Richard Lewis, one of the US' most beloved stand-up comics who also played a fictionalised version of himself on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, died on 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 with Parkinson’s disease, a diagnosis he revealed in April 2023.

Born in Brooklyn in 1947 and raised in Englewood, New Jersey, Lewis - after a childhood he would describe as troublesome - graduated from Ohio State University before landing in the New York and Los Angeles comedy scenes throughout the 1970s.

Working as a copywriter by day, Lewis spent his nights performing various comedy clubs around Greenwich Village. There, Lewis was discovered by comedian David Brenner, who helped him land his first appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, quickly becoming a favourite guest of the show. Lewis soon found himself in a new class of comedians with the likes of Andy Kaufman, Lily Tomlin, Robert Klein, George Carlin, Elayne Boosler and others.

He soon developed a singular stage persona nearly as dark as the all-black attire he favoured. His stand-up performances could be best described as straddling comedy and therapy. Lewis quickly became known for his black comedy, self-deprecation and frank discussions regarding his many neuroses, as well as his struggles with alcoholism, eating disorders and drug addiction.

After making his screen debut in 1979’s Diary of a Young Comic, Lewis rose to prominence in the ‘80s and ‘90s with several late-night appearances, stand-up specials and sitcom stints. Lewis showcased his black humour in his 1985 Showtime comedy special I’m in Pain, with several follow-up specials on HBO.

He also co-starred, for several seasons, in the late ’80s/early ’90s with Jamie Lee Curtis on Anything but Love and with Don Rickles on 1993’s Daddy Dearest. In 1998 he co-starred with Kevin Nealon in the sitcom Hiller and Diller. In an Instagram post, Lee Curtis called him a "wonderful actor," "deep and so freaking funny."

 

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Lewis began what arguably would be his signature role - based, fittingly enough, on himself - in 2000 when he was cast by childhood friend Larry David for his HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm. The two New Yorkers had met at summer camp when they were 12 and rekindled their friendship on the New York comedy circuit a decade later.

“Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me,” David wrote in a statement Wednesday, shared by HBO. “He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob and for that I’ll never forgive him.”

Lewis’ comedy was unapologetically confessional and critical, covering a lifelong struggle with anxiety and his hard-won sobriety after decades of struggling with alcoholism and drug addiction. He embraced, with both humour and biting self-awareness, a moniker that came early in his career: The Prince of Pain.