Thursday evening may not officially have been branded “Lakers Night at the Ice House Comedy Club,” but it certainly could have been.
Johnny Buss, the Ice House’s new owner and the son of the late legendary Lakers owner Jerry Buss, took the stage midway through the evening to thank attendees for their support.
He then introduced his sister, Jeanie Buss, and the Lakers president proceeded to execute a few well-timed jokes to the delight of the sellout crowd.
Then she introduced her fiancée, Jay Mohr, the evening’s headlining comic who is also a veteran actor, having appeared in numerous movies including “Jerry Maguire” and “Pay It Forward.” He was on stage for an hour, and the packed house seemingly loved it.
“I thought everything went great,” Johnny Buss said of the evening. “Jay killed it! He was nonstop for an hour. He was energetic and kept the crowd connected to him. There were no dull moments. He did an exceptional job. I was smiling from ear-to-ear.”
Jeanie Buss concurred with her brother’s assessment of her fiancée’s performance. “He’s a natural,” she said of Mohr’s headlining effort. “He’s sharing his truth — his road to sobriety. That’s inspiring.”
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The Laker Girls -
Jeanie Buss, the Lakers owner, delivered some well-executed jokes to a sellout crowd during Thursday evening’s show -
Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo is pictured at the Ice House’s ribbon-cutting with club owner Johnny Buss and club general manager Penny Toler -
A sellout crowd at the Ice House Comedy Club was entertained -
Jay Mohr, the evening’s headlining comedian, has had a successful acting career, with one of his best roles being in “Jerry Maguire” with Tom Cruise
Jeanie Buss also had nothing but praise for the Ice House’s significant renovations, which likely ran into the millions of dollars and have upgraded the 63-year-old Pasadena club into an evening destination.
“It’s just spectacular,” she said. “The investment that my brother made with all the upgrades — they updated it while keeping that intimate feel. It’s definitely a legendary [club].”
“Jeanie and I were brought up in a family with a mom and dad who were both funny people and were big comedy fans. My father and I talked about having a comedy club for years and years and years, but we never got to do it,” Johnny Buss said.
“This club has brought together the family in a unique way. I [recently] found out that Jeanie has performed a couple of times as a stand-up. I had no idea! And now she’s engaged to a comic. I think she really enjoyed being at the Ice House and the ambiance.
“I went backstage [after the show] and Jay came barreling toward me and he bear-hugged me,” Johnny Buss added. “He said, ‘Oh my god, I had a great time! You don’t know how good that felt!’”
Top-notch comedians have been appearing at the Ice House for seven decades. The list reads like a comic hall of fame spanning three generations: George Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld, Steve Martin, Robin Williams, Ellen DeGeneres, Billy Crystal, David Letterman, Jay Leno and Rosie O’Donnell, to name a few. And you can add to that list Gabriel Iglesias, who sold out the venue for multiple shows two weeks ago.
“For 40 years, I’ve been promoting sports and entertainment,” Johnny Buss said. “There will be plenty of events that people will enjoy here that won’t necessarily be comedy. We will be doing music … there will always be something new that we’re going to try. There are always tricks up my sleeve.”
First published in the April 6 print issue of the Pasadena Outlook.
