Comedian Freddie Roman, the previous dean of The Friars Club and a staple of the Catskills comedy scene, has died. He was 85.
Roman died Saturday afternoon at Bethesda Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida, his reserving agent and good friend Alison Chaplin mentioned Sunday. His daughter advised the leisure commerce Deadline that he suffered a coronary heart assault that morning.
Roman made his identify performing at resorts and resorts within the Catskill Mountains, additionally known as the Borscht Belt for the largely Jewish crowd that vacationed there and the comics comparable to Mel Brooks and Don Rickles who entertained them. He later carried out at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and Bally’s Grand in Atlantic City, and he roasted the likes of Rob Reiner, Chevy Chase, Jerry Stiller and Hugh Hefner. He additionally conceived of “Catskills on Broadway,” the place he and his buddies Dick Capri, Marilyn Michaels and Mal Z. Lawrence introduced their nostalgia-tinged, Catskills-flavored standup to New York. He additionally appeared in numerous tv exhibits and movies over time, together with “Red Oaks” on Amazon.
“A great loss to the world of comedy,” Paul Reiser wrote on (*85*). “He was such a huge supporter & mentor when I was starting out. A GREAT comic, the ultimate pro with the biggest heart. I will miss our phone calls and his big, beauty laugh.”
Born Fred Kirschenbaum on May 28, 1937 in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in Jamaica, Queens, Roman received a style for stand-up comedy early because of his household. His uncle and grandfather owned the Crystal Spring Hotel within the Catskills, the place Roman began emceeing at age 15.
In “Catskills on Broadway,” Roman commented about all the things from his childhood in Queens to his “retirement life” in Florida.
“I took a cholesterol test,” Roman quipped. “My number came back 911.”
The New York Times, in its evaluation of the present in 1991, wrote, “Catskill resorts may be fighting the recession, but Catskill comedy has not lost its flair.”
The present, he’d later say, modified his life. It went to Broadway after which toured across the nation, and Roman would proceed performing for years to return. He was additionally made Dean of the New York City Friars Club, the place he mentored many aspiring comedians and infused the personal membership with younger expertise.
One of these younger comedians was Jeffrey Ross, who mentioned of Roman in 2003 that, “When I was becoming a member, there weren’t many of us who were younger. … But Freddie would always come over and spend time with me and my friends and be real lovable.”
Capri, in the identical interview, mentioned Roman was the proper comedy ambassador.
“He’s the social director of the world,” Capri mentioned. “And he loves every second of it.”
The stint lasted a bit longer than he anticipated. Roman joked of his tenure that, “Eleven years ago I became president for two years. I’m like the Fidel Castro of comedians. I’m president for life.” In 2014, he was succeeded by Larry King.
But, he advised Atlantic City Weekly in 2011, the best job he ever had was opening for Frank Sinatra, when his common opening comedian Tom Dreesen wasn’t out there. Roman realized concerning the alternative on a layover in Chicago, left the aircraft and boarded one other for Philadelphia to make the present in Atlantic City with just some hours to spare.
He left the stage to see Sinatra laughing. The singer even referred to as him again for an additional bow.
“Frank hugged me, and I saw my wife and daughter and they were crying,” Roman mentioned. “It was unbelievable. … Nothing ever topped working with Sinatra.”
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