Englewood Golf Club (Comedy)

Founded in 1896, the Englewood Golf Club was one of the oldest and most prestigious golf clubs in the United States. Located near the George Washington Bridge and later adjacent to Route 4, the club gained national recognition in the early twentieth century as a championship course. In 1906, it hosted the U.S. Amateur Championship, helping establish Bergen County as a destination for competitive golf. Its proximity to New York City made it a popular gathering place for business leaders, professionals, and prominent public figures.

By the 1940s, however, rapid suburban development began to transform the surrounding area. Newspaper accounts from 1943 described the historic course's 104 acres as increasingly valuable real estate, noting that the property had been placed on the market as development pressures mounted around the George Washington Bridge corridor. Despite these challenges, the club survived and reinvented itself. In 1952, following extensive renovations and reorganization, the club reopened as a private institution with a rebuilt clubhouse, new facilities, and a renewed commitment to golf and social life.

The club's revival coincided with another transformation taking place in northern Bergen County. During the 1950s and 1960s, Englewood, Leonia, Tenafly, and neighboring communities became home to a growing number of entertainers who worked in New York City's television, film, theater, and nightclub industries. The Englewood Golf Club emerged as one of the places where these figures gathered away from the spotlight.

Among the comedians associated with the club were Buddy Hackett, Dick Shawn, Joey Bishop, and Corbett Monica. Contemporary accounts describe how Dick Shawn introduced Buddy Hackett to both the club and the social life of Englewood. After showing Hackett around the area, Shawn sold him his Englewood home, helping bring another rising television comedian into the community. The friendship between the two comedians reflected the close-knit network of performers who settled in Bergen County during the early television era.

The club remained connected to the entertainment world for decades. A 1976 newspaper account linked Buddy Hackett to the Englewood Country Club alongside fellow entertainers Joey Bishop and Corbett Monica and nightclub owner Phil Corio. For many performers, the club offered an opportunity to enjoy suburban life while remaining only a short distance from television studios, Broadway theaters, and Manhattan nightclubs.

Ken Wallace, "Historic Englewood Golf Club, Rebuilt, Heads To New Glories," The Record (Hackensack, NJ), April 15, 1952.

Radio Mirror, November 1956, profile describing Dick Shawn, Buddy Hackett, and the Englewood Golf Club.

The Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ), February 22, 1976, discussing Buddy Hackett's association with the Englewood Country Club alongside Joey Bishop, Corbett Monica, and Phil Corio.

John C. Voigt Post Card Co., Jersey City, New Jersey

New Jersey State Library's Postcard Collection.

1908

Public Domain