Comics Come Home is an annual charity

stand-up comedy Stand-up comedy is a comedy, comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of One-line joke ...

festival held in Boston, Massachusetts. The event, co-founded by comedian

Denis Leary Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is an American actor and comedian. A native of Massachusetts, Leary first came to prominence as a stand-up comedian, especially through appearances on MTV (including the comedic song "Asshole (song), Assh ...

(who remains its curator and presenter) and hockey hall of famer

Cam Neely Cameron Michael Neely (born June 6, 1965) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player. Neely played right wing for the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1983 to 1996. Nicknamed "'Bam ...

, was first held in 1995 and is now the longest-running comedy fundraiser in the United States."Comics Come Home" announces line-up for 24th-annual event
''

The Lowell Sun ''The Sun'', also known as ''The Lowell Sun'', is a daily newspaper based in Lowell, Massachusetts, United States, serving towns in Massachusetts around the Greater Lowell area and beyond. As of 2011, its average daily circulation was about 42,9 ...

'', September 27, 2018. Since its inception, funds raised from the festival have been donated to the Cam Neely Foundation for Cancer Care.Denis Leary teases 'huge surprise' for 24th annual Comics Come Home event
''

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

'', October 31, 2018. the festival had contributed approximately US$11.5 million to the Cam Neely Foundation. Neely played with the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...

and later became team president; after his mother died of cancer in 1987 and his father in 1993, he founded the charity in 1995 and that same year asked Leary if he were interested in orchestrating a Boston-based comedy benefit show. The inaugural Comics Come Home was held in the Orpheum Theater in 1995.Leary Celebrates 'Comics Come Home' at the 'Gahden'
''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', November 6, 2014. From 2005 to 2013 it was held at the

Agganis Arena Agganis Arena is a 7,200-seat multi-purpose arena in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, on the campus of Boston University, built on the location of the former Commonwealth Armory. It is home to the five-time national champion Boston Universi ...

, and since 2014 it has been held at

TD Garden TD Garden is a multi-purpose arena in Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after its sponsor, TD Bank, a subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Ontario. It opened in 1995 as a replacement for the original Boston Garden and has been k ...

. The performance by

Wanda Sykes Wanda Yvette Sykes (born March 7, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and writer. She was first recognized for her work as a writer on ''The Chris Rock Show'', for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award in 1999. In 2004, ''Entertainm ...

in 2016 included jokes about then-president-elect

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

, which were booed by the audience; Sykes ended her performance early. Her set was followed by a performance by

Nick DiPaolo Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealing * Short for nickname Places ...

, whose performance joked about rape and

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

, leading to a confrontation with an audience member.Political Rants Lead to Chaos at Comics Come Home in Boston
''

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

'', November 14, 2016. In 2017,

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Mayer attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but left and moved to Atlanta in 1997 with ...

appeared at the festival, playing guitar as Leary and Jimmy Fallon sang a cover of

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whi ...

's "

Walk This Way "Walk This Way" is a song by the American rock band Aerosmith. Written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, the song was originally released as the second single from the album '' Toys in the Attic'' (1975). It peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboa ...

". The 2019 Comics Come Home marked its 25th event, and included a guest appearance by

Michael J. Fox Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian-American retired actor. Beginning his career in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ''Family Ties'' (1 ...

.Comics Come Home 25 brings power and precision to TD Garden
''Vanyaland'', November 11, 2019.

Performers

Jim Breuer James E. Breuer (born June 21, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, and radio host. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 1998 and starred in the film ''Half Baked'' (1998). Early life Breuer was born i ...

Eddie Brill Eddie Brill is an American comedian, writer, and actor who started his career in Boston, Massachusetts. He was previously the warm-up comedian and comedy talent coordinator of '' Late Show with David Letterman''. Brill tours frequently, perfor ...

Bill Burr William Frederick Burr (born June 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, filmmaker, and podcaster. He has released multiple stand-up comedy specials, most notably ''Why Do I Do This?'' (2008), ''Let It Go'' (2010), '' You People Are ...

Randy Chestnut Randall Jay Chestnut is an American comedian, writer, and actor. He is noted for his wide-ranging religious views and his marriage to an outreach pastor at Christ's Chapel, physicality, and sarcasm. Among other topics, he often focuses on Ameri ...

Louis C.K. Louis Alfred Székely (; born September 12, 1967), known professionally as Louis C.K. (), is an American stand-up comedian, screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker. C.K. won three Peabody Awards, three Grammy Awards, six Primetime Emmy Awards, and a ...

