Los Angeles [US], February 29 : 'Ellen DeGeneres Show' producer Andy Lassner, who previously struggled with addiction, claimed that the late comic Richard Lewis saved his life, Page Six reported.
After learning of the 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' star's passing, Lassner shared a heartfelt tribute on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C36EZGDv4RN/
He was one of the many angels in my life who saved me," Lassner wrote of Lewis, who died of a heart attack at age 76.
Lassner stated that within a year of moving to Los Angeles in 1998, addiction had once again ravaged his life.
"I was a mess," he wrote, adding that he barely remembers being taken to a 12-step meeting at the time.
Lewis did, however, chase him down in the parking lot and insisted on handing Lassner his phone number, directing him to "call me tomorrow just to tell me you're OK."
"We spoke. I gave him my number and said I'd check in again," he continued, adding that "the problem was that I had given Richard my number and he wouldn't stop calling me."
Lassner attempted to convince the standup comic to stop calling, but "he wouldn't stop. Every day. Hey, this is Richard. 'Hey, it's Richard. Call me.' I wouldn't return his call. He was so annoyingly persistent."
Then one day, the Daytime Emmy winner reached rock bottom. He had holed himself in a motel room on Sunset Boulevard. The comic called again, and Lassner answered.
The next thing he remembered was "a knock on the door and there stood Richard," who brought the distressed Lassner to his house and then arranged for him to return to rehab.
"This time I stayed clean and we stayed in touch for years," he wrote. "And then less so. And then not at all. And now he's gone. He was the menchiest of menches."
He concluded, "My regret today is not staying in touch. Life is fleeting. Stay connected."
Lassner told Page Six that Lewis was persistent and "for sure one of a number of people who wouldn't give up on me."
"I had lots of helpers," he added. "I was a mess."
Lassner was hardly the only celebrity who credited the late comic with the gift of sobriety.
Jamie Lee Curtis, 65, co-starred with Lewis in the 1989-92 sitcom 'Anything But Love.' The Oscar winner, who has spoken about a lengthy addiction to opioids, said on Instagram that Lewis "is the reason I am sober."
"He helped me. I am forever grateful for him for that act of grace alone," she added.
Lewis became free from drugs and alcohol in 1994.
In 2021, he will commemorate 27 years of sober living.
"August 3, 1994, I thought that I was near death from alcoholism," he tweeted. "Early the next day, I was rushed to the ER and turned my life around a day, sometimes a minute at a time."
"If you're struggling, you can get help," the "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" star added. "I did. 8/4/21 27 years sober."
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor