The third installment of HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant
Gumbel," which airs tonight, features a look at Cowboys Owner
Jerry Jones and his position the marketing of his, and other, NFL
teams. HBO's Frank Deford: "There has never been any owner in
any sport so important, so visible and so controversial, as Jerry
Jones is right now. He is sort of a football combination of Bill
Veeck and George Steinbrenner, combining the power of a cunning
and innovative personality with the power of this extraordinary
franchise." DeFord examines Jones' past, including the work
ethic installed in him as a young child by his father, his
football days at the Univ. of Arkansas, and questionable gas and
oil dealings in Arkansas. As for the NFL, Jones is firm in his
belief that NFL marketing is not sound business. Jones says he
still believes in revenue-sharing to a certain degree, but thinks
teams can make more money for themselves than they are now.
Jones agreed to "unequivocally promise" that if he got a change
in the marketing rules, he would not "attack the existing rules"
on sharing other revenues, such tickets sales and national
television ("Real Sports," HBO, 10/31).
HARD TO BE HUMBLE: The final quite from Jones: "There are
no egos in my life. But fifteen to twenty years ago, I was
wandering around Arkansas. Bill Clinton was wandering around
Arkansas. Who would have thought that one would go on to power
and prestige and fame and the other one end up the President of
the United States?" (HBO, 10/31).
NFL LABOR NEWS: SPORTS ILLUSTRATED's Peter King reports,
"Negotiations between the NFL and its union for a two year
contract extension are heating up. The league wants to redo the
deal through 2001, that would help spur future TV negotiations.
The union wants the minimum veterans' salary to rise from
$178,000 to $250,000. Stay tuned" ("Monday Night Football," ABC,
10/30).
