The Plain Dealer 05/03/2015 North Coast Sunday, May 3, 2015 | Section C | cleveland.com/living

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN PETKOVIC | THE PLAIN DEALER Nick Kostis’ funny ideas

Top: In 1985, He dreamed of comedy a dreamer named Nick Kostis took a and revived city’s nightlife chance on some laughs. Thirty John Petkovic | [email protected] years later, his Hilarities here have all the years gone? ¶ comedy club at Pickwick & Those vague measures of time Frolic is one seem to fly by in a blink of the of the reasons downtown eye. ¶ Not so with Nick Kostis. Cleveland W is making a ¶ Yes, the owner of the Pickwick & Frolic on comeback. East Fourth Street is conscious of the years. He’s even dedicating the month of May to Right: Chan D’Leer, a them — 30 to be exact, which is how long his longtime Hilarities comedy club has been in existence. performer at Pickwick & ¶ But Kostis’ time is measured by a different Frolic, credits standard. ¶ “Every night, I look at that door and Nick Kostis for instilling the I wonder who’s going to be walking through it,” confidence in he says, standing next to the bar at Pickwick & her to become a showgirl. Frolic on a busy Friday night. see KOSTIS | C5

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Janet H. Cho percent of the company; and self- meetings we were taking, albeit [email protected] made millionaire shark Robert a crazy one.” Herjavec, who countered with “You’re in there a lot longer leveland native Sasha $200,000 and a $100,000 line of than what the episode shows. Koehn and his business credit, in exchange for a 25 per- It’s this wild, made-for-TV kind Cpartner, Erik Schnakenberg, cent stake in the company. of thing where you’re making pitched their Buck Mason made- “It was an enticing offer,” Koehn this major business and life de- in-the-USA line of men’s jeans, admitted via telephone from Ven- cision in front of the cameras in T-shirts and oxford shirts on ice, California. “We both really the blink of an eye,” Koehn said. ABC’s hit TV show “Shark Tank,” like Robert and were excited that “We really wanted to make a received two proposals but said, he came back in with that, but we deal. In that situation you have “No thanks.” were still giving up too much eq- thousands of thoughts, trying Now, a year after their pitch uity for our first round of funding. to evaluate these people that (the show aired April 24), they “We were 8 months old at the you’ve only known for 10 min- say they have zero regrets about time of this filming and were utes and asking yourself, ‘Do I SASHA KOEHN turning down billionaire shark actively looking to raise a seed really want this person as a busi- Cleveland native Sasha Koehn, right, and his business partner, Erik Schnakenberg, pitched Kevin O’Leary, who offered them round of funding. ‘Shark Tank’ ness partner?’” their Buck Mason made-in-the-USA line of men’s jeans, T-shirts and oxford shirts on “Shark $200,000 on the spot, plus a was just another channel for Tank” and got two offers. $100,000 line of credit, for 50 capital on top of several other see BUCK | C6 The Plain Dealer 05/03/2015 Copy Reduced to %d%% from original to fit letter page

Sunday, May 3, 2015 MN The Plain Dealer | cleveland.com C5

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN PETKOVIC | THE PLAIN DEALER Nick Kostis plays greeter and usher at Hilarities. The club, which opened in Cuyahoga Falls in 1985 before moving to Cleveland the following year, is considered one of the top 10 comedy clubs in the country. It has hosted, well, pretty much everyone, from Jerry Seinfeld to Eddie Griffin to Marc Maron, Louis CK, Frank Caliendo and Rita Rudner.

