RAY ROMANO - ROMANO RELIEVED PAL BOYLE IS NO LONGER IN PAIN

Funnyman RAY ROMANO is partly relieved his pal and EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND castmate PETER BOYLE died on Tuesday (12DEC06), because the actor was in severe pain in the weeks leading up to his death. Boyle, 71, lost his battle with cancer and heart disease late on Tuesday night and Romano was among the first people to get a call from his wife about the YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN star's passing. The comic admits the news was shocking at first but he was glad his friend was in no more pain. He says, "I visited him three times... in the last three months I had gone to New York... He was ill, yeah, I mean, this is still a shock but he was struggling at the end a little bit. "It had gotten pretty bad the last couple months." Boyle's funeral will take place in New York on Monday (18DEC06).