NEW YORK FRIARS' CLUB

The 'Friars Club' is a New York City club, famous for its risqué celebrity roasts. Founded in 1904, its motto is ''Prae Omnia Fraternitas'', which is Latin for "Before all, brotherhood." It is located at 57 Friars Way (East 55th St.)

Contents

History

Organization

Roasts

References

External links

History

Jerry Lewis is the current Abbot, named in 2006 during a roast in New York City. Previous Abbots have included Alan King, Frank Sinatra, Ed Sullivan and George M. Cohan (twice).
Freddie Roman is the current Dean. Michael Gyure is the current Executive Director.
Friars Club Roasts were first televised in the late 1960s, first as part of the ''Kraft Music Hall'' series, and later ''The Dean Martin Show''. From 1998-2002, the roasts were broadcast on Comedy Central.
In 1999, filmmaker Dean Ward's historical documentary "Let Me In, I Hear Laughter - A Salute To The Friars Club" appeared on Cinemax. It featured never-before-seen roast footage and interviews with Friars suchs as Milton Berle, Buddy Hackett, Sid Caesar, Steve Allen, Henny Youngman, Jeffrey Ross, Larry King, Ed McMahaon, Phyllis Diller and many others.
In 2001, Hugh Hefner's roast at The Club was the scene of Gilbert Gottfried's public telling of the Aristocrats joke, made famous by the documentary of the same name.

Organization

The club's members are composed mostly of comedians and other celebrities. Their monthly newsletter is known as the ''Epistle''. The Friars' leadership is made up of a series of positions similar to those in an Abbey, including positions such as "Abbot," "Dean," "Prior," and "Scribe."

Roasts

Each year, the Friars Club roasts a member. As to who gets roasted each year, the motto is, "We only roast the ones we love."
Between 1998 and 2002, the roasts were aired on Comedy Central. It is a popular misconception that the later roasts aired on Comedy Central are the Friars' Club roasts, but they are in fact not affiliated.
The following is a list of who has been roasted each year.

★ 1950 - Sam Levenson

★ 1951 - Phil Silvers

★ 1951 - Harry Delf

★ 1951 - Mel Allen

★ 1952 - Leo Durocher

★ 1952 - Rocky Marciano

★ 1953 - Sophie Tucker

★ 1953 - Milton Berle

★ 1953 - Eddie Fisher

★ 1954 - Red Buttons

★ 1954 - Martha Raye

★ 1955 - Humphrey Bogart, Roastmaster Red Buttons

★ 1956 - Sammy Davis, Jr.

★ 1957 - Joe E. Lewis

★ 1958 - Red Buttons

★ 1959 - Milton Berle

★ 1959 - Jimmy Cannon

★ 1959 - Jack E. Leonard

★ 1960 - George Burns

★ 1961 - Lucille Ball

★ 1961 - Alan King

★ 1962 - Jan Murray

★ 1962 - Johnny Carson

★ 1963 - Steve Lawrence

★ 1963 - Jack Benny

★ 1964 - Jack Carter

★ 1964 - Nat "King" Cole

★ 1964 - Sammy Davis, Jr.

★ 1965 - Marty Allen & Steve Rossi

★ 1965 - Soupy Sales

★ 1966 - Al Kelly

★ 1966 - John V. Lindsay

★ 1967 - Milton Berle

★ 1968 - Harry Belafonte

★ 1968 - Don Rickles

★ 1969 - Jack E. Leonard

★ 1970 - David Frost

★ 1971 - Phil Silvers

★ 1971 - Pat Henry

★ 1972 - Ed McMahon

★ 1973 - Henny Youngman

★ 1974 - George Raft

★ 1974 - Milton Berle

★ 1975 - Redd Foxx

★ 1976 - Telly Savalas

★ 1977 - Joey Adams

★ 1977 - Totie Fields

★ 1978 - Neil Simon

★ 1979 - Robert Merrill

★ 1979 - Norm Crosby

★ 1980 - George Steinbrenner

★ 1981 - Jim Dale

★ 1982 - Dick Shawn

★ 1983 - Sid Caesar

★ 1983 - Roger Grimsby

★ 1984 - Chuck Scarborough

★ 1984 - Rolland Smith

★ 1985 - Phyllis Diller

★ 1986 - Jerry Lewis

★ 1987 - Rich Little

★ 1988 - Ernest Borgnine

★ 1989 - Bruce Willis

★ 1990 - Chevy Chase

★ 1991 - Richard Pryor, Roastmaster Robin Williams

★ 1992 - Billy Crystal

★ 1993 - Whoopi Goldberg

★ 1994 - Bob Newhart

★ 1995 - Steven Segal

★ 1996 - Kelsey Grammer

★ 1997 - Danny Aiello, Roastmaster Joy Behar

★ 1998 - Drew Carey, Roastmaster Ryan Stiles

★ 1999 - Jerry Stiller, Roastmaster Jason Alexander

★ 2000 - Rob Reiner, Roastmaster Michael McKean

★ 2001 - Hugh Hefner, Roastmaster Jimmy Kimmel

★ 2002 - Chevy Chase, Roastmaster Paul Shaffer

★ 2003 - The Smothers Brothers, Roastmaster Susie Essman (replacing Richard Belzer)^[1]

★ 2004 - Donald Trump, Roastmaster Regis Philbin

★ 2005 - Don King, Roastmaster Donald Trump

★ 2006 - Jerry Lewis, Roastmaster Richard Belzer

References

1. Jack Carter, Smothers Brothers at Rip-Roaring Friars Roast Frank DiGiacomo

External links

★ New York Friars' Club Official site

★ 100 Years Of Laughs: Comedians Yuk It Up For Friars Club Centennial (June 2004)