came the brutal sucker punch KOSTIS known as the 2008 recession. “It started in 2007 and lasted from C1 three full years — at least,” says Kostis. “In the beginning, I thought Dressed in his trademark we’re going to beat this and get slacks, white dress shirt and sus- through it, but two months became penders, Kostis strikes an unlikely six months, which became one middle-ground, somehow dove- year, two years and three years.” tailing the mellow congeniality of “I couldn’t just close the place Bing Crosby with Robert DeNiro’s down,” he adds. “This is not about cool player from “Casino.” money to me — it’s about having He doesn’t stand around long. a dream and also having a reputa- Kostis darts over to greet a couple tion, which is worth more to me walking into the restaurant of the than money.” 27,000-square-foot, multilevel en- Dina Kostis recalls the grueling tertainment complex. impact on her father. But he manages to add a “He agonized over his staff and punch line, with his typical what was going to happen to them,” sense of self-deprecating humor: she says. “That was the time when I “Some nights, I wonder if any- came to really admire my dad — he one is going to walk through the showed this tenacity and stamina door. Hey, you never know.” Above left, Pickwick & Frolic, that I’ve never seen in anyone. He We do know this: Nick Kostis the East Fourth Street made up his mind that we aren’t go- will celebrate 10,950 nights in entertainment complex ing to go down and kept fighting” business on May 15. that includes Hilarities, has until things turned around. “My dad lives night by night, al- seen a steady increase in Rick Cassara, former owner of ways in the present,” says his daugh- the profile of its restaurant John Q’s Steakhouse, recalls those ter and Pickwick general manager business thanks to a retooled dire days in the economy, and the Dina Kostis. “And he’s spent every menu that emphasizes toll they took on Kostis. night for the last 30 years doing it – certified Angus beef and “I was struck that he never lost because this is his home away from pizzas. his sense of humor,” says Cassara, home, his baby, his dream.” who went to work for Kostis after Kostis, 72, is a self-diagnosed Above right, Nick Kostis closing the landmark restaurant dreamer, but the rarest kind: He jump-started the Warehouse two years ago. personifies the line by American District rebuilding boom in Actually, adds Kostis, it made poet and short-story writer Del- 1986 by opening Hilarities on him even funnier. more Schwartz: “In dreams begin West Sixth Street. It became “I had to laugh,” says Kostis. responsibilities.” a magnet for comedy fans all “What else are you going to do “I believe in magic, in enter- across the area, coming out to when there’s no one coming taining and elevating people and see such acts as Jerry Seinfeld. through the door.” making them laugh,” says Kostis, Last weekend, the doors were striding toward Hilarities comedy Left, a wild idea, many said opening and closing constantly. In club, in the basement of Pickwick when they saw the elaborate the last six months — about 180 & Frolic. The show is about to blueprints of Pickwick & nights in Kostis’ world — business start, and Kostis is rushing to do Frolic, which Nick Kostis has been booming at Hilarities what he does whenever there is a labored over for five years. and Pickwick as a whole. show – namely, play usher, greeter “People thought I was nuts. Cassara credits a general eco- and one of the most dynamic ning in Cuyahoga Falls. Located that stands out on its own, to have people around him, and they were like, ‘Humor him, nomic rebound as well as a grow- hosts you’ll ever see. in an old theater, it played host to makes people want to get in their he thinks in groups,” says D’Leer. he’ll go away,’” says Kostis. ing downtown population and Hilarities, which opened in comics such as Tim Allen, Jimmy cars and come to you.” “He was a real pioneer, being the “I heard people telling me I optimism tied to the return of Le- Cuyahoga Falls in 1985 before Walker and Gabe Kaplan. In 2002, he opened Pickwick & first person on East Fourth, but was Pollyannaish and couldn’t Bron James and the landing of the moving to Cleveland the following “I couldn’t believe that here I Frolic on East Fourth Street. No, he always saw it as a street and an believe there was so much Republican National Convention year, is considered one of the Top was able to get