HOWIE MANDEL
If you’re ever playing the slot machine version of “Deal or No Deal” and you hear a voice behind you asking, “Deal or no deal?” it might be comedian, television personality, actor and producer Howie Mandel.
“There was some lady once playing and very focused on the machine, so I thought it’d be funny to sneak up behind her,” Mandel said in a recent phone interview. “Just before she pressed the button, I said in her ear, ‘Deal or no deal.’ She never turned her head; she just elbowed me in the chest, knocked the wind out and said, ‘Get away from me.’ She didn’t know who I was. Now, I like to approach from the front.”
Mandel has a slot machine based on the show in his Los Angeles office, but he’s not much of a gambler. He said that if he were on “Deal or No Deal,” he would take the first offer and go home. He is on tour, including a stop at Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in Cabazon on Thursday, Dec. 28, so don’t be surprised if you catch the comedian, known for his spontaneous style, sneaking around the casino floor before the show.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do when I get to Morongo, but I promise it’s not just stand-up,” he said. “It’s comedy, fun and escapism. I love fooling around, and I always love to laugh, and wherever that is, it’s not just locked into that 90 minutes of stage time.”
The 68-year-old began his career performing in the comedy clubs of his native Canada, and by the late ’70s, he got his big break after being spotted by a producer for comedy game show “Make Me Laugh” while performing at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles. The recognition led to more success, including becoming the opening act for David Letterman’s tour in 1979. Mandel’s breakthrough television appearance was in the ’80s medical drama “St. Elsewhere,” where he played the comedic relief. He cemented his name in households while hosting the game show “Deal or No Deal,” which ran from 2005-2009. The show has an upcoming spin-off dubbed “Deal or No Deal Island,” where Joe Manganiello will be the host. Mandel has also been a judge on “America’s Got Talent” for 13 seasons.
Before heading to Cabazon, Mandel talked with Southern California News Group about social media’s role in comedy, performing in Las Vegas and what he looks for when hosting and judging television shows. The following conversation was edited for space and clarity.
QWhat kind of gratification do you get as a comedian from doing situational comedy?
AMy entry into comedy was seeing a show called “Candid Camera.” I love pranks and things like that because that’s the most relatable, real kind of comedy there is. It’s fun to do it, to be part of it, and it’s relatable because you can watch it and laugh and think, “What would I do?” or “I would never believe that” or “What if I was in that situation?” It’s just real. We used to watch TV and everything was scripted, and now, reality TV, YouTube and TikTok are just real people doing real things. A hidden agenda prank is the reality TV of comedy.
QWhat do you think of these new TikTok comedians? Do you like these kids putting out their own content?
Afilm would see you and give you an opportunity that would change your life. Today, you could sit in your underpants, on your bed in Oklahoma, and we can get 100 million people seeing what it is you do, and you can actually monetize that and make a living and a career out of it. Look at Matt Rife, a very funny guy who was having a hard time until we saw him do crowd work on TikTok.
QIt’s interesting because, to some extent, we’re plugged in online but still crave real-life authenticity. Why do you think that is?
AThe show isn’t just where somebody gives you a microphone, points lights at you and sells hard tickets because you’re in a theater. There’s always a show, and that’s what I love about social media. I’m on TikTok and Instagram every day and many times a day. I realized that that’s where I have an audience, along with traditional corporate network television. It’s not just one thing. It’s everything, and you have to be open to it, and that’s why I started podcasting. My daughter and I do “Howie Mandel Does Stuff,” and that’s down, dirty, real, authentic and not really produced. We’re in a day and age where we’ve authenticated everybody. We, as a culture, have access to every moment because we’re carrying our phones around. It’s all reality, whether there are cameras or not. When I started in this business, things would happen when somebody said, “Ladies and gentlemen, Howie Mandel,” or when you were in front of a camera. Now you’re always in front of a camera, and everybody has one.
