No place like home: A gay comedian's club odyssey

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey -- Comedian Rich Kiamco is proud, grateful and relieved that the successful comedy road show he created and has produced for more than decade has finally found a permanent home.

Kiamco, an out gay comic who's appeared on the "Howard Stern Show" and is featured in ABC Owned Television's "Our America: Who I'm Meant To Be" series, launched The Laugh Tour in Jersey City, New Jersey, in September 2010.

"Originally it was a pop-up show that would tour around Jersey City, the Catskills region, eastern Pennsylvania," he explained.

It was a way for the comedian to get stage time in front of audiences and help boost fellow comics at the same time.

Christine Goodman, director of the Jersey City Office of Cultural Affairs, co-produced many of those early shows with Kiamco in a former role with Art House Productions, a performing-arts venue in the city.

"From the beginning, Rich had a real commitment to seeing The Laugh Tour through to the point of having a permanent home and a steady audience," she said.

The show toured for about a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down venues everywhere. Kiamco launched an online version, hosting shows out of his apartment on Zoom for small groups of fans.

And then his partner and longtime manager, Sandy Gunar, died from COVID. His death and Kiamco's deep grief, friends say, ultimately became the impetus for him to find a permanent home for his shows.

"I was just trying to find something to do other than endless Zoom grief groups," Kiamco said. "And Dorrian's Red Hand, which has been here for over 20 years in Jersey City, had a room."

He approached the owners of the restaurant on Washington Boulevard and asked if they'd let him try hosting shows in the private dining room adjacent to the main bar and dining area.

They agreed, and he started with a handful of people and one show a week. Word began to spread, and eventually the room started filling up with people starting to venture out after months of pandemic lockdown.

Now, just over two years later, the club has become an established success.

"Last night was our 64th sold-out show," Kiamco said one day last spring. "We've expanded to five shows a week. You know, pinch me. It's been a dream come true."

Its all been a labor of labor for the comedian. The club's success is a testament to his tireless work and constant innovation, but he's quick to share the credit.

"This comedy club is just part of a bigger conversation of supporting all these other comedians that are coming through here to tell their stories and entertain," he said. "I'm just so grateful to be part of it."

Learn more about The Laugh Tour Comedy Club here.