He was also able to snag the Kings hockey team, the Inglewood Forum, and the 13,000-acre Raljon Ranch in the Sierra Nevada mountains from businessman Jack Kent Cooke. You can be super successful and win at the highest level while being a great father and family man, and also still have a social life. He focused on the team's marketing, commissioned the Laker Girls, and had movie stars appear in the crowd during games. You could say he and Steinbrenner were the first to grow probably bigger than the franchise. That was a big thing for both of us. Coincidentally, I went to work out the next morning, and I was looking for gyms out there. And Id just played in a rec league game maybe a week prior. Or to USC football games. He moved to Los Angeles and attended the University of Southern California (USC), where he earned an M.S. And little did we know wed be teammates months later extremely serendipitous. Explore how the celebrity world connects. Coming through life, there are some people that you look at as more than a friend, more than a boss. and Ph.D. in physical chemistry by age 24. That was wonderful, to get my game back in gear for the next five games (after the Memorial Day Massacre). Her father, Jerry Buss, had died in February 2013 at age 80, . Im not going to tell them what trade to make. We kept in touch that way. Announced as a member of the 2010 induction class of the Basketball Hall of Fame on April 5, 2010, he was formally enshrined as a contributor to the sport on August 13 of that same year. Buss became an owner in World Team Tennis, the Los Angeles Strings. Some people said, How dare you, you cant make it commercial. But yes. The takeaway is that we all have to be good, well-rounded people. When he bought the team, it was more like a dream come true he told me he always wanted to own the Lakers. Before that, I remember my dad telling me about this workout for an up-and-coming high school kid, and how Jerry West told him that he was going to be this special player. There wasnt a lot of sour grapes between players and Dr. Buss. I think theres a lot of money in it. In 1978, at age 33, he became owner of the team following his father's death. He was just a very good man. So I was just wandering around, and I walked right by this one man who was wearing jeans and maybe an old sports jacket. Any age group, any ethnic group. Clutch and going to meet everybody. Id played the whole season with a torn ligament. Because when the Lakers were playing, the men got the stage and the platform. If anybody thought that Johnny or Jeanie or Jimmy or any of his kids could fill his shoes, theyre grandly mistaken, Johnny said. So I became obsessed with it, and how that process worked. Shaq, myself, the whole team, we didnt know. In a large way, thats why you saw so much joy in Dr. Buss. They watched the game and came out cheering and smiling, and I asked whats happening, and he said, Were getting ice cream! I was excited to have the ice cream thats probably when becoming a Lakers fan began for me. He loved to calculate how much time it would take us to get places, and what time wed have to leave by to arrive on time. Jessie Buss Cause Of Death? I remember thinking it was really cool to have somebody go to the NBA straight from high school, somebody that was only five or six years older than me. Jeanie was always going to be slated as running the business side for as long as she lived, Johnny said. He ran an indoor soccer team, the Lazers. And when we were all kids and we were together growing up, wed always watch the games. By age 46, Jerry and his business partner, Frank Mariani, turned that million into a real-estate empire in multiple states that was worth an estimated $350million. You walk into the locker room and you see three Hall of Famers on your side, plus one of the best defenders of all time in Michael Cooper, and a great coach, and you cant help but feel that way. But he wouldnt want us to watch as fans, hed be asking what we thought about specific players, how we thought certain free agents might fit on the team. I think he knew, with me being 20 and alone all the way from Michigan, he became a father figure to me. What a unique talent he was. He ran the WNBAs Los Angeles Sparks while the family still owned the team. Hed call me every once in a while. When we won Game 4 in the Garden, that was the big difference. I couldnt be more thankful for all the parties involved in that trade, because it really changed my career here in the NBA, and gave me a second life. How he figured out our monetary system, the Coast Guard, customs, the first inspector general of the Army ridiculous. and Janie. [3] Buss started as a chemist for the Bureau of Mines (now the Mine Safety and Health Administration); he then briefly worked in the aerospace industry and was on the faculty of USC's chemistry department. So he went to Jerry West, and said, weve got to get somebody to come and get us back to winning. He had a lot to prove: a lot of people looked at him, because he didnt wear a suit and tie, he came in as a different owner. He wanted to make sure that the Lakers, what hed created with the winning, and what they meant to the community, would continue. That's why, when I created this new uniform, I wanted people to see that. We talked about where we came from, what our lives were like, and in a lot of respects we had some similarities in our lives. with JoAnn Buss{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "JoAnn Buss", "gender": "Female" }, Joey Buss{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "Joey Buss", "gender": "Male" }, born 1985, age 37 (approx.) Today, you cant. 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Jerry Buss' purchase of the Lakers in 1979 started a family legacy that still continues to this day, In order to purchase the team, Jerry had a team of lawyers and accountants and ultimately exchanged the Chrysler building in NYC, Under Jerry's ownership, the Lakers would win 10 NBA titles making him the most decorated owner in sports history, Jerry's daughter, Jeanie, took over the Lakers in March 2017, Inside the wild story of the Lakers family legacy after Dr Jerry Buss exchanged the Chrysler building for the team, Chelsea sell wonderkid Billy Gilmour to Brighton for 9m as midfielder agrees four-year contract at the Amex, Chelsea confirm 10m transfer of Barcelona striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with Marcos Alonso heading to Nou Camp, Fulham confirm season-long loan transfer from Leeds star Dan James on busy day for Marco Silva's side, 'Not always easy' - Hector Bellerin posts emotional message to Arsenal fans after joining Barcelona on free transfer, 'This isnt the club it was two years ago' - Rodgers slams Leicester's transfer business with Foxes bottom of league, Michy Batshuayi transfer from Chelsea to Nottingham Forest COLLAPSES after documents