Comedian Rodney Dangerfield in intensive care after mild heart attack on his 80th birthday

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Comedian Rodney Dangerfield suffered a mild heart attack on his 80th birthday and remains hospitalized in intensive care, his publicist said Saturday. <br><br>Dangerfield, whose long-running

Sunday, November 25th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Comedian Rodney Dangerfield suffered a mild heart attack on his 80th birthday and remains hospitalized in intensive care, his publicist said Saturday.

Dangerfield, whose long-running gag is that he gets no respect, had the heart attack Thursday, said publicist Warren Cowan.

Dangerfield will undergo an X-ray of the blood vessels on Monday, Cowan said. Doctors then will determine what treatment he requires.

The comedian's wife, Joan, expects Dangerfield to be back home by midweek, Cowan said.

Dangerfield kept his sense of humor. Cowan said that when Dangerfield entered the emergency room with his wife, he asked the heart specialist: ``Who gave me this present?''

Dangerfield's heart attack came one day after ``The Tonight Show'' host Jay Leno dedicated a show to the comedian and taped birthday greetings from actors and fellow comics.

Dangerfield has appeared in movies including ``Caddyshack,'' ``Back to School,'' ``Easy Money'' and ``Natural Born Killers.''