6 Things You May Not Know about the Friars Club

The Friars Club has been a mecca for comedy since 1904. Known for its famous roasts and its historic five-star celebrity membership, the luxurious clubhouse at 57 East 55th Street has a unique legacy of its own. It has been a place where some of the most iconic actors, musicians, comedians, and other entertainers have gathered to share good times and laughter.

Many memorable events have occurred within the walls of the Friars Clubhouse, affectionately called “Jerry Lewis’s Monastery.” However, you may not be aware of these little-known facts about the Friars Club.

The Monastery Has a Large Configuration of Hidden Doors and Passageways.

Before it became the current roost of the Friars Club, the Monastery was a residential home belonging to investment banker Martin Erdmann. Rooms that once were sleeping chambers and living quarters have turned into event spaces, dining areas, and bars.

As fitting for a mansion built in the early 1900s, each floor of the Monastery has hidden doors, dumbwaiters, and halls that lead to flights of stairs ending at former servants’ quarters. The old servants’ quarters are storage areas today. The club craftily uses the other hidden areas as utility spaces to serve various functions, such as supply areas for the bars and guest quarters.

There Is a Time Capsule Buried at the Monastery.

In 2004, Friars Club members buried a sealed time capsule under one of the front windows in the clubhouse. The burial ceremony happened during a 100th-anniversary celebration of the club. Before the celebration, members had opened a time capsule buried 100 years prior. The old capsule contained Friars Club memorabilia and old newspaper clippings.

Each Friars Club member placed a note inside the new time capsule. In addition, the buried capsule has a plaque with a request not to open the capsule until 2104.

The Building May Be Haunted.

Like many of New York’s grand old mansions from bygone eras, the Monastery has a reputation for being haunted. The haunted tag is so prevalent that the Friars Club appeared in the Ghost Hunters TV series. In that episode, Friars Club staff claimed they saw shadows and heard strange sounds, particularly from the George Burns Room.

Adding to the lure is the sudden death of vaudeville comedian Al Kelly, who suffered a fatal heart attack while leaving a roast show in 1966. However, many people believe his spirit still lurks in the halls and chambers of the Monastery. In 2019 the New York Post included the Friars Club in its “Where to Meet Celebrity Ghosts in New York” article.

Theater Ticket Scammers Gave Birth to the Friars Club.

In the early 1900s, Broadway press agents would boost interest in their shows by giving out free tickets to newspaper reporters in the hopes of getting favorable press coverage. Eventually, crooks begin exploiting this practice by fraudulently posing as reporters to get their hands on the free tickets and selling them for a profit.

As a reaction to this steep climb in ticket scams, a group of press agents began meeting at Browne’s Chop House in Midtown Manhattan to figure out how to sort the legitimate reporters from the fake ones. They solved the problem by creating a blacklist of scammers. But, just as important, the tight bond they formed resulted in the founding of the Press Agents Association. The group continued to meet long after Browne’s Chop House closed. Eventually, directors, playwrights, actors, comedians, and other entertainers joined in, leading to the change in the groups’ name to the Friars Club.

The Friars Club Isn’t Limited to Comedy.

One of the Friars Club’s lesser-known roles is its involvement in charity. Along with producing award ceremonies and roasts, the Friars Club participates in charitable causes, such as the Lincoln Awards for individuals who do outstanding service for veterans and their families. The club also provides entertainment and companionship for seniors and disadvantaged children through its Sunshine Committee. In addition, its Adopt-A-Scholar program offers four-year scholarships to students seeking a career in the performing arts.

Liza Minelli Broke Up the Old Boy’s Club.

Until 1987, the Friars Clubs was exclusively a male club until actress and singer Liza Minelli became a member in April of that year. Before this significant change, women only had access to the club before 4 p.m. or later as dinner guests. Also, they could not attend the all-male luncheon roasts. Even Lauren Bacall could not participate in a roast of her husband Humphrey Bogart in 1955.

In 1983, Phyllis Diller defied the all-male rule by disguising herself as a male and sneaking into a roast for Sid Caesar, and Lucille Ball made some inroads by becoming the first female roastee in 1961. As of 2019, about 20% of the members were women. Over the years, the Friars Club has become more diverse in membership. Presently, the club has stretched its definition of entertainer by accepting reality stars, food entertainers, and social media influencers.