not sent in time, Aston Villa HIJACK West Ham's move for Jan Bednarek and agreeing season-long loan transfer for Southampton defender, Bamba Dieng walks out of private jet terminal for flight to Leeds and chooses Nice transfer.. but then FAILS medical, Fulham complete transfers of ex-Arsenal and Chelsea ace Willian and former Tottenham striker Carlos Vinicius. During his induction into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2010, Magic Johnson called Jerry a master at building a team.. My father, Dr. Jerry Buss, holds the honor of being the most successful owner in the history of professional sports. Wed go out to different musicals and shows and dinners with my dad. Very genuine, honest guy, and I respected him a lot. The lying in state was held on Monday, February 27th 2023 from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Fox Funeral Home (1116 N 19th St, Beatrice, NE 68310). And his grasp of math, and his ability to run numbers and fit that into the equation, whatever the equation was whether it was the cap, payroll, profit loss statements whatever it was, he ran it all in his head. When he bought the Forum, it was called the Forum. The stake could legally be sold off entirely, but given the familys devotion to the team, the Lakers are sure to stay with them. Reports suggest Prince Charles will live "in a flat above the shop" when he becomes king. Its very hard to achieve that level of success. All that was because my dad sat me down and said he thought Kobe was going to be a real good player. He was supposed to come out to Orlando. He did not make demands. Fans could see celebrities sitting along the sidelines, live bands playing music and the famous "Laker Girls" doing their dance routines. But now I realize, you actually really know your (stuff)! Then he started asking for my opinion on things. I havent seen that a lot in my 11 years being around the league, owners being that human. Buss also owned the Los Angeles Lazers of the Major Indoor Soccer League. On February 14, 2013, it was revealed that Jerry had been battling cancer since the year before and four days later, he passed away at age 80. We just clicked. He was one of a kind, man. Obviously he went to USC, and he loved the band. Explore how the celebrity world connects. He was a very well-rounded person. He lived a true rags-to-riches story, as he learned the value of hard work at a young age. He saved Ronnys life, and he didnt have to. I was a nervous wreck the entire game, and we won the game, and I delivered the best that I could at the time. I was a little uptight, and didnt really know what to expect, so my first impression just totally relaxed me. My dream was to be a businessman after I was done. He has appeared in the GSN series High Stakes Poker and the NBC late-night series Poker After Dark. Dr. Buss, its because the lights are so high up in the ceiling, and in order to make the court bright enough for broadcast, its really bright. He says, I understand, but can you keep an eye on that? So in 2004, the NBA came in with the All-Star game, and they brought in rigging with lights to create that sort of Broadway musical focus on the court. Dr. Buss had the trifecta of human values, as far as Im concerned, which is honesty, kindness and loyalty, and I think that was most exemplified in the Ronny Turiaf situation. We had gone through the playoffs only losing one game, against Philly. Over the shows first season, Buss daughter, Jeanie Buss, assists Claire Rothman and works to realize her fathers grand vision for the Lakers. But one things I remember that stood out to me, as nice as Dr. Buss was, he was really a good owner but he looked at me and said, Look, I understand youre upset. Just showed up and watched. He had something written on it, but it was turned over. In 2012, Buss was in a hospital for months with an undisclosed intestinal problem. Lee was born in 1953 and is the first child of Dr. Jerry Buss and JoAnn Mueller. If I just followed the blueprint he laid out for me, I was going to be successful, and I did. Now, after a public legal fight that split the siblings, Johnny is even more ready to move on. After I took the job with the Knicks, Dr. Buss called me on the phone and asked if I was in L.A., and he wanted to have dinner with (my wife) Chris and I. And teams like the Spurs were getting guys late in the first round that were contributors. When you add all those things up, you come up with why that series and that championships mean so much. So theyre chatting one time, and he says, Hey, would you like to put your name on the building? They say, How would that work? Dr. Buss says, Well, youre going to pay me, wed agree upon a price, and it would become the Great Western Forum. And boom. After separation from Mueller, Buss dated Karen Demel and had two children: Joey Buss (born in 1985) and Jesse Buss (born in 1988). In 1996-97, after I came back to the Lakers for Kobes rookie year, we didnt see Dr. Buss quite as much. So its strange to have a guy whos your mentor, father figure and best friend all rolled into one And then when Jeanie called me (to share the news that he had passed away (one of the) toughest days in my life. He had an appeal to the common man, and thats what I think when I look back at everything. There was a lot of worry on the part of Jerry West. I would watch him ask them how their grandchildren were, if they graduated knowing people by name. Im going through a bunch of different players throughout the league, and I remember he just looks at me after four or five hours, and he goes, You know you were always so quiet, and I thought you didnt know (stuff). He was talking about wanting to get out of Memphis and all this stuff, and Im like, Man itd be great if we could play together. Ive always had respect for him, known his family. All these companies want to do business with the Lakers? The Lakers were the crown jewel. I remember the first game that we played in Michigan*, at the Silver Dome, and it was a home game for us. Make sure relatives of Betty Jean Buss know they have sympathy messages here. Because Id worked on prior events like Championship parades and so on, event mode planning started. Betty and I were friends from 6th grade and we always had a lot of laughs together. So I played in San Antonio for about 4.5 months and had no idea the Lakers were interested in me. But then right away, the Lakers started winning championships, and Showtime was coined, and little did I know that Id get a chance to join them years later. We just stayed the course. The 10-part documentary series, which is set to premiere with two episodes on Monday, Aug. 15, will detail the rise of the Lakers after Buss' purchase of the franchise. Their grandchildren were, if they graduated knowing people by name relatives of Betty Jean Buss know have. 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