Richard Lewis Popular Books

Richard Lewis Biography & Facts

Richard Philip Lewis (June 29, 1947 – February 27, 2024) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. Lewis came to prominence in the 1980s and became known for his dark, neurotic, and self-deprecating humor. As an actor, he was known for starring in the ABC sitcom Anything but Love from 1989 to 1992, and for playing the role of Prince John in the 1993 film Robin Hood: Men in Tights. Lewis also had a recurring role as a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the HBO comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm from 2000 to 2024. Early life and education Lewis was born on June 29, 1947, in Brooklyn. He was raised in Englewood, New Jersey. He was born into a Jewish family, but was not especially religious. His father, Bill (d. 1971), was co-owner of Ambassador Caterers in nearby Teaneck, New Jersey, and his mother, Blanche, was an actress in community theatre. Lewis was the youngest of three siblings – his sister was older by 9 years, and his brother by 6. His father's catering business kept him very busy, and his siblings had both left home by the 1960s, leaving Lewis at home alone with his mother, with whom there was friction. Lewis told The Washington Post in 2014 that he suspected that his birth had been a mistake.Lewis was known for being the class clown and causing trouble in school. He graduated from Dwight Morrow High School in 1965 and attended Ohio State University where he attained a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Marketing four years later in 1969. He was the recipient of the Fisher College of Business Alumni Achievement Award in November 2023. Career Lewis first tried stand-up at an open mic in Greenwich Village in 1971. He began writing and regularly performing stand-up comedy in 1972, while working as a copywriter for an advertising agency by day. He was discovered by comedian David Brenner while performing in Greenwich Village. Brenner helped Lewis's career by introducing him to the comedy clubs in Los Angeles and getting Lewis his first appearance on The Tonight Show. By the mid-1970s, Lewis had appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and publications, such as the New York Daily News and New York magazine, were naming him one of the "new breed" or "class" of comedians; this list containing names such as Robert Klein, Lily Tomlin, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Andy Kaufman, Richard Belzer, and Elayne Boosler. His influences were Richard Pryor, Buster Keaton, Woody Allen, and Lenny Bruce.Lewis was known for dark comedy, self-deprecation, and for frank discussions regarding his many neuroses, as well as his struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction. He was noted for wearing all-black attire and for pacing and gesticulating wildly during his stand-up act. In his early days, he was also known for bringing taped-together sheets from a legal pad to his performances; he would lay them across the floor in front of him to remind him of joke premises and topics he wished to cover during his performance.Lewis made his screen acting debut in Diary of a Young Comic, a 90-minute film that aired on NBC in 1979 in the timeslot normally reserved for episodes of Saturday Night Live. A satirical look at the Hollywood scene, Lewis stars in the film as Billy Gondola (born Gondolstein), a young Jewish comedian who leaves New York City to find fame in Los Angeles. The film's script was co-written by Lewis and Bennett Tramer, and was adapted from a story written by Gary Weis, who also served as the film's director. The film features Bill Macy as Billy's father, Michael Lerner as his agent, and Stacy Keach as a landlord. Performers George Jessel, Dom DeLuise, Nina van Pallandt, and Gary Mule Deer make appearances in the film as themselves.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 special I'm in Pain, which aired on Showtime in 1985, followed by the specials I'm Exhausted, I'm Doomed, and Richard Lewis: The Magical Misery Tour, all of which aired on HBO in 1988, 1990, and 1997 respectively. From 1989 to 1992, he co-starred with Jamie Lee Curtis on the sitcom Anything but Love. He also starred on the short-lived sitcoms Daddy Dearest with Don Rickles in 1993, and Hiller and Diller with Kevin Nealon in 1998. He played Prince John in the 1993 film Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and starred as a struggling alcoholic and drug addict in the 1995 drama film Drunks. The latter film featured performances from Faye Dunaway, George Martin, Parker Posey, Howard Rollins, Spalding Gray, and Dianne Wiest, and was based on Gary Lennon's play Blackout. Lewis also appeared in the 1995 drama film Leaving Las Vegas, and the 1997 romantic comedy Hugo Pool.Into the 2000s, Lewis had recurring roles as a B movie producer on the sitcom Rude Awakening, and as Rabbi Richard Glass on the family drama series 7th Heaven. He also had a recurring role on the sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm as a semi-autobiographical version of himself. Lewis first met the show's star and creator, Larry David, at summer camp in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, when they were 12 years old – the former claimed that at the time, they hated each other. The two comedians also happened to be born three days apart in the same hospital. The pair met again over a decade later while performing stand-up in New York and became friends. Recognition GQ magazine included Lewis on their list of "The 20th Century's Most Influential Humorists", and Lewis was ranked No. 45 on Comedy Central's list of "100 Greatest Standups of All Time" released in 2004.In 2006, The Yale Book of Quotations included an entry for the expression "the ______ from hell" (as in "the night from hell", "the date from hell". etc.,) that was attributed to Lewis. Lewis also petitioned the editors of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations to include the idiom, which was also worked into the plot of Curb Your Enthusiasm during the episode "The Nanny from Hell." His lawyer sent some video tapes to Bartlett's general editor Justin Kaplan showing Lewis using the phrase. Bartlett's declined, stating that the expression had predated Lewis's first taped broadcast. In response, Lewis told Entertainment Weekly that he traces popular usage of the line back to his early days on David Letterman's show. Personal life Marriage Lewis met Joyce Lapinsky in 1998 at a Ringo Starr album release party, while Lapinsky was working in music publishing. The pair were engaged in 2004 and married the following year. Substance abuse issues Lewis was open about his recovery from alcohol and drug abuse, having been a user of both cocaine and crystal meth. His addictions worsened into the 1990s, prompting Lewis to stop performing stand-up from 1991 to 1994. In a 1995 interview with the Santa Maria Times, Lewis discussed how John Candy's death the year prior had caused him to reflect upon his own li.... Discover the Richard Lewis popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Richard Lewis books.

