Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Richard Lewis, one of America’s most beloved and revered stand-up comics who also played a fictionalized version of himself on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, died Tuesday night at his home in Los Angeles after suffering a heart attack. He was 76. His death was confirmed by his publicist Jeff Abraham. Lewis had been living […]
*Robin Hood: Men in Tights actor
“I have a mole?!”
If it makes you happier, that’s the first movie that comes up in the ‘known for’ movies on IMDB. I’ll always think of him as a standup comedian first. He perfected that neurotic Jewish persona in a way Woody Allen never could. Marc Maron is a pale imitation.
He put out 5 standup specials, was on Evening at the Improv fairly regularly, did an episode of Dr. Katz… definitely one of the better people doing standup in the 80s and 90s. Unfortunately, his last special was in 2014. I’m not sure why he quit, but I’m glad he made what he did.
No doubt, I think of him for his stand-up first because I was born in the 1900’s and watched them when they came out. It’s just funny they mention Curb as his big thing.
I can’t imagine doing stand up at 68 was easy and given his medical history, there was probably a good reason to quit.
As a former standup comic (nowhere near his level)- whatever reason he quit was a good reason. It’s very hard work. It can be very exhausting.
Even if his health was fine at the time, he could have just been tired of coming up with new material. Which is fine.
Larry and Jeff right now