In a casino, especially Vegas, you’re playing everywhere because there’s somebody from everywhere at the shows. I’m sure there are locals, but your audience every night is everybody who goes to Vegas. So it’s enjoyable because everybody shows up, so you don’t have to be that specific. I also love stand-up. Stand-up is the one place where there are no time limits, no marks to hit, no lines to recite and anything can happen.
“Deal or No Deal” is among Howie Mandel’s TV credits.
Where: Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, 49500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon When: 8 p.m. Thursday Tickets: $39-$69 at Ticketmaster.com.
I love it. When I started out almost 50 years ago, there was (none of that). Everything I’ve been expelled for, gotten in trouble for or punished for is what I would get paid for today. I don’t have a GED. I got thrown out of school for what would be considered pranks. They weren’t pranks. They were just me acting out. But the truth is that on a dare, I got up onstage at a comedy club, and this became my business. There was only one place to go if you were going to make a living at it. You had to come to L.A. and get on at the Comedy Store. That’s where maybe somebody who was producing TV or
QYou’ve hosted several shows for quite some time. What is something that captures your attention immediately from contestants?
AAnything that is unexpected. From a guy who felt that his talent was being able to take a shot in the nether region to somebody like Courtney Hadwin, who was this young, shy little girl who turned out to be the second coming of Janis Joplin, to one of my favorite groups of all time, V. Unbeatable, which is a group of 30 people from Mumbai who without a net will toss people two or three stories in the air to land on bamboo poles. What’s amazing is as you drive down the Las Vegas Strip, every billboard has some connection in some way to “America’s Got Talent.” Whether it’s the “America’s Got Talent” live show at the Luxor, Matt Franco, Terry Fator, or even the Jabbawockeez were first on “America’s Got Talent.” They’re all headliners with their own rooms now.
QWhat do you hope people at the Morongo show will walk away with after your performance?
AQWhat was it like performing in Las Vegas as a comedian?
AAnything but a virus. I just hope that they’re there because if they’re not, it’s just so awkward to stand in a room alone and act like an idiot. Truth be told, it’s my favorite thing to do. I look at it like a giant party, and I’m just trying to be the center of attention. I don’t put much pre-planning into what I’m doing. It’s very interactive and improvisational. It’s all escapism. There is no news, politics or religion, just fun and silly escapism.
What do you hope people will ask you, but they never do?
“Is there any way I can hand you a few million dollars right now with no strings attached?” But they never do. They never say that.
Part of the appeal of resort-style casinos in Southern California is fine dining, where guests can splurge their spoils after a lucky play. For the Great Oak Steakhouse at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, that might mean sampling several ounces of wagyu beef for dinner or taking a $350 shot of whiskey.
The upscale restaurant, which seats up to 235, is open after seven months of renovations. It includes a lounge bar with a new cocktail and wine menu, and shares a door with the casino’s Italian kitchen at Paisano’s.
Andre Pinto, executive chef of Pechanga, said guests have been happy to return after the restaurant’s reopening, and the staff is also enjoying the new kitchen.
“The menu is more elevated and high-end, and the guys love the presentation of how we bring our food to guests,” Pinto said.
Set to roll out next month, the newly added Chef’s Table is part of the restaurant’s move to elevate its dining experience. The space is an enclosed room with glass walls and a view into the kitchen, with a long table that seats 1012 and is surrounded by bottles of wines from around the world.
Guests at the Chef’s Table can expect a Michelin-star dining experience, with an eight-course menu including appetizers, entrees and desserts that changes every six weeks. Diners can watch their food being prepared in front of them and learn more about it as chefs come out and explain the inspiration and concept behind each dish.
“I’ve worked in many different high-end restaurants, and having an open kitchen here has always been one of my goals. It’s a dream come true,” Pinto said. “Guests can see behind the scenes, which can be intimidating for some of the cooks, but they’re learning, and we like the interaction with the guests.”