Best Seller Richard Lewis Books of 2024

  • Making History synopsis, comments

    Making History

    Richard Cohen

    A “supremely entertaining” (The New Yorker) exploration of who gets to record the world’s historyfrom Julius Caesar to William Shakespeare to Ken Burnsand how their biases influenc...

  • Five Steps to Happy synopsis, comments

    Five Steps to Happy

    Ella Dove

    AS SEEN ON ITV'S LORRAINE'An uplit treasure' Red magazineWhen struggling actress Heidi has a lifechanging accident aged 32, her world falls apart. Stuck in hospital and unable to w...

  • Patmos synopsis, comments

    Patmos

    C. Baxter Kruger

    »Das Buch für all jene, die nicht glauben können, Gott aber vermissen.« (C. Baxter Kruger)Als Aidan weit weg von Zuhause in einer Höhle erwacht, kann er nicht glauben, was ihm wide...

  • The Journals of Captain Cook synopsis, comments

    The Journals of Captain Cook

    Captain James Cook & Philip Edwards

    Cook led three famous expeditions to the Pacific Ocean between 1768 and 1779. In voyages that ranged from the Antarctic circle to the Arctic Sea, Cook charted Australia and the who...

  • Richard Dawkins, C.S. Lewis and the Meaning of Life synopsis, comments

    Richard Dawkins, C.S. Lewis and the Meaning of Life

    Alister Mcgrath

    In this pithy, entertaining guide to what really matters, Alister McGrath brings together Richard Dawkins and C.S. Lewis, two intriguing and wellknown writers, in 'conversation'.Th...

  • Wrestling With His Angel synopsis, comments

    Wrestling With His Angel

    Sidney Blumenthal

    The “magisterial” (The New York Times Book Review) second volume of Sidney Blumenthal’s acclaimed, landmark biography, The Political Life of Abraham Lincoln, reveals the future pre...

  • Calling Major Tom synopsis, comments

    Calling Major Tom

    David M Barnett

    'I loved everything about it.' Goodreads 'This book made me laugh, cry, giggle and gasp.' Goodreads'One of my favourite books of the year. Charming and very sweet.' Goodreads He...

  • The Myth of the Goddess synopsis, comments

    The Myth of the Goddess

    Anne Baring & Jules Cashford

    A comprehensive, scholarly accessible study, in which the authors draw upon poetry and mythology, art and literature, archaeology and psychology to show how the myth of the goddess...

