You’re Clay Heery?
Make me laugh, funny guy

Robyn’s ’Hood
By Robyn McCloskey

For all you stand-up comedy fans out there, one club you might remember is the defunct Comedy Factory Outlet, the famed Philadelphia laugh club that in its 1980s heyday hosted just about every up-and-coming comic on the scene. Names like Tim Allen, Robin Williams, Howie Mandel, Chris Rock, Bobcat Goldthwait, Rosie O’Donnell and Andrew Dice Clay, to name a few.
So imagine my surprise when I received an e-mail a few weeks ago from the club’s former owner, Philadelphia’s own born and bred Clay Heery. Actually, when I received the e-mail, I had no idea who it was from. Seems Clay had read one of my columns and sent a comment to my e-mail address.
I’ve often said that one of my favorite things about writing a weekly column is the reader feedback — you never know who you’re gonna meet. I sent a response, and Clay wrote back. I still had no idea who this guy was, but he sure wrote really witty e-mails. He informed me that a book about stand-up comedians was being released; Clay was a contributor and asked if he could send me a copy.
I’ve had readers want to send me things before. I’m someone who never likes to turn down free stuff, yet I’m also leery of strangers, so I typically give them the address of the church where my husband works . . . you know, in case it’s a bomb or anthrax or something. One can never be too careful.
Besides, just because a guy writes funny e-mails doesn’t mean he’s a legitimate comedian. So before handing out any addresses, whether mine or the church’s, I decided to find out who this guy was, which, of course, meant that I Googled him.
To my surprise, not only was Clay Heery totally legit, but the guy has a pretty impressive resume. If you were a fan of WMMR radio in the ’80s, you’ll probably remember Clay as "Captain Cranky" on John DeBella’s Morning Zoo program. Clay now lives in L.A., where he’s produced Andrew Dice Clay’s first concert film and sold a sitcom to Fox, as well as a reality series to Fremantle Media, an international entertainment company. He also was a producer of the film Meet the Parents and co-wrote a movie script with the late, great Rodney Dangerfield.
Interesting stuff. Which, of course, made me curious about where he might have read my column. So, on a subsequent correspondence, I had to ask: "Riddle me this, comedy man, what’s a bigwig such as yourself doing reading my little column and responding?"
As it turned out, Clay’s mom had just passed away and he was in town for the funeral and happened to see a copy of the Northeast Times, which he used to deliver as a kid. That’s how he read my little column and sent me his little e-mail, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I figured I had enough proof to give him my real address. He not only sent me a copy of the hilarious and recently released I Killed: True Stories of the Road from America’s Top Comics, but like any good comic, he nicely personalized it with an edgy, off-color inscription.
As our e-mail friendship began to blossom, he told me he’d be in town Thanksgiving weekend. Seems he is putting together a Comedy Factory Outlet reunion. But since the Comedy Factory Outlet no longer exists, having faded from the scene in the early 1990s, it will be held at the Comedy Cabaret on Roosevelt Boulevard in the Northeast.
The reunion shows are set for two nights — Friday and Saturday, Nov. 28-29 — starting at 8. Clay promises some really big names, some that he’s told me, none that I can divulge.
But I can tell you this: Clay has graciously invited my husband and me to attend the shows. And now I am inviting you. Only I can’t get you in for free like my good friend Clay can. But it sounds like it’ll be a great time.
So if you really could use a laugh — and who couldn’t these days? — check it out. Like e-mails from strangers, you never who you’re gonna meet. ••
Robyn McCloskey’s column appears each week in the Northeast Times. She can be reached at crmccloskey@verizon.net