Friday Night Block Party before Trevor Noah’s performance in Jamestown, NY during the 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival. Details of the 2017 Comedy Festival will be announced on Tuesday afternoon, Dec. 20. (Jamestown, NY; National Comedy Center​)

JAMESTOWN – A major announcement regarding the 2017 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival will be made on Tuesday.

Officials with the Lucy-Desi Center in Jamestown will hold a press conference at the Jamestown Gateway Train Station to provide an update on the National Comedy Center, including an announcement of a comedian coming to Jamestown in August 2017 to perform at the comedy festival.

Past festivals have featured Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Lewis Black, Trevor Noah, Joan Rivers, Ellen DeGeneres, Paula Poundstone, Nick Offerman, Ray Romano, and Bob Newhart.

Tuesday’s press conference begins at noon and WRFA will post updates on our Facebook page at Facebook.com/WRFALP.

Lucy-Desi Center Director Journey Gunderson will be joined by other officials during a media conference at noon, Wednesday inside the Jamestown Gateway Train Station.

The announcement will not only include who will be the featured comedians for this year’s four-day event, but also details on other related programming.

Last year’s headliner was none other than standup and TV legend Jerry Seinfeld, who performed at two sold out shows at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena. Other past performers include Ellen DeGeneres, Lewis Black, the late Joan Rivers, Nick Offerman, Ray Romano and, Bob Newhart – along with many others.

The 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival will take place in Jamestown on August 4 through August 7.

More details on the event will be posted at www.lucycomedyfest.com following today’s announcement at noon.

Greg Selke, 25, of North Chili and Trisha Byler, 31, of Rochester were the top male and female runners for the 13.1-mile half marathon that took place Sunday morning. For full results, photos, and information on next year’s event, visit www.lucyrace.com.

The Lucy Town Half Marathon & 5K race weekend has attracted participants from across the country annually since its creation in 2013, including both elite runners and Lucy fans alike.

The inaugural year was headlined by Martin Short, and during the 2014 race weekend, Jamestown welcomed comedian Bob Newhart and paid tribute to the iconic I Love Lucy grape stomping scene as 1,232 people set a new world record for most people treading grapes.

Over 1200 people descended on W. Second Street in downtown Jamestown Saturday afternoon to set the Guinness World Record for most people grape stomping at one time – easily beating the previous record of 970. Organizers say a total of 60 tons of grapes were used to set the record.

In addition to setting a new world record, the weekend also featured the second annual Lucy Town Half Marathon and 5K along with an appearance by Television legend Bob Newhart that drew a full house at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts.

The weekend was organized by the Lucy – Desi Center, Chautauqua Striders and the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena and was sponsored by Univera Healthcare.

The event will include races on both Saturday and Sunday, an attempt at breaking the world record for most people grape stomping and an appearance by legendary comedian and actor Bob Newhart. Plus, there will be a variety of other activities that tie in with the weekend-long event.

The event is being sponsored Univera Healthcare and coordinated by the Lucy-Desi Center for Comedy, Chautauqua Striders and the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena. Lucy-Desi Center executive Director Journey Gunderson says she is obviously excited to have a legend like Newhart come to Jamestown on Saturday night.

“The coolest part of everyone’s reaction is that they’re excited to see someone who they consider one of the most iconic comedy legends in American history,” Gunderson recently told WRFA. “And young people know him from The Big Bang Theory – we’ve heard young people tell us, ‘I love [Newhart’s character] Professor Proton!’ So that is something I didn’t necessarily expect but have been excited to see. It’s a really cool thing to see that the audience is really going to range in people who knew him from Bob Newhart, his TV show in the 70s and 80s, to people who know him from his 2013 Emmy Award-Winning performances on The Big Bang Theory.”

Bob Newhart will return to Jamestown on Oct. 10, 2014.

Gunderson says this will actually be Newhart’s second appearance in Jamestown. He was also in town in 1996 for the Lucille Ball Festival of Comedy celebration.

A limited number of tickets for the Bob Newhart show at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts on Saturday night are still available and can be purchased by visting www.lucyrace.com or by calling 484-0800. They can also be purchased at the Reg Lenna box office.

The weekend will also include an effort to break the world record for most people grape stomping in one location. Gunderson said that this is simply a fun way to celebrate Lucy and one of her most memorable scenes on television.

