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.

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.

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.

The 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival starts Thursday and will continue through Sunday with dozens of events and activities directly – and indirectly – involved with the festival.

Lucy Desi Center Executive Director Journey Gunderson, who oversees the annual event, says that in addition to the festival events, this year will also feature the groundbreaking of the $40 million dollar National Comedy Center.

“With this coming Saturday, Aug. 1, we’re entering groundbreaking phase,” Gunderson said. “As for when the attraction will open, there’s so many moving parts that the reality is that it would be silly for us to say that we know for sure that there is one certain date that we can open. In addition to fabricating all of the exhibits, it’s also about securing all the content needed to populate those exhibits.”

• Listen to Complete Gunderson Interview

An artist’s rendering of the proposed National Comedy Center in downtown Jamestown.

Gunderson says officials involved with the comedy center are hoping it will be ready to open between late 2016 and the summer of 2017.

Meanwhile, the groundbreaking event will take place Saturday at 2 p.m. at the southwest corner of W. Second and Washington Streets and is open to the public.

As for the 2015 festival, thousands of people are expected to attend the various events – which features a variety of special guests and big name performers including Jerry Seinfeld, Nick Offerman, Regis Philbin, Melissa Rivers, Kelly Carlin, and several rising stars of stand-up comedy – along with numerous other special guests throughout the four days.

There will also be plenty of events celebrating the life and legacy of Lucille Ball, the television icon who was born in Jamestown.

During an interview earlier this month on WRFA, Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi talked about the impact Lucy’s legacy and the festival has on the community and regional economy.

“There’s a couple of words that I have for the comedy festival, the first word being ‘huge.’ It’s huge!'” Teresi said. “Another word I would say is significant and growing significance. From its humble beginnings a number of years ago, and it’s had its ups and down, this festival has exploded in recent years.”

Officials estimate the comedy festival has an annual economic impact of $4 million to the local economy.

A complete rundown of all the events of this week’s Lucille Ball Comedy Festival – including Thursday’s events which feature a roundtable discussion on David Letterman hosted by Regis Philbin, along with a stand up comedy showcase tonight at the Reg Lenna – can be found online at LucyComedyFest.com or by calling (716) 484-0800.

Regis Philbin will be in Jamestown July 30, 2015 to lead a panel discussion focusing on The Late Show with David Letterman.

JAMESTOWN – The 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival is just one day away.

Events for the festival begin on Thursday, featuring everything from a silent auction in the morning to a Conga workshop in the afternoon, along with a special panel discussion featuring Regis Philbin talking with the producers and staff of the Late Show with David Letterman. In addition, the Stand-Up Showcase featuring up and coming comedians.

Tickets for the David Letterman panel discussion, which will be held at the Willowbay Theater, are just $10. The Stand Up Showcase at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts has tickets starting at just $15, with any military service veteran getting in free-of-charge.

EVENTS CONTINUE FRIDAY, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY

Several other events are planned for the four-day festival, including a panel discussion on Friday featuring Melissa Rivers, Kelly Carlin, and Violet Stiel & Julian Ramis entitled “Comedy Legacies: Rivers, Ramis & Carlin.” The comedy roundtable will take place on Friday and will celebrate the legacies of Joan Rivers, George Carlin and Harold Ramis as the National Comedy Center prepares to break ground. The discussion will be moderated by Kelly Carlin and recorded for broadcast on her SiriusXM radio program “The Kelly Carlin Show.”

Pete Lee, Pat McGann, and Beth Stelling will appear at the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Fest’s Stand-Up Showcase Thursday night at the Reg Lenna.

In addition to moderating the discussion, Kelly Carlin will be bringing her renowned one woman show, “A Carlin Home Companion: Growing Up With George,” to Jamestown on Saturday.

Other featured events include an appearance by Nick Offerman on Friday night and two sold out shows featuring Jerry Seinfeld on Saturday. Plus there will be several “late night”stand up comedy performances at the Tropicana Room inside the Lucy-Desi Center and Museum.