  • Flight or Fright synopsis, comments

    Flight or Fright

    Stephen King

    #1 New York Times bestselling author and master of horror Stephen King teams up with Bev Vincent of Cemetery Dance to present a terrifying collection of sixteen short stories (and ...

  • Reading with Patrick synopsis, comments

    Reading with Patrick

    Michelle Kuo

    “In all of the literature addressing education, race, poverty, and criminal justice, there has been nothing quite like Reading with Patrick.”The AtlanticA memoir of the lifech...

  • Fair Game synopsis, comments

    Fair Game

    Valerie Plame Wilson

    On July 6, 2003, four months after the United States invaded Iraq, former ambassador Joseph Wilson's now historic oped, "What I Didn't Find in Africa," appeared in The New York Tim...

  • Sea-Birds synopsis, comments

    Sea-Birds

    James Fisher & R. M. Lockley

    SeaBirds introduces us to the seabirds of the North Atlantic, an ocean in which about half the world seabird species have been seen at one time or another. This edition is exclusiv...

  • Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent synopsis, comments

    Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent

    Alexander von Humboldt

    One of the greatest nineteenthcentury scientistexplorers, Alexander von Humboldt traversed the tropical Spanish Americas between 1799 and 1804. By the time of his death in 1859, he...

  • The Bank That Lived a Little synopsis, comments

    The Bank That Lived a Little

    Philip Augar

    Based on unparalleled access to those involved, and told with compelling pace and drama, The Bank that Lived a Little describes three decades of boardroom intrigue at one of Britai...

  • A Silent Death synopsis, comments

    A Silent Death

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY, THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'Peter May is one of th...

  • Bird Migration synopsis, comments

    Bird Migration

    Ian Newton

    The phenomenon of bird migration has fascinated people from time immemorial. The arrivals and departures of different species marked the seasons, heralding spring and autumn, and p...

  • Confessions synopsis, comments

    Confessions

    Saint Augustine & R. S. Pine-Coffin

    'Give me chastity and continence, but not yet'The son of a pagan father and a Christian mother, Saint Augustine spent his early years torn between conflicting worldviews. The Confe...

  • The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry synopsis, comments

    The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry

    John Mark Comer

    ECPA BESTSELLER A compelling emotional and spiritual case against hurry and in favor of a slower, simpler way of lifefrom the New York Times bestselling author of Practicing the W...

  • Racing for the Bomb synopsis, comments

    Racing for the Bomb

    Robert S. Norris

    In September 1942, Colonel Leslie R. Groves was given the job of building the atomic bomb. As a career officer in the Army Corps of Engineers, Groves had overseen hundreds of milit...

  • All the Powers of Earth synopsis, comments

    All the Powers of Earth

    Sidney Blumenthal

    Lincoln’s incredible ascent to power in a world of chaos is newly revealed in this “compelling, original, and elegantly written” (Michael Beschloss, New York Times bestselling auth...

  • A Self-Made Man synopsis, comments

    A Self-Made Man

    Sidney Blumenthal

    The first in a sweeping, multivolume history of Abraham Lincolnfrom his obscure beginnings to his presidency, death, and the overthrow of his postCivil War plan of reconciliation“e...

  • Plant Galls synopsis, comments

    Plant Galls

    Margaret Redfern

    A muchneeded study on plant galls – growths on plants formed of plant tissue that are caused by other organisms.Most naturalists have come across oak apples, robin’s pincushions, m...

  • The Kathryn Hughes Collection synopsis, comments

    The Kathryn Hughes Collection

    Kathryn Hughes

    Available together for the first time in ebook, discover the heartrending novels from the No.1 bestselling author Kathryn Hughes. PREORDER THE MEMORY BOX, THE NEW NOVEL FROM KATHR...

  • Preventable synopsis, comments

    Preventable

    Devi Sridhar

    THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER | BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEKThe definitive story of COVID19 and how global politics shape our health from a worldleading expert and the pandemic's go...

  • The Wisdom of Wolves synopsis, comments

    The Wisdom of Wolves

    Elli H. Radinger

    'ENCHANTING' MAIL ON SUNDAY They care for their elderly, play with their kids, and always put family first. Can we all learn something from the wisdom of wolves? In this unforge...

