PAYTON, MJ AND OPRAH NOT SO SWEET ON BUYING THE BEARS

          Walter Payton, Michael Jordan and Oprah Winfrey each
     responded to a Friday report that they were part of a group
     trying to buy the Bears, according to Dan Pompei of the
     CHICAGO SUN-TIMES.  Payton: "I am not looking in the very
     near future to be the owner of a football team. ... I don't
     know how this got started."  Winfrey's Harpo studio issued a
     statement that said, "Oprah is not interested in buying any
     sports team at this time" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 11/15). 
     Jordan: "I've always said I'd never own a team.  I'm going
     to hold true to that, because I can't afford to pay that
     money to all those athletes" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 11/15).