Billy Crystal is bringing the loss of his Pacific Palisades home, the death of close friend Rob Reiner and his own reflections on grief to the stage in his new one-man Broadway show, 860.
The production takes its name from the address of the house Crystal shared with his wife, Janice, before it was destroyed in a wind-driven wildfire in January 2025. More than 5,000 homes were consumed by the blaze, including the family property where Crystal had lived for years.
Crystal said the house had been a place that kept him feeling young. He and Janice found themselves with nothing left from it after the fire, but he said the memories remained intact.
“Yes, we’re fortunate to have this and have that, but that doesn’t take away the hurt. That doesn’t take away the loss,” Crystal said.
To make the audience feel as if they are inside the home, the set for 860 is an exact replica of Crystal’s office, with the room recreated as it was before the fire. The show is now in previews and is due to open on October 21.
Crystal describes the morning of the fire in the performance, recalling how helicopters and sirens woke him and Janice to news of a brush fire. Even in the account of the disaster, his instinct for comedy remains.
While Janice concentrated on practical matters such as medicines and prescriptions, Crystal said he was thinking about “that half a veal parmesan sandwich that’s in the refrigerator”.
The production took on an additional layer of grief after Reiner and his wife, Michelle, were killed in their home in December 2025. Crystal had been with Reiner at a Christmas party the night before.
“No, it’s too big,” Crystal said when asked how he was processing the loss. “It’s so insane, because we were together the night before. We said goodbye, like, late that night, 10:30 or something, at the party we were at together for the holidays, and then … what?!?”
Crystal, 78, said humour had long been his way of coping with painful experiences. “That’s what I do! You have to, man. You got to, you got to … It’s a healer. It always has been that way. You know, we say when life gets tough, all you can do is laugh.”
The show follows 700 Sundays, Crystal’s earlier one-man production about the approximately 700 Sundays he spent with his father before his death. The performance became a major hit and earned him a Tony Award.
Crystal said creating 860 had already helped him confront the losses of his home and friends. “I’m OK,” he said. “I’ve absorbed the biggest pains that people couldn’t go through, the loss of home, dearest of friends. And I’m OK.”
He said the events had also changed his relationship with faith. Recalling that he had once depicted conversations with God in 700 Sundays, Crystal said: “No, ’cause I don’t trust Him. Too many bad things have happened. The Earth is in bad shape. This is a weird, scary time. So no, not anymore.”
860 is directed by Scott Ellis, with music by Marc Shaiman. Shaiman said Crystal could not help finding humour in dark memories, while Ellis said family and friendship were central to the story and to moving forward.
The limited New York run is scheduled to continue until January 3. Crystal said he hopes to take the show to Los Angeles afterwards, the city where the events it recounts unfolded.
Although the house is gone, Crystal said he remained optimistic about the future. “I’m 78 now, and I feel really good,” he said. “And I’m optimistic for what life is going to bring. And if we’ve gotten through this in the way that we’ve gotten through it, we’re doing OK.”
