He was the majority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning 10 league championships that were highlighted by the team's Showtime era during the 1980s.

Born in Salt Lake City, Buss and his three younger siblings were raised by their divorced mother, Jessie, who worked as a waitress.

He then returned to Los Angeles and attended the University of Southern California (USC), where he earned an MS and PhD in physical chemistry in 1957 at the age of 24.

[8] In 1979, Buss purchased Pickfair, the Beverly Hills estate once owned by Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks;[5] he sold it in 1987.

As part of the deal to move the Lakers into Staples Center, Buss sold the Great Western Forum (which was later reverted to its original name).

The Lakers were very successful under Buss' ownership, winning 10 NBA championships with such players as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, and Pau Gasol, and with coaches Paul Westhead, Pat Riley and Phil Jackson.

[12] The Sparks also experienced their share of success, winning two WNBA championships with such players as Lisa Leslie, Tamecka Dixon and DeLisha Milton-Jones.

[15] Beginning in the early 1980s, Jerry Buss was notoriously seen in and around Los Angeles at charitable events with his ever-present entourage of close friends who were infamously dubbed in the press as "The Seven Dwarfs".

Jerry's inner circle entourage included John Rockwell, Ron and David Wilder, Miguel A. Nunez, Lance Davis, Mark Fulton, and Brian J. Sadler.

Professionally, The Dwarfs were outstanding contributors who held positions as special assistant, financial advisor, investment banker, ADPAC marketing executive.

[20] Buss dated Debbie Zafrani, a Playboy bunny and the younger sister of the wife of Lakers player Kurt Rambis.

[26] After being hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with an undisclosed form of cancer, he died of kidney failure on February 18, 2013, aged 80.

[27][28] On February 21, hundreds of friends, colleagues, and family members gathered to pay tribute to Buss in a televised memorial service at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live, across from the Lakers' home court, Staples Center.

[29] Buss was buried on February 22 at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills in a private ceremony with family and close friends.