all these big names not the current East Fourth, the idea, with a lot of things happen- architectural work involved.” in 2016. He also points to a new- 10 comedy clubs in the country. coming to perform in this small old East Fourth, the left-for-dead ing – and I always felt a sense of found following with younger au- The club has hosted pretty much 300-capacity club in Cuyahoga strip full of wig shops, where the commitment to an idea with Nick.” Hilarities 30th diences that are discovering Pick- everyone, from Jerry Seinfeld Falls,” says Kostis. “I’ll never for- closest thing to fine dining was a A wild idea, many said when Anniversary wick & Frolic for the first time. to Eddie Griffin to Marc Maron, get the closing line of the first Wendy’s on the corner. they saw the elaborate blueprints Kostis is less specific. Louis CK, Tim Allen, Frank Cali- comedian we had there, Dennis I remember Kostis telling me of Pickwick & Frolic, which Kostis Pickwick & Frolic celebrates “I don’t know how to explain endo and Rita Rudner. Wolfberg: ‘I guess this is an ex- about his new project — with the labored over for five years. the 30th anniversary of its Hi- it,” says Kostis. “I think adding Its reputation is stellar, thanks ample of going from the sublime enthusiasm of a child. “People thought I was nuts — larities comedy club through- Rick helped a lot with our food, in no small part to the personal to the ridiculous — or is it the ri- “I want to light this place up they were like, ‘Humor him, he’ll out May. The monthlong cel- which has been receiving a lot of contacts Kostis has built up. diculous to the sublime?’ ” and give it life,” he said at the time, go away,” says Kostis. ebration features the return praise of late.” But tonight is yet another night Dina Kostis provides a differ- staring down East Fourth Street. He came up with the offbeat of the Midnight Martini Show Cleveland comedian Mike Polk in those almost 11,000 nights. And ent take, one that contrasts Nick One problem: The street looked name for the place from Charles on Friday, May 15, and Friday, was sitting at the bar and had his there is a problem: The originally Kostis’ self-deprecating attitude. like a mess of tattered storefronts Dickens’ “The Pickwick Papers.” May 22 (dinner/show), and own idea. scheduled show scratched a week “My dad worked so hard to get and orange barrels. Kostis would The second half came from the Saturday, May 16, and Satur- “The comedy has always done out, leaving Kostis to hustle up a that place going,” says Dina Kostis, not be subdued. The complex cost Frolic Bar, a popular hangout on day, May 30 (show only). It well here, because the reputation replacement. You can sense the ur- who was 13 when the business $4.5 million — built solely with Short Vincent Avenue, the long- includes the murder mystery of the place is a draw as much as gency in him as he darts to the club. started. “My mom used to bring money he raised. gone downtown strip that housed show “Bachelorettes Gone the act performing,” says Polk. But not before he adds: “Hey, I me and my sister to the club and “I like to see places grow,” he says. the legendary restaurant-bar the Homicidal” (Saturdays, May “But people are coming around gotta believe in magic. What else we ate dinner together, in the back, “When I came here, I imagined all Theatrical. 9, 16, 30); and the last staging for the food.” am I going to do?” sitting on beer kegs. Then we’d bus these new things happening.” That’s when Kostis first fell in of “Vegas Burlesque” (Friday, It took a while, thanks to a stigma Well, he could have kept on the tables and do our homework.” In the 12-plus years since Pick- love with Cleveland — during a May 29). Hilarities will host a associated with comedy clubs. working as a child psychologist. “He likes to joke at his own ex- wick opened, East Fourth has family visit, back when he was a variety of comedians through- “Comedy clubs around the The Brooklyn, New York, born- pense, because he never wants to become a premier dining and en- wide-eyed 12-year-old hitting the out the month: Kenny Rog- country are renowned for serv- and-bred Greek-American has al- seem like the smartest guy in the tertainment district featuring res- city for the first time. erson, Carl LaBove and John ing frozen chicken fingers — it’s ways had a wide-eyed fondness for room,” she adds. “He’d rather un- taurants such as Lola, Chinato and “It was 1955. My first time in