Mon Apr 14, 6:59 PM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Comic Rodney Dangerfield (news) has been taken off a respirator following brain surgery and his first request to doctors was to tune in to talk show host Jerry Springer, Dangerfield's agent said on Monday.
Dangerfield, 81, underwent the risky procedure -- intended to improve the blood flow to his brain -- a week ago at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles as a prelude to a heart valve replacement scheduled for next week.
He spent the week following the surgery in an intensive care unit, and was "smiling and elated" to be breathing on his own, his publicist Kevin Sasaki said on Monday.
"His spirits are great. He is lucid and communicative ... and grinning from ear to ear," Sasaki said. The portly actor asked doctors to dial up "The Jerry (news - web sites) Springer Show" -- his favorite TV fare -- as soon as he was off the respirator, Sasaki said.
Since his surgery, Dangerfield has received good wishes from his own fans, including fellow comedians Jay Leno (news - Y! TV) and Jim Carrey (news), Sasaki said. Doctors expect to move Dangerfield to a private room by the end of the week, Sasaki said.
Dangerfield's latest film, a romantic comedy called "The Fourth Tenor," was released on video the same day he went into the hospital.
He also is working on his autobiography, tentatively titled "Rodney Exposed."