Celebrities have been honored in many different ways over the years. Some of them have had statues built in their likeness, and some have even gotten their own sandwich at some point. Seldomly, however, do entertainers get the privilege of having locations named after them, and that’s especially true when it comes to comedians. Let’s take a look at a few of the comics who hold that rare distinction.
FATTY ARBUCKLE
Although he went through a very public scandal in the 1920s after being accused of manslaughter, silent comedy pioneer Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was remembered fondly in the UK, where a chain of restaurants was named after him. Fatty Arbuckle’s first opened in Plymouth, England, in 1983, offering large portions of food at low prices. Before long, it grew to include more than 30 locations. Sadly, not many remain open today.
ISH KABIBBLE
Merwyn Bogue, better known as Ish Kabibble, was a comedian and musician best known for performing with Kay Kyser’s band (and for inspiring Jim Carrey’s hairdo in Dumb and Dumber). His name also inspired a couple of restaurants in the Philadelphia area called Ishkabibble’s. The first location is said to be the home of the original chicken cheesesteak. They’re also known for their popular half-lemonade, half-grape juice beverage, “The Gremlin.”
ROBIN WILLIAMS
Williams holds the distinction of having not one but two locations in San Francisco named after him. First, the Waldo Tunnel was renamed the Robin Williams Tunnel after a Change.org petition was started in 2014. The tunnel’s archways are painted to look like rainbows, similar to the suspenders Williams wore on Mork & Mindy. Seven miles from there, in Golden Gate Park, is Robin Williams Meadow, which is where the annual Comedy Day event that Williams was a big supporter of takes place.
BOB HOPE
Three blocks of NW 9th Avenue in Miami were rechristened Bob Hope Road in 1984. At the ribbon cutting, Hope joked to the people in attendance, “Are you sure it isn’t a dead end?” The dedication was done at the request of the National Parkinson Foundation, which said, “Bob Hope has done so much for the Foundation that it is difficult to thank him properly.” Hollywood Burbank Airport was briefly named after Hope as well, but was changed in 2016; its legal name is still Bob Hope Airport, though.
BURNS AND ALLEN
Husband-and-wife comedy duo George Burns and Gracie Allen had two streets on the Cedars-Sinai hospital campus in Los Angeles renamed in their honor. Burns was reportedly a longtime supporter of Cedars-Sinai and received the honor of having George Burns Road named after him in 1986. Gracie Allen Drive followed in 1995; Burns was 99 at the dedication ceremony.
GEORGE CARLIN
In 2014, a street near George Carlin’s childhood home was renamed George Carlin Way. Robert Klein, Colin Quinn, and Gilbert Gottfried were among the comedians who showed up in support on the day of the ceremony. Carlin’s daughter, Kelly, told 1010 WINS, “That neighborhood meant so much to him that he continued to be friends with all the people he grew up with.” They weren’t able to rename the street Carlin grew up on, however, because Corpus Christi Church, which Carlin attended and later joked about in his act, opposed the change.
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