Comedian Louie Anderson Passes Away at 68

Louie Anderson — an Emmy-winning comedian and actor known for his roles in movies such as “Coming to America” and TV shows including “Baskets” — has passed away at the age of 68.

On Friday, Anderson’s longtime publicist Glenn Schwartz confirmed the devastating news to People, saying the “Life with Louie” star died in a Las Vegas hospital where he was undergoing treatments for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma — the most common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

“He is survived by his two sisters, Lisa and Shanna Anderson. Cause of death was complications from cancer,” Schwartz added in a statement.

Last week, Schwartz told Rolling Stone that Anderson was “resting comfortably” while undergoing treatments.

“Iconic comedian Louie Anderson is currently in a Las Vegas hospital being treated for diffuse large B cell lymphoma, a form of cancer,” Schwartz told the magazine at the time.

Born and raised in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Anderson made his network debut as a comedian on “The Tonight Show” in 1984.

Years later, he made a memorable appearance in the 1988 comedy film “Coming to America,” where he played a fast-food worker alongside co-stars Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall.

In the ’90s, Anderson co-created and voice-acted in “Life with Louie,” an animated television series based on his childhood. The show lasted three seasons and earned him two Daytime Emmy awards for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program.

Recently, he starred in the comedy-drama “Baskets” where he played the mother of twins, both portrayed by Zach Galifianakis. In 2016, Anderson earned an Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy for his work on the FX show.

Last March, Anderson told Conan O’Brien that he had lost 40 pounds from intermittent fasting.

“I started the pandemic at about 370 or 380 pounds depending on what I was leaning on,” he jokingly told the “Conan” host.

Anderson revealed he got down to 340 pounds and was hoping to reach his goal weight of 275.

“Yes, I’m going to retire my fat jokes,” he said at the time. “I think I’ll always be funny.”