Kevin and I were watching a Square Pegs marathon a few months ago (I love that show) and he mentioned to me that Jami Gertz, who played the perpetually preppy Muffy Tepperman, owns our hometown NBA team, the Atlanta Hawks. After some Googling, I discovered that he was correct. Jami’s husband, Tony Ressler, purchased the team in 2015 for $720 million. Back in May, Jami was the public face of the team at the draft lottery, freaking out fans in the process.
Just making sure you’re all aware that JAMI GERTZ OWNS THE ATLANTA HAWKS. #NBADraftLottery pic.twitter.com/J5azxUpHRR
— Mara Reinstein (@MaraReinstein) May 16, 2018
Am I the only late 40s male who is trying to process Jami Gertz (16 Candles and other 80s movie classics) owning the Hawks and being onstage at The NBA Draft lottery? pic.twitter.com/1GJEaXAq2Y
— Rob Brown (@rbb_brown) May 16, 2018
The Hollywood Reporter recently spoke with Jami about her new role – and sadly didn’t ask her where the heck her character went on This is Us. (Jami played Kate’s boss on one episode in the first season, only to disappear and never return…but, I guess that’s another story.) She told the magazine, “I get it. It’s not your everyday Hollywood actress tale.” It sure isn’t.
Jami met her husband when she was at the peak of her career, with roles in the iconic 80s movies Less Than Zero and The Lost Boys. She was introduced to her husband, then a banker with Drexel Burnham Lambert, by her publicist. Jami recalled:
“He was a nice guy with a job. Which is what any Jewish girl from Glenview would want. It would have been nice if it was a doctor or a lawyer, but a banker was OK, too.”
“Everyone thinks I married a rich guy. But I made more money — way more money — than Tony when I met him. I paid for our first house. I paid for our first vacation. I married him because I fell in love with him.”
The couple married in 1989 and have three kids. As Tony worked towards developing his own investment firm, Ares Management, Jami continued to act, on television shows such as Still Standing and Ally McBeal and movies like Twister. Tony got the bug to purchase an NBA team, and after unsuccessfully making a bid for the LA Clippers in 2014, purchased the Hawks in June of 2015. As Jami recalled:
”I was walking in and out of the closet. And he looked at me, and I looked at him, and he’s like, ‘Jami, are we going to do this?’ I’m like, ‘I don’t know. I’m so scared.’ And he’s like, ‘It would be so much fun!’ And then we were jumping and screaming, ‘Oh my God — we just bought a basketball team!’”
So, now Jami is the face of the Atlanta Hawks, giving pep talks, attending media events and organizing events. She has done a bit of acting, appearing on Hulu’s (gone too soon) Difficult People and her guest spot on This is Us (Really. Where did her character go? I really need to know.) She’s as enthusiastic about her role as the Hawks Ambassador as Muffy Pepperman was organizing her new wave bat mitzvah, but it seems like she will still brighten our screens agin in the future. As she told THR:
”It just seemed like a natural moment for me to take a break from acting. It’s hard to even say it out loud because I love what I do. It’s given me so many beautiful things in my life, taught me so many things about myself and the world around me.”
And now, I guess I need to start paying more attention to the Hawks. How cool is it that Jami is here in my hometown?
My newest feature brought me to Atlanta to profile Jami Gertz — an ‘80s teen icon who quietly become the billionaire owner of the @ATLHawks. (Yes, you read that correctly.) https://t.co/esGISXWTF2
— Seth Abramovitch (@SethAbramovitch) October 11, 2018
Considering making this photo of Jami Gertz and the Atlanta Hawks my phone wallpaper? pic.twitter.com/Hy4ie7ByLs
— Marcus Michalik (@MarcusMichalik) October 11, 2018
Photos: Getty, WENN
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