His debut was in 1979 with Diary of a Young Comic. A decade later, he had a leading role in Anything But Love with Jamie Lee Curtis, which ran for four seasons. He eventually made it to major movies with Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Leaving Las Vegas.
Through his work, like in Curb Your Enthusiasm, Richard Lewis always channeled his own struggles. He was candid about his addictions and other personal problems. His self-deprecation was both funny and relatable for audiences, which gained him popularity.
He is survived by his wife, Joyce Lapinsky.