“Jamestown received so much positive press from the 2011 Guinness World Record of the most people dressed as Lucy Ricardo so its’ always been in the back of our minds and not the forefront certainly to break records, but to celebrate comedy, so we looked at it that way,” Gunderson said. “We wanted to celebrate one of the most iconic comedy scenes in television history – so many people celebrate the scene when Lucy stomps grapes in that classic I Love Lucy episode… and also celebrate that we are in the largest grape-growing region east of the Rockies.”

The current record for most people grape stomping is 970 and was set in Spain. However, Gunderson is confident that that the new record will be set this Saturday, starting at 11am. The grape stomping will take place on W. Second St. near the Jamestown Gateway Train Station. Everyone is encouraged to stop by and register to take part up to the start of the event.

And of course the main purpose of the event this weekend is the 5K race on Saturday along with the half-marathon on Sunday. This is the second year for both events and Gunderson says registration this year has already surpassed last year. And even if you don’t plan to run, Gunderson is encouraging all residents to come out on Sunday and cheer on the runners and celebrate in the post-race activities, which include a live concert from Jamestown’s own Smackdab – beginning at 11 a.m. Sunday in front of the Ice Arena.

Another event this weekend that ties in with the Lucytown Half Marathon and 5K run is hockey at the Ice Arena, which features the Southern Tier Xpress taking on the Pittsburgh Vengeance Saturday afternoon.

For more information on all the events, visit www.lucyrace.com or by calling 484-0800.

WRFA’s interview with Journey Gunderson, regarding the 2014 Lucy Town Half Marathon, will take place Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. on WRFA.

The Lucy Desi Museum & Center for Comedy, Chautauqua Striders, and the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena have once again teamed up to organize and sponsor the event, which will be highlighted by an appearance from legendary comedian and actor Bob Newhart on Oct. 11.

Tickets are now available for purchase online at www.lucyrace.com or by calling the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts box office at (716)484-7070.

Newhart’s performance comes only months after the wildly successful 2014 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival headlined by Jay Leno, and groundbreaking of Comedy Center Park, the first phase in the building of the complex that will be the National Comedy Center.

Comedy-lovers and runners of all abilities will be in town for the weekend. In addition to Newharts appearance, there will also be an attempt at breaking the world record for most people Grape Stomping, a 5K run/walk, kids run, 13.1-mile half marathon and a sports expo.

The 5K run/walk and kids run will take place on Saturday, October 11th, and the second annual Lucy Town Half Marathon will take place on Sunday, October 12th.

For more information on all events or to sign up, visit www.lucyrace.com.

Bob Newhart will return to Jamestown on Oct. 10, 2014.

JAMESTOWN – On Tuesday, the Lucy Desi Museum & Center for Comedy officially announced that Bob Newhart will be showcased Oct. 11 in a night of comedy at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts.

The event is being cosponsored by Chautauqua Striders and the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena.

Newhart is world-renowned for his deadpan delivery and lifelong success in comedy, and continues to sell out concert halls for young and old throughout America. He has won the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and was named as one of the Top 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time by Comedy Central.

Newhart’s performance comes only months after the wildly successful 2014 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival headlined by Jay Leno, and groundbreaking of Comedy Center Park, the first phase in the building of the complex that will be the National Comedy Center.

Newhart’s appearance is part of a weekend of activities in Jamestown that will also feature a 5K run/walk, kids run, 13.1-mile half marathon, sports expo and an attempt at breaking the world record for most people Grape Stomping.

Tickets for the Newhart show are now available for purchase online at www.lucyrace.com or by calling the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts box office at (716)484-7070.

For more information on all activities or to sign up for one of the races, visit www.lucyrace.com.

Bob Newhart will return to Jamestown on Oct. 10, 2014.

JAMESTOWN – A nationally known comedian and television star will be coming to Jamestown later this year as part of event line up for the 2014 Lucy Town Half Marathon and 5K weekend.

According to a report in the Jamestown Post-Journal, Bob Newhart will make an appearance at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts on Friday, Oct. 10.

Newhart actually broke the news on Aug. 19 when he tweeted that he would be coming to Jamestown.

The Lucy-Desi Museum and Center for Comedy will formally make the announce later today. Tickets are expected to go on sale on Wednesday and will be available through www.lucyrace.com or by calling the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts box office at 484-7070.