Caponera (May 8-9); Rocky called comedy food,” says Polk. Manhattan, flashing lights, nightlife derstand people and inspire them Greenhouse Tavern, as well as the Cleveland, and I happened to LaPorte (May 11-12); Kevin Ne- “This place does so many things and a good floor show. But glitz and — and he has so much energy that House of Blues and Corner Alley. walk into the old Roxy Theater,” alon (May 15-16); Bill Bellamy and does them well.” glamour are not supposed to be the he always does.” Kostis has the same attitude says Kostis, referring to the bur- (May 21-24); and Sebastian Kostis pops over to the bar path in an immigrant family — and In 1986, Kostis jump-started toward people, says Chan D’Leer, lesque club on East Ninth Street. Maniscalco (May 28-31). when he sees Polk and does what it wasn’t in Kostis’ family either. the Warehouse District rebuild- who has performed in burlesque “My life would never be the same.” he does so well: smiles, cracks a “I moved to the area in 1971 to ing boom by opening Hilarities on shows and the Vegas-themed Mid- The experience opened his eyes. Pickwick & Frolic, 2035 East joke and welcomes the comedian. work in the Oberlin City Schools, West Sixth Street. For years, the night Martini Show at Pickwick. But he imagined a whole other Fourth St., Cleveland. Within minutes, he is escorting as a counselor,” says Kostis, who comedy club was a lonely destina- “I was doing area theater and world with Pickwick. “It’s like ‘Al- For a complete schedule and a party of regulars out the door holds a master’s degree in counsel- tion when the neighborhood was working at Olive Garden when I ice in Wonderland,’ ” he told The ticket information, and wishing them well. ing from Ohio University. “But then a hotbed for homeless winos, not started at Pickwick,” she says. “Be- Plain Dealer when he opened the go to pickwickandfrolic.com “Hope to see you soon,” says something happened along the way.” hard-partying yuppies. ing a showgirl made me scared and place. “You walk off this drab or call 216-736-4242. Kostis, as he walks away, only Well, a bunch of things. It became a magnet for comedy nervous, and I was a bit apprehen- street and into this fantasy world to turn back around and start By the late 1970s, Kostis was fans all across the area, coming out sive at first.” of comedy, food and magic.” another round of greetings and operating a vending-machine to see acts such as Jerry Seinfeld. She credits Kostis and the envi- Unfortunately, one man’s magic goodbyes with the next party. business, everything from snack Kostis recalls the night in 1988 at ronment he creates with instilling often collides with the world’s real- As they leave, two women machines to Ms. Pac-Man. By Hilarities when Seinfeld received the confidence to go forward. ity – which almost killed the dream. walking down East Fourth wave 1984, he decided to retrofit a ga- a fax informing him that his TV “I just knew that if he’s involved to Kostis. rage he was using for the business show was picked up by NBC. that the show is going to be really e’ve had three real “Are you having a good time?” into a bar – the Little Bar, in the “That’s what I mean by magic,” good,” says D’Leer. “He has no ego “Wtough stretches at he asks, as they nod and smile. Warehouse District. he says. “It happens in many ways.” and is more about building people Pickwick,” says Kostis. To some, Kostis is the Mayor of “People loved to eat there,” he “When I opened Hilarities up around him, because he really “I don’t know how we pulled East Fourth Street. But to those says. “And I got a taste for the en- in 1985, people said there was thinks that you’re only as good as through, but we did, by God.” who know him, he resides in a tertainment business.” nothing happening in the Ware- the people around you.” First there was the East Fourth place called Dreamland, an imag- He was licking his chops by the house District,” he says. “Well, Or neighbors, as she discovered. construction. Then came the con- inary place founded by 10,950 time he had gotten Hilarities run- you have to create something “He’s not a solo artist, he likes struction on Euclid Avenue. Then nights of heart and soul.

© 2015 The Plain Dealer Publishing Co. All rights reserved. The material on this site may not beMay reproduced, 3, 2015 3:26 distributed, pm / Powered transmitted, by TECNAVIA cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of The Plain Dealer Publishing Co.