Jimmy Fallon frequented a posh NYC private club as a secret hangout for drinks
It was a rare case of “coming out of the fire and into the brothers’ house”.
Jimmy Fallon apologized to his team this week after a Rolling Stone article claimed he created a toxic environment at the 30 Rock headquarters of his “Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” — in part because he seemed to have shown up at the office smelling bad. of alcohol in 2017.
But Page Six has learned over the years that Fallon, 48 — who had a legendary reputation for drinking and sometimes getting into high-spirited situations at downtown watering holes, including Niagara, and particularly in the now defunct Siberia – used the private Friars Club. as a safe space for the gregarious host to let loose without making the gossip pages.
While the struggling 55th Street club is famous for its famous members — who usually drank happily among other members at the various bars around its clubhouse — we’re told that Fallon was often set up in rooms particularly closed to other cards. -people who transport, with his editorial team as party buddies.
As this reporter one day found out the hard way, anyone not at NBC was asked to take a hike.
In fact, there was much speculation around the hallowed halls once trodden by Frank Sintra and Jerry Lewis, that NBC executives were the ones who came up with Jimmy’s management strategy.
But on Friday, an NBC spokesperson told Page Six that wasn’t true. A spokesperson for Fallon declined to comment.
A Brother insider told us: “He brought his writers to the club and they would have a private room, but I don’t know if that was natural, because he would spend time there anyway – he offered the writers a annual gift. memberships, so it makes sense that that’s where they’re hanging on — or if NBC was encouraging it. It could have been a win-win for both.
Fallon has come under fire after a Rolling Stone article cited 16 current and former employees accusing him of being erratic, drunk on the job and “creating a toxic work environment.”
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“No one told Jimmy, ‘No,'” a staffer told the magazine.
“Everyone was walking on eggshells, especially the showrunners,” said another former employee.
“You never knew which Jimmy we were going to get and when he was going to throw a fit. Look how many showrunners have gone so fast. We know they didn’t last long.
Fallon apologized to “Tonight Show” during a video call Thursday evening.
One attendee at the general meeting called the comedian’s mea culpa “pretty serious.”
“It’s embarra*sing and I feel so bad,” Fallon reportedly said. “Sorry if I embarra*sed you, your family and friends. . . I feel so bad I can’t even tell you.
Fallon made headlines in 2014, shortly after landing the “Tonight Show” gig, for getting caught in a bar fight in Niagara’s East Village, and we’re told the alleged retirement behind the Friars lines occurred shortly after.
But Friar’s Club closed its doors last spring. So where will the comic go to hide now?
