The Friar’s Club is heading for a final curtain call.
The club’s Midtown building will go up for sale in a foreclosure sale after the famous spot for celebrity roasts faced years of financial issues and a lawsuit by its lender.
The foreclosure will put a sad end to the historic establishment on 57 East 55th Street. The club boasted Johnny Carson, Jimmy Fallon and Joan Rivers as members, but was known for its comedy roasts of showbiz legends.
In 2023, the club’s lender, Kairos Credit Strategies Operating Partnership, alleged the Friar’s Club had defaulted on its $13 million loan. It did not maintain proper insurance coverage and stopped making mortgage payments, according to the lender. It was in such a bad state that a receiver needed to take over, the lender alleged.
Kairos listed a number of issues at the building, including exposed wiring, water and mold damage, and missing valuable memorabilia.
But lawyer Arthur Aidala, who had taken the reins of the Friar’s Club, contested the appointment of a receiver. He said he was concerned a receiver would interfere with an attempt to sell the property.
Aidala told the New York Times last year that there were multiple offers of $18 million to allow the club to stay in the building.
Late last year, the court ruled in favor of Kairos, allowing the lender the ability to foreclose. The court ultimately found that Kairos was owed $17.1 million.
Greg Corbin, president of Northgate Real Estate Group, is marketing the foreclosure sale. The five-story building is being marketed as vacant.
There are a number of unique uses for the building, Corbin notes. It could be repurposed into a private social club, a single family mansion, a boutique hotel, restaurant, cigar lounge, consulate or embassy.
In 2010, the Friar’s Club lost its tax-exempt status. In 2017, federal agents raided the club’s offices and probed its finances. The club’s executive director at the time was charged with filing false personal tax returns. Flooding issues and the pandemic put an end to regular hours for the club.
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