Richard Lewis died of a heart attack on Wednesday at the age of 76. He is remembered by many as a beloved comedian and actor. Among the Ohio State community, he is remembered as his OSU alumnus and Buckeye superfan.
Lewis graduated from Ohio State University in 1969 with a degree in business (Helped create jokes for social media posts in 2023). Even though he moved to Hollywood, Lewis never forgot about Columbus, especially its sports teams. As the Ohio State Alumni Association notes, Lewis actively spread his scarlet and gray spirit everywhere he went.
of @Ohio The family is mourning the loss of Richard Lewis ’69. Richard was a huge Buckeye fan and spread his scarlet and gray spirit wherever he went. ❤️ https://t.co/gcDUoagu7w
— Ohio State University Alumni (@OhioStateAlumni) February 28, 2024
Lewis was more than just an alumnus supporting the school. He fully embraced everything about The Game’s rivalry and was happy to share why he hates Michigan State and all things maize and blue.
“Why do you hate Michigan?”
Written by Richard Lewis
Rest in peace 🙏 pic.twitter.com/BvBHoFM5o7
— McNeil (@Reflog_18) February 28, 2024
It wouldn’t be surprising to hear from members of the media that Lewis never hesitated to reach out to talk about Ohio State, whether the news was good or bad.
At the risk of being criticized, I became Twitter friends with Richard Lewis out of love for Ohio State University. We’ve been chatting here every once in a while, up until just last week, about OSU or the Curb. I’m very sad to hear of his death. I can’t believe he’s gone. Rest in peace, Richard https://t.co/Zi40xQAIqs
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) February 28, 2024
RIP @RichardLewis 🥲 I love him on Curb and he’s one of the best comedians of all time! In 2018, when I was covering Ohio State’s Urban Meyer ignoring domestic violence issues caused by assistant coaches. I was surprised and honored when he contacted me. As an OSU alumnus, Lewis told me:
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) February 28, 2024
Mourning the death of a celebrity superfan
Especially in the age of social media and memes, the death of a celebrity elicits a variety of reactions from people. As sports fans, losing a celebrity superfan hurts the entire community (or country, as many fandoms call themselves).
Being a sports fan is something special. On game day, we don’t really care about our differences and find unity in being fans of the same team.
Celebrity Superfans are a fun reminder that the people we see on TV, in the movies, and on stage can become “one of us.”As fans, we love watching our color and our A logo reminiscent of a big star.
To Buckeye Nation, Lewis was more than just a fan of the bandwagon. OSU alumni of all generations have a “shared experience” bond with Lewis, who actually stepped foot on campus, took classes, and cheered on his football team.
Lewis’ spirit will live on with Buckeye Nation.
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