Ticket information for all the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival Events can be found at www.lucycomedyfest.com, or by calling the box office at 716.484.0800.

That’s according to Lucy-Desi Center Executive Director Journey Gunderson, who spoke with WRFA Thursday afternoon to provide an update not only on all of this year’s Lucy Fest activities, but also on the effort to build the $40 million National Comedy Center.

Gunderson said a ground breaking for the NCC is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 1 at the corner of Washington and Second Streets, with several officials and special guests expected to be on hand.

“At this point Melissa Rivers is going to attend, she’s a star in her own right and her late mother Joan Rivers is a comedic icon who performed here in 2011. We’ll also have two of the adult children of Harold Ramis. We’re also going to have Kelly Carlin – her father was George Carlin,” Gunderson said, adding that several other special guests will also be on hand and she’s encouraging the community and festival goers to stop by for the ground breaking.

The actual Comedy Festival could very well be the most ambitious one held so far in Jamestown.

Regis Philbin will be in Jamestown July 30, 2015 to lead a panel discussion focusing on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Much has already been said about the featured headliner of the festival, Jerry Seinfeld, who will perform two sold out shows Saturday night, Aug 1. But in addition, there are more than a dozen other live entertainment events schedule. The latest being a panel discussion on legacy of David Letterman and his late night TV programs. That panel will be led by none other than Regis Philbin, a TV icon in his own right.

“He’s appreciated across generations, which is sometimes rare in entertainment,” Gunderson said. “But one reason he’s the perfect moderator to this panel is that he was on Late Night and the Late Show with David Letterman more than anyone else in history. During Dave’s 30-plus year career, it was 150-some appearances that Regis Philbin made.”

Other highlights of the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival include comedian and actor Nick Offerman, best known for his role on the hit TV show Parks and Recreation; the one woman show A Carlin Home Companion, featuring Kelly Carlin – daughter of George Carlin; a Comedy Legacies panel; A Stand Up Showcase featuring up and coming comedians; the Free Kids show from the Story Time Pirates and much, much more.

For more information about the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival and all associated events you can visit LucyComedyFest.com.

Journey Gunderson will also be our guest this week during our Arts on Fire program at 5 p.m. Friday with an encore at 2 p.m. Sunday. During the interview she’ll give us a complete rundown of what to expect for this years event – which again runs from July 30 to Aug. 2.

Regis Philbin will be in Jamestown July 30, 2015 to lead a panel discussion focusing on The Late Show with David Letterman.

JAMESTOWN – To celebrate the groundbreaking of the National Comedy Center, Regis Philbin will moderate a panel of producers, writers and crew from David Letterman’s Late Show and Late Night.

“David Letterman – Behind The Scenes Of Late Night’s Longest Running Broadcaster” will take place on Thursday, July 30 at the Willow Bay Theater in Jamestown, NY as part of the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival.

This will be the first time since David Letterman’s retirement that the group will discuss how they helped craft Letterman’s shows for the last 33 years.

“This event embodies the spirit of the National Comedy Center, and we’re thrilled to host Regis Philbin and these major influencers of comedy,” said Executive Director, Journey Gunderson.

With one hundred and fifty appearances on Late Night/Late Show, Regis Philbin holds the record as the most frequent Letterman guest.  Philbin took part in countless comedy bits on the show and his banter with Letterman was legendary. Over the last five decades, Regis has hosted numerous shows, including: Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, Live with Regis and Kelly, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and The Regis Philbin Show.

The panelists for the evening are: Barbara Gaines (Executive Producer/Associate Producer Late Show/Late Night), Jerry Foley (Director/Supervising Producer/Technical Director Late Show/Late Night), Steve O’Donnell (Head Writer/Writer Late Night/Late Show), Steve Young (Head Monologue Writer/Writer Late Show/Late Night), and Biff Henderson (Stage Manager Late Show/Late Night). Gaines and Foley were each nominated in the 2015 Emmy Awards announcement last week.

