Michael McKean Accident: ‘Spinal Tap’ Actor Recovering After Being Hit By a Car

Actor Michael McKean, perhaps best known for his role on the 70s sitcom Laverne & Shirley, continues to recover from a freak accident on Tuesday in which he was struck by a car while walking in his neighborhood in New York.

According to police reports, McKean, 64, who portrayed the lead singer in the movie “This is Spinal Tap,” was hit by a vehicle that jumped the curb and drove onto the sidewalk at West 86th Street and Broadway in Manhattan.

A witness told the New York Post that she tried to help the actor, but arrived a little too late.

“I heard screeching but it was too late…I jumped back and it hit him,” Ariel Luna told the paper, adding that McKean was groaning in pain.

Following the accident, McKean was taken to St. Luke’s Hospital bleeding from the head and in critical condition, where doctors later discovered that he had a broken leg. He underwent surgery Wednesday and is currently in stable condition.

Although McKean’s injuries forced him to drop out of the Broadway revival of “Gore Vidal’s The Best Man,” the actor did not let the situation rob his sense of humor, as he took to Twitter Wednesday night to update his fans on his status.

“We always tell each other to break a leg in this business. I never thought it would happen to me this way!” he wrote adding, “Lucky man: best wife, great kids, awesome docs and nurses, priceless friends; a little overwhelmed by the sweet tweets.”

McKean’s wife Annette O’Toole tweeted her appreciation as well on Wednesday, writing:

“Thank you dear people for your love and support. @MJMcKean and I so appreciative. He is getting great care. Spirits are good. Grateful, we.”

The New York Daily reports that McKean will be replaced by James Lecesne, an off-Broadway actor who will make his Broadway debut in Michael’s role.

“It’s the first time he will have ever missed a curtain in his entire life,” Michael McKean’s publicist Harriet Sternberg told the NY Daily. “He’s never missed stage, screens in film or television. His understudy has never gone on in 40-plus years.”