  • The Explorers Guild synopsis, comments

    The Explorers Guild

    Kevin Costner, Jon Baird & Rick Ross

    Return to the golden age of adventure with this gorgeously wrought, actionpacked, globetrotting tale that combines the bravura storytelling of Kipling with the irresistible, illust...

  • Extraordinary People synopsis, comments

    Extraordinary People

    Peter May

    In the first book of the Enzo Files, ex forensic scientist Enzo Macleod makes a daring wager and attempts to solve the tenyearold case of a vanished man.An old mystery.As midnight ...

  • The Noble Path synopsis, comments

    The Noble Path

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY, THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'Peter May is one of th...

  • Runaway synopsis, comments

    Runaway

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY, THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERS'Peter May is one of the most accomplished novelists writing today' Undiscovered ...

  • The Chessmen synopsis, comments

    The Chessmen

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'One of the best regarded crime series of ...

  • Lockdown synopsis, comments

    Lockdown

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY, THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'Peter May is one of th...

  • Dreamcatcher synopsis, comments

    Dreamcatcher

    Stephen King

    From master storyteller Stephen King comes his classic #1 New York Times bestseller about four friends who encounter evil in the Maine woods.Twentyfive years ago, in their haunted ...

  • The Lewis Man synopsis, comments

    The Lewis Man

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'One of the best regarded crime series of ...

  • Plant Disease synopsis, comments

    Plant Disease

    David Ingram & Noel Robertson

    Plant Disease covers all aspects of diseases of plants growing in the wild or likely to be encountered on cultivated plants in farm, forest and garden. This edition is exclusive to...

  • The Way of a Pilgrim synopsis, comments

    The Way of a Pilgrim

    Andrew Louth & Anna Zaranko

    By the mercy of God I am a Christian, by my deeds a great sinner, by calling a homeless wanderer of the lowliest origins, roaming from place to place. Here, see my belongings: a ba...

  • The Dealmaker synopsis, comments

    The Dealmaker

    Guy Hands

    An inside account of the multibillion pound world of private equity and a masterclass on the art of dealmaking.The Dealmaker is a frank and honest account of how a severely dyslexi...

  • 50 Economics Classics synopsis, comments

    50 Economics Classics

    Tom Butler-Bowdon

    Economics drives the modern world and shapes our lives, but few of us feel we have time to engage with the breadth of ideas in the subject. 50 Economics Classics is the smart perso...

  • The Fat Chance Guide to Dieting synopsis, comments

    The Fat Chance Guide to Dieting

    Claudia Pattison

    Think nothing tastes as good as slim feels? You're obviously not eating the right food . . .Holly, Naomi and Kate are determined to win the battle of the bulge. So it's down to the...

  • Religion and Magic in Ancient Egypt synopsis, comments

    Religion and Magic in Ancient Egypt

    Rosalie David

    The ancient Egyptians believed that the Nile their life source was a divine gift. Religion and magic permeated their civilization, and this book provides a unique insight into th...

  • A Brief Guide to Smart Thinking synopsis, comments

    A Brief Guide to Smart Thinking

    James M. Russell

    Each book is summarised to convey a brief idea of what each one has to offer the interested reader, while a 'Speed Read' for each book delivers a quick sense of what each book is l...

  • The Blackhouse synopsis, comments

    The Blackhouse

    Peter May & Peter Forbes

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'One of the best regarded crime series of ...

  • Dragonflies synopsis, comments

    Dragonflies

    Philip Corbet & Stephen Brooks

    Dragonflies are among the most ancient of living creatures – few insect groups fascinate as much or are more immediately recognisable.In this seminal new work, Philip Corbet and St...

  • The Man With No Face synopsis, comments

    The Man With No Face

    Peter May

    THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY, THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'Peter May is one of th...

  • The Staycation synopsis, comments

    The Staycation

    Michele Gorman

    'Perfect summer reading!' Bella OsborneTwo families. One cancelled flight. And a last minute house swap...Things get desperate for strangers Harriet and Sophie when they become st...