Richard James, 23, was standing with friends outside the club on Sunset Boulevard just after midnight on Tuesday (13Oct15) when a gunman wearing a hooded sweater opened fire and then ran off.

James was hit in the torso and taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Bosses at The Comedy Store opted not to open the venue on Wednesday (14Oct15) as police officers launched an investigation by interviewing eye witnesses, but the venue will reopen on Thursday.

It is still not clear if the dead man was actually attending a show at the club when he was fatally shot. Comedian Ron White was among those performing just before the incident.