FILE PHOTO: Comedian Richard Lewis poses at a premiere for the Netflix original film “Sandy Wexler” in Los Angeles, California, April 6, 2017. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
LOS ANGELES — Comic actor Richard Lewis, a longtime regular on the HBO series “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” says he is under a doctor’s care for Parkinson’s disease but that despite giving up his standup act “everything is cool” as he focuses on writing and acting.
Lewis, 75, disclosed his diagnosis in a brief video posted to Twitter on Sunday, saying he learned he had Parkinson’s, a chronic degenerative disorder of the central nervous system, two years ago after he began walking stiffly and shuffling his feet.
Lewis said the Parkinson’s came on top of a series of shoulder, back and hip surgeries for various orthopedic ailments over the past 3 1/2 years, following an earlier decision to take a break from live performances.
“I’m finished with standup. I’m just focusing on writing and acting,” he said. As for the Parkinson’s diagnosis, “I got it late in life, and they say you progress very slowly, if at all, and I’m on the right meds.”
Lewis showed no sign of a tremor or other impairment in the video.
“I’m under a doctor’s care and everything is cool,” he added. “I love my wife, I love my little puppy dog and I love all my friends and fans.”
The New York-born entertainer said he recently wrapped filming on the 12th season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” in which he plays a semi-fictional version of himself as a friend of the show’s star and creator, Larry David.
Lewis gained fame in the 1980s standup circuit for his self-deprecating, neurotic persona.
He co-starred with actress Jamie Lee Curtis on the workplace romantic sitcom “Anything but Love,” which aired on ABC from 1989 into 1992. He also played a prominent role in the 1993 Mel Brooks-directed film parody “Robbin Hood: Men in Tights.”