The rollout of the first Chef’s Table menu will pay homage to Pechanga’s very own eateries, taking the most popular dishes of each restaurant and reconstructing them into upscale bites.
“We’re going to take guests through a journey of the menu and the tastes of Pechanga,” Pinto said. “One of the dishes is going to be a loco moco, and it’s something that when you look at the plate, it does not look like one, but when you bite into it, you’ll know the flavors.”
The regular menu for the steakhouse will be seasonal, changing every three months. Currently, guests can expect favorites such as American and Japanese wagyu; lobster with sweet onion soubise, lardons,
Mixologist Nicholas Dukes makes a martini. He is part of a team working to expand Pechanga’s liquor offerings.
THE GREAT OAK STEAKHOUSE
Where: Pechanga Resort Casino, 745000 Pechanga Parkway, Temecula
Hours: 5-10 p.m. SundaysThursdays, 5-11 p.m. FridaysSaturdays. Reservations recommended. Bar hours are 3-10 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays, 3-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays. For more information: 909425-4889, pechanga.com
pearl onions and roasted potatoes; and Scottish salmon with seasonal vegetables and trout roe.
Part of the expansion of the steakhouse is the lounge bar, which seats about 40, including 14 bar-side seats and 10 tables that can accommodate up to four each. The lounge has two TVs behind its bar for sporting events and opens daily at 3 p.m., two hours before the steakhouse and Paisano’s next door. Hungry guests can order food earlier off the bar menu, which includes smashed sliders ($24), shrimp and scallop toast ($22) and wagyu and tuna belly ($35).
Pechanga added its mixologist, Nicholas Dukes, and sommelier, Zachary Abeyta, to its team along with the new space. They are both working to expand the wine and liquor options throughout the casino, including offerings at the steakhouse.
The bar includes local and international selections, and the higher the shelf, the more rare and expensive. Some liquor bottles run up to $7,000, but guests can purchase single glass pours. A column dedicated to the bar’s whiskey selection pays homage to the liquor by making a variety of old-school cocktails using whiskey from Mexico, Japan or Northern Ireland, each around $18.
Dukes said his approach to mixing cocktails involves incorporating fresh juices, dehydrated teas for in-house syrups and local ingredients that move away from the average club cocktails and into more signature territory.
The lounge also has exclusive cocktails for $16 such as the Great Oak Martini, made with Chopin vodka, Hendrick’s gin, Lillet Blanc, cucumber, basil and Meyer lemon; the Royal 75, made with Empress 1908 Gin, butterfly pea flower, local honey, Meyer lemon and Champagne; and El Draque Noir, made with Ron Zacapa No. 23 Rum, mint, blackberries, demerara and lime.
“Mixology is just a fun word for a bartender who’s really good at trivia,” Dukes said. “It’s facts, understanding origins and spirits, how they meld together, how they pair with food and how to present it to a guest based on their preference.”
Abeyta said he’s building a wine list that just added over 150 new vintages to the property with selections that highlight California’s wineries but also spotlight up-and-coming regions like South Africa and Chile. The wine list at the steakhouse is extensive, including several sauvignon blancs, cabernet sauvignons, merlots, pinot noirs and more. Like the liquor served at the bar, some wines from specialty brands such as Silver Oak, Caymus and Duckhorn can be purchased by the glass.
“We’re trying to make it a little more modern but also keep it traditional,” Abeyta said. “It’s really good for maybe someone dining by themselves who wants to have a good glass of wine, but they want to avoid ordering the bottle, or a couple who comes to enjoy a glass with our food. It’s nice to have a really solid glass of wine that is of good quality and not worry about the rest of the bottle.”
With the combination of fine-dining dishes and rare selections of liquor and wine, the team at the Great Oak Steakhouse is hoping to deliver big for everyone visiting the property in the long term.
“The program that we’re trying to build here is creating something that people are not hesitant or intimidated by and where it’s welcoming and enjoyable,” Dukes said.