Friday Night Block Party before Trevor Noah’s performance in Jamestown, NY during the 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival (Jamestown, NY; National Comedy Center)

JAMESTOWN – The numbers are in and the 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival brought in thousands of people from across the country. In fact, the four-day event drew attendees from 41 different states to downtown Jamestown.

That’s according to officials with the National Comedy Center, who say the weekend included performances by “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah, the “king of the rant” Lewis Black, and one of this country’s premiere comedians, Brian Regan, in addition to National Comedy Center dialogues with comedy writer-director Peter Farrelly, and the daughters of comedy legends Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor and George Carlin.

While comedians visited Ball’s hometown of Jamestown, NY, many of them, including Black, went on a private hard-hat tour of the future site of the National Comedy Center currently under construction, led by members of the design teams from Local Projects and Jack Rouse Associates.

“Comedy is one of the most overlooked of all the arts–it’s usually the dramatic stuff that gets all the attention & recognition,” said Peter Farrelly. “So to have a place that will celebrate comedy and the comics of the past is a great thing.”

The festival featured more than 50 events at a dozen venues throughout Jamestown, with highlights including the critically-acclaimed Story Pirates kids-comedy troupe, an appearance by the “Mutt Cutts Van” from the film Dumb and Dumber, four stand-up showcases and a special exhibition in honor of the 65^th anniversary of I Love Lucy.

Comedian Lewis Black takes the stage at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts during the 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival in Jamestown, NY (Jamestown, NY; National Comedy Center)

“If there’s any question whether people will come to Jamestown for the National Comedy Center, the fact that we had people from nearly all 50 states over just four days speaks volumes.  Jamestown is already a destination for great comedy,” said National Comedy Center Executive Director Journey Gunderson.

The National Comedy Center, Inc. embodies Lucille Ball’s original vision for her hometown of Jamestown to become a destination for the celebration all of the comedic arts, not just a celebration of her own legacy. The organization also operates the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum, and for the last 25 years has produced the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival with performers including Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Joan Rivers, Ray Romano, Ellen DeGeneres, Bob Newhart, Paula Poundstone, The Smothers Brothers and more than 100 other comedic artists.

The non-profit cultural institution recently announced the acquisition of the George Carlin archives for its forthcoming museum experience.  The Center is a $50 million project funded by public-private partnership and to date has been awarded more than $3.5 million from New York State, Empire State Development and I Love NY. Design of the immersive, interactive visitor experience has been provided by renowned creative firm Jack Rouse Associates and interactive specialist Local Projects, who was recently awarded a Cannes International Creativity award for its work on the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

George Carlin (1937-2008)

JAMESTOWN – The National Comedy Center (NCC) has acquired the archives of George Carlin.

The acquisition was announced Tuesday by the comedian’s daughter, Kelly Carlin, at a private event in New York hosted by the NCC.

The contents of the Carlin archive contain material saved by the comedian over his 50-plus-year career, and will be utilized in the Center’s forthcoming museum experience—scheduled to open in Jamestown in 2017.

The event, Satire and Democracy: Empowering the Citizenry with Comedy, was held at The Paley Center for Media, and featured a panel discussion with Lewis Black, Robert Klein, Larry Wilmore and Lizz Winstead recorded for the Comedy Center’s archives. The panel was held in tribute to George Carlin, who passed away in 2008 and would have been 79 years old tomorrow.

Kliph Nesteroff, author of “The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels and the History of American Comedy,” moderated the discussion and was announced last evening as the Chief Curator of the Comedy Center’s forthcoming museum experience.

A manuscript containing notes by George Carlin for one of his appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show is one of dozens of items from the Carlin Collection that will soon be housed in the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, NY

The Carlin archive includes his extensive creative files, annotated set lists, handwritten journals, scrapbooks, awards, letters, clothing, arrest records and countless hours of video and audio recordings containing both released and unreleased material.

Archive images and an audio sample can be found at:www.NationalComedyCenter.org/Carlin-Archive

“There comes a time in one’s life when it’s time to let go of our parent’s stuff. For me this has been a literal process. Through the writing of my memoir and touring my solo show, I’ve gotten to be with my father in many ways, and let go of, honor and transform our past together,” said Kelly Carlin in a statement. “I am truly excited that there will be a place for my dad’s stuff—permanently. The folks at the National Comedy Center are thoughtful, respectful and excited about the art of comedy. I can think of no other place for my dad’s legacy to be permanently honored, archived and preserved for future generations.”

Journey Gunderson, Executive Director of the National Comedy Center, added, “George Carlin helped redefine the art form of stand-up comedy and we are honored to help steward his legacy in this way. With this incredible archive we can provide a window into his creative process for generations to come.”

A non-profit cultural institution dedicated to the celebration of comedy the National Comedy Center is a $50 million project funded by public-private partnership. To date it has been awarded more than $3.5 million from New York State, Empire State Development and I Love NY. Design of the immersive, interactive visitor experience has been provided by renowned creative firm Jack Rouse Associates and interactive specialist Local Projects, who was recently awarded a Cannes International Creativity award for its work on the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

“The National Comedy Center’s museum will take guests on a personalized, interactive comedic journey through time, and across all media types, in a unique and fun way,” said Tom Benson, Chairman of the project. “It will preserve, protect and trace the lineage between comedy of the past and the future so that it will live and be relevant forever.”

The National Comedy Center’s ground-breaking weekend for the forthcoming museum took place last August and featured Jerry Seinfeld, Nick Offerman, the award-winning creative team of David Letterman’s 33-year career, and the families of Milton Berle, George Carlin, Harold Ramis, and Joan Rivers.

The project embodies Lucille Ball’s vision for her hometown of Jamestown to become a destination for the celebration of the comedic arts.  The organization operates the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum, and for the last 25 years has produced the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival with performers including Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Joan Rivers, Ray Romano, Bob Newhart, The Smothers Brothers and more than 100 other comedic artists.

The Comedy Center’s 2016 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival, August 4-7, will feature comedians Lewis Black, Trevor Noah and Brian Regan, panel discussions featuring screenwriter-directors the Farrelly Brothers, and the daughters of Lenny Bruce and Richard Pryor.