Comedian Dana Carvey, reeling from his son’s overdose death last week, has announced he’s stepping back from work and social media while he and wife Paula Zwagerman process the tragedy.
“I will be taking a break from work and social media — trying to figure out what life looks like now that we are a family of three,” Carvey posted on Instagram Friday. “We wll heal the best we can and carry on. Our darling Dex would have wanted it that way.”
He closed with, “Much love, Dana.”
The couple’s older son, Dex Carvey, died Wednesday at age 32. A comedian himself, he opened for his father’s Netflix special “Straight White Male, 60” in 2016. Son Thomas Carvey, 30, is also a comedian.
“Saturday Night Live,” where he earned his fame, gave a silent shout-out at the close of Saturday’s show when castmate Colin Jost held up a sign that read, “We love you, Dana and Paula.”
Carvey had the nation in stitches from 1986 to 1993 during his seven seasons on the Saturday night staple, from his impersonations of George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot, to the world-famous Church Lady with her signature line, “Isn’t that special!”
The Carveys on Friday thanked everyone for the support that had flowed in since Dex’s death.
“My wife and I have been overwhelmed by your love, your personal stories, your compassion,” Carvey wrote in his Instagram post. “We received so many beautiful messages from people who knew Dex. These touched us more than we could ever express in words.”
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