The star’s agent, Jeff Abraham, announced the death of Richard Lewis, whose self-deprecating humor and biting wit entertained viewers for years.
In a statement sent to CNN, Abraham wrote that the artist died “peacefully” at his home in Los Angeles on Tuesday evening. The immediate cause of the artist’s death was a heart attack.
In April 2023, Richard Lewis revealed that he suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
Lewis first became known to a wider audience when he appeared on “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” in 1974. Then he quickly became one of the most important elements of the cabaret scene that was emerging at that time.
As his career progressed, Lewis also began to appear on the big screen. He played Prince John in Mel Brooks’ comedy “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” and as an alcoholic trying to break his addiction in Peter Cohen’s drama “Drunkers.”
However, his appearances in TV series went down in history. He starred alongside Jamie Lee Curtis in “Anything But Love” (1989-1992), and in “Curb Your Enthusiasm” he partnered with Larry David. In the latter series, the star played himself, willingly joking about his private problems with substances and relationships with women. He appeared regularly in the production until the tenth series. Although he left the cast in 2021, he returned in the final twelfth season.