American actor and comedy club founder (1932–2022)
Budd Friedman
Born
Gerson Merton Friedman
(1932-06-06)June 6, 1932
Norwich, Connecticut, U.S.[1][2]
Died
November 12, 2022(2022-11-12) (aged 90)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)
Actor, producer
Years active
1971–2022
Gerson Merton Lenord Friedman[3][4] (June 6, 1932 – November 12, 2022), known professionally as Budd Friedman, was an American actor and comedian, as well as the founder and original proprietor and MC of the Improvisation Comedy Club, which opened in 1963, on West 44th Street near the SE corner of 9th Avenue, in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. He was instrumental in launching the comedy careers of Rodney Dangerfield, Richard Lewis, Robert Klein, Jay Leno, Andy Kaufman, Freddie Prinze, Steve Landesberg, Jimmie Walker, and for a brief time, managed Bette Midler at the early stages of her career. It was with Friedman's help and guidance that Ms. Midler first appeared on The Tonight Show.
He was also an actor and producer. Friedman also opened Improv clubs at other locations including Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California, on March 23, 2007, in Los Angeles in 1975, and in Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino in Indio, California.[1][5][citation needed]
^ ab"How Budd Friedman, Founder of the Improv, Basically Invented the Modern Comedy Club". LA Weekly. September 21, 2017. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
^Cite error: The named reference norwich was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Risen, Clay (October 16, 2022). "Budd Friedman, Who Built an Empire of Comedy Clubs, Dies at 90". The New York Times. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
^Risen, Clay (November 16, 2022). "New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
^A Conversation With Improv Founder Budd Friedman By Nancy Fay Archived July 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
Gerson Merton Lenord Friedman (June 6, 1932 – November 12, 2022), known professionally as BuddFriedman, was an American actor and comedian, as well as...
prior, housed a Vietnamese restaurant) founded on 20 April 1963, by BuddFriedman and his future wife, Silver (née Schreck) Saundors, and located at 358...
Rapaport's mother married comic Mark Lonow, who owned The Improv with BuddFriedman. Rapaport grew up on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, near 70th Street...
producer BuddFriedman (1932–2022), American actor and producer David F. Friedman (1923–2011), American filmmaker and producer Josh Friedman (born 1967)...
in residency. NBC president Brandon Tartikoff and The Improv founder BuddFriedman were judges and they both urged Jeong to move to Los Angeles. Jeong...
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injured by a car attempting to rush the picket line, Shore relented after BuddFriedman from The Improv decided to start paying comics. She then agreed to pay...
Gowers – director Chris Ledesma – music editor Jules Bass – producer BuddFriedman – producer Deborah Barak – executive Thomas W. Sarnoff – executive Manny...
convinced the owner of the famed New York City comedy club The Improv, BuddFriedman, to allow him to perform on stage. As Foreign Man, Kaufman would appear...
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actor. Her stepfather is comic Mark Lonow, who owned The Improv with BuddFriedman. She took his surname. Lonow is Jewish and grew up in a Jewish family...
as Leann Robert Picardo as Interviewer Keith Hefner as Photographer BuddFriedman as Emcee Keenen Ivory Wayans as Club Comedian The idea for the project...
Improvisation Comedy Club. The Improv was founded by BuddFriedman and his then wife Silver Saundors Friedman in 1963, and was located at 358 West 44th Street...
Really Is Contagious". Live Science. Risen, Clay (16 November 2022). "BuddFriedman, Who Built an Empire of Comedy Clubs, Dies at 90". The New York Times...
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Moses to perform for BuddFriedman, the owner of the well known New York night club The Improv. Moses’ style clicked with Friedman and New York audiences...
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Jay Friedman (born 1930), novelist, playwright and screenwriter Ace Frehley, KISS co-founder and lead guitarist (did not graduate) BuddFriedman, IMPROV...
Pierre Fournier, 72, Canadian cartoonist, co-creator of Red Ketchup. BuddFriedman, 90, American comedian and producer, founder of The Improv, heart failure...
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