The Rams yesterday "struck a deal with the Laugh Factory, which will supply content" that will be displayed during game days "on the three video boards at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum this season," according to Paul Bond of the HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. The content will be Rams- and football-themed and "feature former and current players, and the video will also be available online, including at TheRams.com." AT&T, already a Rams partner, will "sponsor the content, and season-ticket holders will be able to use game tickets to get free admission into some of the seven Laugh Factory comedy clubs" (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 7/25). Laugh Factory Owner Jamie Masada said that he has "already approached some of his high-profile stand-up acts about participating." Masada: “Can you imagine comedians giving advice to the Rams so they could do better this year?” In L.A., Dylan Hernandez writes the move "sounds like it has the potential to backfire on the Rams ... but Masada promised the humor will come from a good place." Masada thinks it could "help the Rams with one of the major problems they had last season, which was that none of the personalities on the team resonated in this personality-driven market." If RB Todd Gurley "displays a sense of humor interacting with a comedian in a viral video, maybe the city will be more inclined to embrace him." Masada said that talks of the partnership "started when the Rams approached the Laugh Factory about being part of Comedy Camp, which takes in aspiring comedians from underprivileged backgrounds." Masada added that the Rams also "contributed merchandise to a recent USO radio-thon hosted by the Laugh Factory" (L.A. TIMES, 7/26).
