Dana Carvey returned to work nearly two months after his son, Dex Carvey, died of an accidental overdose in November.
The comedian, in a return to his Fly on the Wall with David Spade podcast, spoke about his son's death at the start of this week's episode and spoke about the “amazing” amount of support that has been sent to him and his family.
“I thought about this over the holidays, and I decided to go back to the podcast because I think, you know, it's a long day when you're not working, and it's on your mind. And I think it'll be a great break. I think it's really great to have a laugh,” he said.
Spade, who launched the podcast with Carvey in 2022, noted the “good will there” before admitting that the mother of the late Chris Farley wrote a letter for Spade to give to his co-host.
Carvey said the support has been “very nice”, telling Speed that the grieving process will be “just me, my wife, and our son's own journey.”
“We're all together. We do a lot of fun things. We really go on walks and go to church, you just want to make sure you keep moving,” Carvey said.
“You just want to make sure you keep moving, and like I said, doing that and chatting with you, I think will be very healthy for me as I recover because I'm kind of on the pain train,” he continued. Along with about millions of other people on the planet. And you don't know how long you will keep it or when it will stop or when it will get better. But in the meantime, all this kind of stuff is very healthy.
Carvey has been away from the podcast since Dex's death in November with Speed stepping in to present a number of interviews with David Byrne, Dan Aykroyd and Michael McKean.
In a joint statement with his wife, Paula Zugerman, in November, the comedian wrote that Dex “has put in a lot in those 32 years” of his life.
“He was extremely talented at many things – music, art, filmmaking, comedy – and he pursued them all with a passion. It is no exaggeration to say that Dex loved life. And when I was with him I loved life too. He made everything fun.” Read their statement.
They addressed their son's love for his family, friends and girlfriend Kylie before referring to Dex Carvey as a “beautiful person.”
“To anyone who struggles with addiction or loves someone who struggles with addiction, you are in our hearts and prayers,” they wrote.
Like his father and younger brother Thomas, Dex Carvey was a comedian. He appeared in his father's Netflix comedy special titled 'Straight White Male' in 2016 alongside the series 'The Funster' and 'Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser'.
Do you need help with a substance use disorder or mental health issue? In the United States, call 800-662-HELP (4357) for SAMHSA National Helpline.
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