The Laugh Factory is indeed a comedy club chain in the United States. Laugh Factory Inc. and Jamie Masada, the company’s founder and current CEO, control the chain. Masada fled Iran there at age of 14 and built the first Laugh Factory in Hollywood in 1979 at 8001 Sunset Boulevard, which used to be Greenblatt’s Delicatessen. Masada’s club launched the careers of comedians such as Eddie Murphy, Jay Leno, Dave Chappelle, Kathy Griffin, and Jerry Seinfeld. On Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Jewish High Holidays, Masada hosts a free meal and comedy event where prominent comedians volunteer to serve supper to the less fortunate.
During a November 17, 2006 standup comedy set at the venue, Michael Richards had a racial outburst. The Laugh Factory responded by prohibiting comedians from using the word “nigger” in their routines. Damon Wayans (an African-American) was the first known person to break the new ban, using the term 16 times in a 20-minute concert. He was fined $320 and banned from the club for three months. The suspension was only for a month, and he resumed performing in January.
Benefit evenings like the Red Cross, USO, Cops for Causes, Comics Without Borders, Wounded Warriors, Middle Eastern Comedy Fest, and Stand Up for Pakistan have all been staged at the club.
The Laugh Factory maintains a record for the longest single set delivered by a comic. The following are the world-record-breaking performances:
The Laugh Factory broke the Guinness World Record for “Longest Continuous Stand Up Comedy Show (Multiple Comedians)” on December 8, 2010, at 4:38 p.m. Comic Strip Live had previously held the record, which had been established at 50 hours.
The Laugh Factory broke the previous record of 50 hours on Wednesday and proceeded nonstop until 10:38 p.m. on Thursday, December 9, where they called it a day and established a new one of 80 hours. When the record was broken, Dom Irrera was on stage, as well as Deon Cole was on stage when the new record was set. The “Toy to the World” event was held in conjunction with a Toy Drive for Children’s Hospital. The event was live-streamed on the internet and included over 130 different comedians. The record was maintained by The Laugh Factory until April 15, 2015, as it was broken by comedians at The East Room in Nashville, Tennessee.
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