Tickets are on sale at www.lucycomedyfest.com or 716.484.0800.

The National Comedy Center is a new $40 million attraction that will celebrate comedy: the craft and its greatest contributors. The groundbreaking ceremony takes place Saturday, August 1 in Jamestown as part of the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival. The weekend also includes Jerry Seinfeld, Melissa Rivers, Nick Offerman, Kelly Carlin, the family of Harold Ramis, the critically-acclaimed kids comedy troupe Story Pirates, showcases including Joe Machi, Andy Hendrickson, Michelle Wolf, Michael Palascak, Jon Rineman, Paul Morrissey, and more than 40 events in four days.

About the National Comedy Center: The 501(c)(3) non-profit National Comedy Center visitor experience is being designed by world-renown creative firms:  Jack Rouse Associates, and interactive specialist Local Projects, which just completed work on the 9/11 Memorial Museum. Project feasibility and economic forecasting was provided by AECOM.

In December, the National Comedy Center (NCC) project in Jamestown, NY was awarded $1.5 million by New York State Empire State Development and Governor Andrew Cuomo, making it a partner of the I Love New York campaign.  The $1.5 million in state funds will help complete the NCC’s vision for the first national attraction complex dedicated to the art of comedy in the United States.  For more information visit www.NationalComedyCenter.org.

About the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival: America’s premier comedian, Jerry Seinfeld, will be performing his signature stand-up routine during the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival on Saturday, August 1, 2015 at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena. Past festival headliners have included Jay Leno, Joan Rivers, Bob Newhart, Lewis Black, Ray Romano, Ellen Degeneres and more.

The Lucille Ball Comedy Festival is proudly sponsored by Northwest Savings Bank, Southern Tier Builders Association, Seneca Gaming, Buffamante Whipple Buttafaro P.C., Shults Auto Group, Key Bank and many more at www.lucycomedyfest.com. Time Warner Cable News is a television media sponsor.

Kelly Carlin, Nick Offerman, Melissa Rivers will be in Jamestown, NY for the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival, joining comedy legend Jerry Seinfeld.

JAMESTOWN – Some major names will be coming to Jamestown this summer to Join comedy legend Jerry Seinfeld as part of the 2015 Lucille Ball Comedy Festival.

The National Comedy Center is announcing that Nick Offerman, Melissa Rivers, Kelly Carlin and the Story Pirates kids-comedy show will join Seinfeld as featured performers during the event, which runs July 30th – August 2nd.

Offerman – who may best be known for his role as Ron Swanson on the hit TV show Parks and Recreation – will be performing his show for mature audiences during the festival on July 31 at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts. Offerman won a Television Critics Association Award for Achievement in Comedy in 2011.  He also received two Critics’ Choice Television Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Watch Offerman 2014 Congressional Radio and TV Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, D.C.

RIVERS AND CARLIN TO PARTICIPATE IN COMEDY ROUNDTABLE

Melissa Rivers and Kelly Carlin, daughters of Joan Rivers and George Carlin respectively, will take part in a very special Comedy Roundtable on July 31, prior to Offerman’s show. The discussion will feature an in-depth look at the careers of comedic greats, as well as the impact of their contributions to modern culture.

In addition, Carlin will also bring her one women show, Carlin Home Companion: Growing Up With George, to Jamestown. That show will be presented on Aug. 1 at the Reg Lenna.

Organizers also say that the opening night of the festival on July 30 will see the return of the popular Stand-Up Showcase featuring Comedians Beth Stelling, Pete Lee, and Pat McGann.

An exclusive ticket pre-sale period will begin for members beginning on May 11 at noon. Remaining tickets will go on-sale beginning May 18.

Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.lucycomedyfest.com or calling festival box office at 716.484.0800.