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The hottest ticket in town last week was a tribute to 66-year-old man you never heard of.

But that's your problem. The entire A-list turned out for last week's Friars Club tribute to Freddie Roman,
 boldfaced names like David Dinkins, "Professor" Irwin Corey, Bobby Ramsen and Dick Capri! Even Irving Pilash
 was there, Capri noted. What, you don't remember Irving Pilash?! Ah, you're too young. From the 1920s to the
 1940s, every week there was another Pilash hit on the radio. "Moon over Cleveland"? A Pilash hit.
 "CH-esterfield 8-2346"? Another huge Pilash hit!

All were there to praise Roman, a comic's comic. True, Roman didn't invent comedy -- no, that happened at
 Kutsher's on Memorial Day weekend, 1921 -- but had he and his generation not picked up the torch, Borscht Belt
 humor might have died in the Disco Era.

And that would've been a shame. Here's why: "A guy checks into a Miami Beach hotel. The desk clerk says,
 'That'll be $12.' The guy thinks, 'This is great! Twelve dollars and I'm right on the beach!' The next
 morning, the guy goes to downstairs to reserve a tee-time. He says, 'I'll also need a dozen balls.' The pro
 says, 'Certainly sir. A dozen balls -- that's $400.' And the guy says, 'Four hundred dollars for golf balls?
 That's ridiculous. My entire room is only $12!' And the pro says, 'Well, some hotels get you by the ROOMS.'"

That was the first joke Freddie Roman ever told publicly. It was 1958. He was 21. It was the Catskills.

"I only had 25 minutes of material -- 19 of it was stolen," Roman recalled. "But I must have been good, because
 they asked me back the next week."

From the Catskills to "Catskills on Broadway," Freddie Roman always killed. Of course, on Thursday night,
 Master of Ceremonies Stewie Stone wondered why so many people would want to honor "a putz like him" (that's
 Yiddish for, "We love you, Freddie"). After all, according to Stone, the only good thing Roman has done in his
 10-year tenure as Dean of the Friars is keeping dues in check, thanks to recruiting younger members.

One of those younger members -- comedienne Lisa Lampanelli -- said she joined the Friars just so she could hang
 out with "old Jews like Freddie Roman."

"I love Freddie because he tells jokes," she said. "Plus, when he's had a drink or two, he'll always grab your
 ass -- and who doesn't love that?"

No one, apparently. Roman has been elected Dean five times, and he's a strong favorite for re-election in
 November, 2004. Then again, if membership dues go up, all bets are off.

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gersh.kuntzman@verizon.net