Jerry Lewis & More Featured in THIRTEEN's Inside Look at the Friars Club, 5/22

Best known for its risqué celebrity roasts and membership that reads like a who's who of entertainment royalty, the Friars Club is the entertainment world's most notorious fraternity, largely composed of famous performers, composers, producers, singers, actors and comedians. The rich history of entertainment and laughter are revealed in the half-hour documentaryTreasures of New York: Friars Club, premiering on Thursday, May 21 at 10 p.m. on WLIW21 and Friday, May 22 at 10 p.m. on THIRTEEN.

Click here for a preview

What began in 1904 as a weekly meeting of New York City press agents, soon became the "club to join." Friars Club began honoring its own, throwing lavish black-tie dinners as tribute to the members. The club hosted the first-ever "Roast" in 1949, where entertainment greats would take their best shots at a guest of honor, an event that would become one of the most imitated affairs worldwide. French entertainer Maurice Chevalier was the first to receive the honor with Lucille Ball, Johnny Carson, Harry Belafonte, Rita Moreno, Sid Caesar, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Billy Crystal, Carol Burnett, Whoopi Goldberg, Joan Rivers and Betty White among just a few of the many to be roasted in the years to come.

Beyond its entertainment pursuits, the Friars Club has a long history of charitable giving, supporting performing arts organizations and students, senior citizen and children's centers, and veterans and military families. The premiere of Treasures of New York: Friars Club coincides with the national PBS broadcast of The Lincoln Awards: A Concert for Veteran's & Military Family, which is presented by The Friars Foundation, the charitable arm of the Friars Club, on Friday, May 22 at 9 p.m. on THIRTEEN. The inaugural Lincoln Awards recognizes outstanding achievement in providing opportunities and support to veterans and military families.

Treasures of New York: Friars Club features interviews with Larry King, Joy Behar, Lisa Lampanelli, Susie Essman, Jerry Lewis, Jeffrey Ross and Mark Simoneamong others.

After the initial broadcast, the full episode will be available for online streaming at thirteen.org/treasures. The Treasures of New York website also offers past episodes about some of New York's greatest institutions.

Treasures of New York: Friars Club is a production of WLIW LLC in association with WNET. WNET is the parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21, New York's public television stations and operator of NJTV.

Mary Lockhart is director. Ally Gimbel is producer. Kaitlyn Leidl is associate producer. Diane Masciale is general manager of WLIW21 and executive producer of local production, including the Treasures of New York series.

Funding for Treasures of New York: Friars Club has been provided by Jack and Shirley Silver.