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Richard Lewis, the popular comedian and actor known for his role as himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm, died on Tuesday (February 27) following a heart attack. He was 76 years old.
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“Comedian/actor Richard Lewis died peacefully at his home in Los Angeles last night after suffering a heart attack,” his spokesman Jeff Abraham shared the news in a statement. “His wife, Joyce Lapinsky, thanks everyone for all the love, friendship and support and requests privacy at this time.”
Lewis quickly became a fan favorite in over 40 episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm, including the 2000 pilot. In 2021, he announced that he would not be returning to the series to recover from three surgeries, although he only appeared in one scene in season 11. He ended up returning for the now-airing final season of the HBO program.
Following the devastating news, Lewis' longtime friend and Curb co-star Larry David shared his own statement of grief. “Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and he was like a brother to me for most of my life,” he wrote in the statement shared by HBO. “He had that rare combination of being both the funniest and the sweetest person. But today he made me cry and I will never forgive him for that.”
Lewis' “Anything But Love” co-star Jamie Lee Curtis also took to Instagram to share a lengthy, emotional tribute to her late friend. “He’s also the reason I’m sober. He helped me,” she wrote in part. “I am eternally grateful to him for this act of grace alone. He found love with Joyce and that, along with his sobriety, was of course the most important thing to him. I'm crying as I write this. Strange way to say thank you to a sweet and funny man.”
Many of Lewis' famous friends and colleagues flooded social media with messages of love and memories of the comedian. See below.
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He would take the time to tell the people he loved what they meant to him. In between takes of Curb, he told me how special I was to him and how much he loved me.
To be loved by Richard Lewis. A true gift.
I love you, Richard. We will miss you. #RichardLewis pic.twitter.com/7zJzKVPSfH
— Cheryl Hines (@CherylHines) February 28, 2024 More information
I just heard that we lost the great and wonderful Richard Lewis. We have been friends for over 30 years. I will really miss you, my friend. I love you @TheRichardLewis, Rip
My thoughts are with his loving wife Joyce. ❤️
— Peter Frampton (@peterframpton) February 28, 2024 More information
Sadly, the great Richard Lewis has died.
– bettemidler (@BetteMidler) February 28, 2024 More information
Sleep well, Richard… I'll try to take good care of our faces.
— Jon Stewart (@jonstewart) February 28, 2024
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