Richard Philip Lewis is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He came to prominence as a stand-up comedian in the 1980s and became known for his dark, neurotic and self-deprecating humour.
As an actor, he is known for co-starring with Jamie Lee Curtis in the sitcom Anything but Love, and for playing the role of Prince John in the film Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
Lewis gained much wider exposure in the 1980s and 1990s with numerous appearances on talk shows such as The Tonight Show, both Late Night and the Late Show with David Letterman, and The Howard Stern Show.
He also produced the comedy specials I’m in Pain, which aired on Showtime in 1985, followed by I’m Exhausted, I’m Doomed and Richard Lewis: The Magical Misery Tour, which all aired on HBO in 1988, 1990 and 1997 respectively.
GQ magazine included Lewis on their list of “The 20th Century’s Most Influential Humorists”, and Lewis was ranked #45 on Comedy Central’s list of “100 Greatest Standups of All Time” released in 2004.
What happened to Richard Lewis?
Lewis has struggled with health issues resulting in multiple surgeries. In 2016 he shattered his right hand after falling from his roof, in 2019 he had back surgery related to acute back pain, and in early 2020 he shattered his shoulder, resulting in yet more surgery.
In 2020 it was revealed that Lewis had endured great pain during the shooting of Curb Your Enthusiasm and in 2021 he announced that he would only be returning for one episode of the 11th season, but hoped to appear more regularly in any potential subsequent seasons.
Though many guest stars have come and gone, Lewis is a fixture of the “Curb” milieu. He has appeared in 39 episodes of the show since its debut, as well as in David’s original 1999 mockumentary, “Larry David: Curb Your Enthusiasm.”