Budd Friedman is best known as the founder and original proprietor and MC

Master of Ceremonies

A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....

 of the Improvisation Comedy Club

The Improv

The Improv is a comedy club franchise. Originally, it was a single venue founded in 1963 by Budd Friedman and located in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City on West 44th near the SE corner of 9th Ave. A second location was opened in 1974 at 8162 Melrose Avenue in the Fairfax District...

, which opened in 1963, on West 44th Street near the SE corner of 9th Avenue, in the Hell's Kitchen

Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan

Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton and Midtown West, is a neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City between 34th Street and 59th Street, from 8th Avenue to the Hudson River....

 neighborhood of Manhattan

Manhattan

Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...

. He was instrumental in launching the comedy careers of Rodney Dangerfield

Rodney Dangerfield

Rodney Dangerfield , was an American comedian, and actor, known for the catchphrases "I don't get no respect!," "No respect, no respect at all... that's the story of my life" or "I get no respect, I tell ya" and his monologues on that theme...

, Richard Lewis

Richard Lewis (comedian)

-Early life:Lewis was born in Brooklyn, New York City and was raised in Englewood, New Jersey. His father worked as a caterer and his mother was an actress. Lewis is Jewish. He later attended Ohio State University and was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity....

, Robert Klein

Robert Klein

Robert Klein is an American stand-up comedian, singer and actor.-Early life:Klein was born in the Bronx, the son of Frieda and Benjamin Klein, and was raised in a "prototypical 1950s Bronx Jewish" environment. After graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School, Klein planned to study medicine...

, Jay Leno

Jay Leno

James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...

, Andy Kaufman

Andy Kaufman

Andrew Geoffrey "Andy" Kaufman was an American entertainer, actor and performance artist. While often referred to as a comedian, Kaufman did not consider himself one...

, Freddie Prinze

Freddie Prinze

Freddie Prinze was an American actor and stand-up comedian. He was known as the star of Chico and the Man. He is the father of actor Freddie Prinze, Jr.-Early life:...

, Steve Landesberg

Steve Landesberg

Steve Landesberg was an American actor, comedian, and voice actor known for his role as the erudite, unflappable police detective Arthur P...

, Jimmie Walker

Jimmie Walker

James Carter "Jimmie" Walker is an American actor and stand-up comedian, known for portraying J. J. Evans on the television series Good Times, which ran from 1974 to 1979...

, and for a brief time, managed Bette Midler

Bette Midler

Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...

 at the early stages of her career. It was with Friedman's help and guidance that Ms. Midler first appeared on The Tonight Show

The Tonight Show

The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...

.

He is also an actor

Actor

An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

 and producer

Executive producer

An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...

. Friedman also opened an Improv club at Pechanga Resort and Casino

Pechanga Resort and Casino

Pechanga Resort and Casino is an Indian Casino on the Pechanga Indian Reservation in Temecula, California. Pechanga Resort and Casino is the largest casino in the state of California, with 3,400 slot machines and approximately of gaming space.-History:...

 in Temecula, California

Temecula, California

Temecula is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States with a population of 100,097 according to the 2010 United States Census, making it the lowest populated American city over 100,000 population. It was incorporated on December 1, 1989...

. as well as Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino in Indio, California

Indio, California

Indio is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, located in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Colorado Desert region. It lies east of Palm Springs, east of Riverside, and east of Los Angeles. It is about north of Mexicali, Baja California on the U.S.-Mexican border...

.

Actor

• National Lampoon's Funny Money
  National Lampoon's Funny Money
  National Lampoon's Funny Money is a comedy game show that aired on GSN from June 15 to October 24, 2003. The show was hosted by stand-up comedian Jimmy Pardo, and Budd Friedman served as the announcer.-Format:...
  
  (2003) ... as Announcer
• Man on the Moon (1999) ... as Himself
• Star 80
  Star 80
  Star 80 is a 1983 American film about the true story of Playboy Playmate of the Year Dorothy Stratten, who was murdered by her estranged husband Paul Snider in 1980...
  
  (1983) ... as Emcee
• An Evening at the Improv (1982) ... as Host

Producer

• National Lampoon's Funny Money
  National Lampoon's Funny Money
  National Lampoon's Funny Money is a comedy game show that aired on GSN from June 15 to October 24, 2003. The show was hosted by stand-up comedian Jimmy Pardo, and Budd Friedman served as the announcer.-Format:...
  
  (2003) ... executive producer
  Executive producer
  An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
  
  
• An Evening at the Improv (1982) ... executive producer