Gallagher- ‘I’m Having a Blast Living with My Fans’

Legendary comedian Gallagher is living in the Greater Utica, NY area with fans and he says he's having a blast.

"I have big plans to help change the world," Gallagher told WIBX radio morning host Bill Keeler. "I can't do it in big cities like New York and Los Angeles. I'm living with real people who I can connect with.  These are my fans."

>>>See photos of Gallagher at Lane home in Ilion, NY below in gallery

Gallagher came to Utica last week for radio host Bill Keeler's Toy Drive benefit and he decided to stay.  He donated most of his fee and actually paid for his flight from Los Angeles and after the Toy Drive Party he informed radio station WIBX that he was planning to stay in the area because he 'bigger things to accomplish.'

The 'smashing comedian' who became one of the country's biggest in the 1980's really does have much more to offer than a stand up show that reaches a pinnacle with the

smashing of watermelons and about a thousand other items found in the grocery store.  He owns the patent for a casino gaming project that gives him the rights to 'gravity' on a computer screen.  He's currently working with a local college to develop a high heel shoe for women that somehow becomes a 'flat' in an instant.  He has pages and pages of poetry and stories for children and is working with the Utica Zoo with a program that helps children and adults alike communicate with the animals.

"And that's just the beginning," he said.  "I have thousands of ideas that I want to leave behind to make the world a better place.  I've survived four heart attacks and after my last one I decided I was given this time to do something more than just watching old reruns of Law and Order."

Gallagher has spent the last few days at the Lane household in Ilion, a suburb of Utica.  He says they've had a great time reading poetry and sharing stories.  This weekend he's going to the family's annual Christmas party and will most likely move on to another family home waiting in the wings.

"We have more than two dozen local residents who have offered up their guest bedroom to Gallagher and probably another dozen others who are from out of town," said WIBX's Bill Keeler.  "People are really into this.  The big question right now is where is he going to stay for Christmas.  It's his call.  I give him the names and he makes the decision based on conversations he has with them through email and over the phone."

Check out Family photos below from the Lane residence.