Richard Lewis’ wife Joyce Lapinsky breaks her silence on comedian’s death

Richard Lewis’ wife, Joyce Lapinsky, thanked his many fans worldwide in a post on X three days after the beloved comedian’s death at the age of 76.

“This is Joyce, Richard’s wife,” she wrote on his X page. “Thank you for your loving tributes. He would be beyond thrilled and so touched, as am I.

“In response to your many queries, I know Richard would appreciate donations in his memory to the Los Angeles based charity comedygivesback.com or the charity of your choice.”

According to its website, Comedy Gives Back is “the safety net for the comedic community by providing financial crisis relief, mental health and chemical treatment sponsorship and continued community support.”

Lewis, the iconic comedian who starred opposite lifelong friend Larry David in HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” — playing a thinly veiled version of himself — died Tuesday night at his home in LA after suffering a heart attack.

Lewis, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease last spring and had retired from standup comedy, also starred in the ABC series “Anything but Love” opposite Jamie Lee Curtis and in the Fox sitcom “Daddy Dearest” opposite Don Rickles.

He was a frequent and favorite guest on late-night television dating back to the early 1980s on “Late Night with David Letterman,” “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “The Tonight Show” and others.

According to Deadline, several weeks before his death, Lewis posted a photo of himself and his wife and wrote, “Keaton had his Eleanor I have my Joyce,” an allusion to famed silent film star Buster Keaton whose wife, Eleanor, kept his memory alive after he died in 1966.

Lewis’ X homepage image is a photo of Buster Keaton from one of his silent film-era movies.

Lewis and Lapinsky met in 1988 at a Ringo Starr album release party, were engaged in 2004 and married in 2005, according to People.

After Lewis’ death, Starr posted a photo of the three of them and wrote, “God bless, Richard Lewis peace and love to Joyce.”

Lewis, at one point in his life, battled drugs and alcohol and told Entertainment Tonight in 2010 of his relationship with Joyce that he’s “found peace and serenity. On stage, I still mine my bottomless pit of bad memories … In real life, I’m still crazy, but I’m far happier and more grateful than I’ve ever been.

“Marriage has a lot to do with that,” he continued. “We have a neurotic relationship that’s, 99 percent of the time, filled with laughter and love.”