Richard Lewis has taken his bundle of bonafide dysfunctions and carved them into a commanding art form. His early career as a stand-up brought him to the top of his ranks and, over time, he has broadened his scopes to invite new audiences to share in the vision of his wonderfully warped world. 1999 brought Lewis in front of live audiences again with the on-going "Wreck in Progress Tour" after three years of 'non-stand-up.'

During a Chicago appearance Howard Reich, of the Tribune reflected on his history with Lewis, "(Nearly 20 years ago...), I headed for Zanie's and witnessed the most audacious comic wordsmith this side of Lenny Bruce: a young neurotic comedian named Richard Lewis. Ever since that revelatory evening I've followed Richard's ascent as perhaps the most gifted comedian of his generation."

Although Lewis also takes pride in the fact he has been charted on GO Magazine's list of the '20th Century's Most Influential Humorists,' he continues to redefine himself into the millennium.

Over the past few years he took time out to, among other things, complete a book "The Other Great Depression." It is a collection of fearless, essay style riffs featuring stream-of-consciousness writings. They promise to plumb new and uncharted depths of Lewis' dark musings and personal observations.

He also turned up the heat on his acting career by making different kinds of choices. Lewis took on his first dramatic role in the independent film, "Drunks," co-starring Dianne Weist, Faye Dunaway and Amanda Plummer. Built around an AA meeting, Richard received rave reviews as the central character, Jimmy Epstein, an addict fighting for his life. Lewis also got excellent notices for his cameo appearances in "Leaving Las Vegas," which, as the series does, deals with similar issues. "Drunks" was theatrically released and aired on Showtime.

Furthering his 'indie' credits, Lewis also completed the film "Gameday," as Coach Adler, a college basketball coach whose personal life is in shambles but, on the court and in the locker room, he's brilliant. He also co-starred as a psychotic gangster, in "Hugo Pool," a dark comedy from Robert Downey, Sr.

On the small screen, Lewis appeared as a recurring guest star on the debuting Showtime series "Rude Awakenings," a no-holds-barred comedy starring Sherilyn Fenn and Lynn Redgrave where he played a sleazy "B" movie producer. Lewis co-starred with Kevin Nealon in "Hiller and Diller" for ABC-TV and prior to that with Jamie Lee Curtis in the critically-acclaimed series "Anything But Love," in 1989, which had a four year run also on ABC. Lewis quickly became the "thinking woman's heartthrob."

Fans of Richard Lewis' stand-up concert material can look for his HBO special "The Magical Misery Tour" on Rhino Home Video, and can find him featured on the spoken word collection of Kerouac's poetry, "Kicks Joy Darkness" on CD. He has fared equally as well with reviewers for his rendition of the unpublished "Trinity of Love: Dean, Brando, Presley."

Regarded by his peers as a "comic's comic," Lewis' neuroses have become a part of our language as in, "I had a date from Hell!"  In July of 1995 Lewis performed live stand-up comedy for the first time in more than two years with his "Magical Misery Tour." Shot in New York at the historic Bottom Line, HBO aired the one-hour special in December '96, making it a rare accomplishment in completing his fourth hour cable special. In December of 1989, Lewis achieved a very personal goal...he performed at Carnegie Hall to a standing room only audience.

Richard Lewis' second special, "I'm Doomed," aired on HBO and earned him a second ACE nomination as Best Stand-Up Comedy Special. It completed a self-proclaimed "Trilogy From Hell" (which includes the earlier "I'm In Pain" for Showtime and "I'm Exhausted" for HBO, all now available on home video format. His "Diary of a Young Comic," which he starred in and co-wrote, first aired on NBC in the "Saturday Night Live" time slot and is now considered a cult classic.

Late night TV viewers, Howard Stern fans and media junkies in general are familiar with his frequent guest appearances. He may hold title to having the most late night appearances, chalking up more than 50 each on "Late Night with David Letterman" and "The Tonight Show" alone.

Richard Lewis may be available for your next special event!

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