Lenny Clarke Lenny or Lennie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Lenny (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lennie (surname), a list of people * Lenny (singer) (born 1993), Czech songwriter Arts and entertainment Music * ''L ...

Dane Cook Dane Jeffrey Cook (born March 18, 1972) is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He has released six comedy albums: ''Harmful If Swallowed''; ''Retaliation''; '' Vicious Circle''; '' Rough Around the Edges: Live from Madison Square Garde ...

Pete Correale Peter M. Correale (born April 20, 1970 in Oakdale, New York) is an American actor, stand up comedian, and writer. He currently co-hosts ''The Pete and Sebastian Show'' podcast with fellow comedian Sebastian Maniscalco that airs weekly on iHeartR ...

Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an American comedian, television host, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' and as the host of the late-night talk show ''The Ton ...

Craig Ferguson Craig Ferguson (born 17 May 1962) is a Scottish-born American comedian, actor, writer, and television host. He is best known for hosting the CBS late-night talk show ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'' (2005–2014), for which he won a ...

Jim Gaffigan James Christopher Gaffigan (born July 7, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. His material often addresses fatherhood, laziness, food, religion, and general observations. He is regarded as a "clean" comic, using l ...

Billy Gardell William Gardell Jr. (born August 20, 1969) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. Gardell played Chicago police officer Mike Biggs on ''Mike & Molly.'' He also had a recurring role as Billy Colivida on ''Yes, Dear'' and appeared in a dozen e ...

Janeane Garofalo Janeane Marie Garofalo ( ; born September 28, 1964) is an American comedian, actress, and former co-host on the now-defunct Air America Radio's ''The Majority Report''. Garofalo began her career as a stand-up comedian and became a cast member on ...

Gary Gulman Gary Lewis Gulman (born July 17, 1970) is an American stand-up comedian. He was a finalist on the NBC reality-talent show ''Last Comic Standing'' in its second and third seasons. He released his first CD, '' Conversations With Inanimate Objects' ...

Pete Holmes Peter Benedict Holmes (born March 30, 1979) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. Musings on spirituality and religion are frequent themes in his works. Holmes gained recognition in the early 2010s as a stand-up comic, ...

* Christine Hurley * Robert Kelly * Jessica Kirson *

* Kelly Macfarland *

Marc Maron Marcus David Maron (born September 27, 1963) is an American stand-up comedian, podcaster, writer, actor, and musician. In the 1990s and 2000s, Maron was a frequent guest on the '' Late Show with David Letterman'' and has appeared more than forty ...

Jay Mohr Jon Ferguson "Jay" Mohr (born August 23, 1970) is an American actor, comedian and radio host. He is known for his roles as film producer Peter Dragon in the TV comedy series ''Action'', Professor Rick Payne in the TV series ''Ghost Whisperer'' (2 ...

Tracy Morgan Tracy Jamal Morgan (born November 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actor best known for his television work as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' (1996–2003) and for his role as Tracy Jordan in the sitcom ''30 Rock'' (2006 ...

John Mulaney John Edmund Mulaney (born August 26, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He first rose to prominence for his work as a writer on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2008 to 2013, where he contributed to numerous ...

Patrice O'Neal Patrice Lumumba Malcolm O'Neal (December 7, 1969 – November 29, 2011) was an American comedian and actor. He was known for his stand-up comedy career and his regular guest appearances on the talk show ''Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn'' and the ...

* Brian Regan *

Kenny Rogerson Kenny is a surname, a given name, and a diminutive of several different given names. In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Irish ''Ó Cionnaith'', also spelt ''Ó Cionnaoith'' and ''Ó Cionaodha'', meaning "descendant of Cionnaith" ...

Jon Stewart Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, political commentator, and television host. He hosted ''The Daily Show'', a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015 and now hosts ''Th ...

* Steve Sweeney *

* Warren Thomas * Tony V *

Shawn Wayans Shawn Mathis Wayans (born January 19, 1971) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. Along with his brother Marlon Wayans, he wrote and starred in The WB's sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.''(1995–1999) and in the comedy films ''Don't Be a ...

Steven Wright Steven Alexander Wright (born December 6, 1955) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and film producer. He is known for his distinctly lethargic voice and slow, deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jok ...

* Joe Yanetty

References

{{reflist Comedy festivals in the United States Culture of Boston