Richard Lewis has died. He was 76.
The “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star and legendary comic passed away in his Los Angeles home Tuesday night after suffering a heart attack, his publicist, Jeff Abraham, confirmed to Deadline.
“His wife, Joyce Lapinsky, thanks everyone for all the love, friendship and support and asks for privacy at this time,” Abraham said in a statement.
Last spring, Lewis revealed that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease — a progressive disorder that affects the nervous system and the parts of the body controlled by the nerves — and would be retiring from stand-up.
“I said, ‘You know, I’m at the top of my game, after 50 years almost, I’m just going to call it quits,’ and I felt great about it, and then just out of the blue, the s–t hit the fan,” he explained in a video shared on Twitter.
“I had four surgeries back-to-back-to-back-to-back. It was incredible. It was bad luck, but it’s life.”
The “Wagons East” star underwent operations on his back and shoulder followed by hip and shoulder replacements.
“So there were months when I was just focusing on PT, like I am now,” he told viewers.
Soon after, Lewis said the doctor informed him that he had Parkinson’s.
“I started walking a little stiffly,” he recalled. “I was shuffling my feet, and I went to a neurologist, and they gave me a brain scan, and I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.”
The “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” star explained that he wanted to go public with his diagnosis so people “know that’s where it’s been at.”
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“I’m finished with stand-up. I’m just focusing on writing and acting. I have Parkinson’s disease, but I’m under a doctor’s care, and everything is cool,” he said.
“I love my wife, I love my little puppy dog and I love all my friends and family. So now you know where it’s been at the last three and a half years. God bless you.”
Lewis was best known for his dark, neurotic and self-deprecating humor.
He appeared in several TV shows including “Anything But Love,” “Blunt Talk” and “7th Heaven,” in addition to films like “Leaving Las Vegas” and “Once Upon a Crime.”
Lewis also appeared as himself in more than 40 episodes of Larry David’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” from 2000 to 2021.
He is survived by his wife, Joyce Lapinsky, whom he wed in 2005.
