| | The Daily Insider
Morning News & Headlines
Wednesday, September 4, 2002
9:00am ET | |
| |
| • | No Longer The Ice Palace; Lightning Join Corporate Ranks |
| • | Return Of Infield Tote Board To Highlight Start Of Pimlico Meet |
| • | CFL Argos Schedule News Conference Today To Announce Significant Event |
| • | Will Media Rights Dispute Further Delay Start Of Italian Soccer Season? |
| • | TV Cameraperson Dies While Filming Shell's Wonderful World Of Golf |
| • | A Lighter Buzz/In Other News/Laugh Track/TV Monitor/Final Jeopardy! |
TAMPA FACILITY AND LOCAL NEWSPAPER INK NAMING RIGHTS DEAL
Palace Sports & Entertainment signed a 12-year naming rights agreement yesterday for the Ice Palace, home of the Lightning, with the St. Petersburg Times. The agreement, which renames the arena the St. Pete Times Forum, takes effect immediately, making the newspaper the first in the nation to place its name on a major sports and entertainment arena or stadium. A second 12-year option is included in the agreement (THE DAILY).
PIMLICO RACE COURSE MEET OPENS WITH RETURN OF TOTE BOARD
The WASHINGTON POST reports that Pimlico Race Course will open its five-week meet today and the track is instituting "at least one development that puts the track on a par with every racing center in the country – the tote board is back." In April, management replaced the tote board with a LED monitor called a Lumitron. Now, both boards will be available to fans, with the tote board showing odds, payoffs, track conditions and minutes to post, while the Lumitron will show the race (WASHINGTON POST, 9/4).
ALI EXPECTED TO BE FOCAL POINT OF NATIONAL INITIATIVE
The CP reports that the CFL Toronto Argonauts have scheduled an 11:00am ET news conference at the Univ. of Toronto to discuss details of a "significant event and national initiative." Muhammad Ali is expected to "be the focal point of the announcement," as Parkinson Society of Canada BOD Chair Meredith Saunderson and Coca-Cola President & CEO Ed Shartar will be in attendance. Ali suffers from Parkinson's disease, and Coca-Cola "has been a longtime sponsor of Ali's" (CP, 9/4).
ITALIAN SOCCER CLUBS SEEK HIGHER PPV FEES FOR HOME GAMES
REUTERS reported that officials of Italian soccer yesterday promised "to clean up their debt-riddled sport as television companies put more cash on the table in a bid to persuade smaller clubs to start the new season." The season has been delayed two weeks to allow teams "to secure more lucrative contracts with pay-per-view stations." Italian Football Federation President Franco Carraro, on the negotiations: "We owe it to our fans to begin the season on the weekend of September 14-15." The clubs and TV companies are over US$42M apart for the rights to cover games (REUTERS, 9/3).
A LIGHTER BUZZ
The L.A. TIMES reports that the ATP BOD and its Player Council "have approved changes designed to strengthen its anti-doping program," which is organized in conjunction with the WTA and ITF. The changes "allow for targeted testing of players who have achieved a certain ranking; testing of players who have missed a period of time because of injury; or testing a player who withdraws late from a tournament" (L.A. TIMES, 9/4).
The K.C. STAR reports that the city's newest charter school, the Derrick Thomas Academy, opened on Tuesday. The school, named for the late Chiefs LB, is the 18th charter school in the metropolitan K.C. area and is run by N.Y.-based Edison Schools Inc. The Derrick Thomas Academy, which offers classes from kindergarten through fifth grade, is sponsored by the Univ. of MO-K.C. (K.C. STAR, 9/4).
The SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER reports that Univ. of WA head football coach Rick Neuheisel signed a deal that could net him as much as $11.272M over six years, which would be "one of the five richest deals in Division 1-A football." The contract contains bonuses if Neuheisel completes the full term of the pact and inks a five-year extension before the current deal expires in '08 (SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, 9/4).
The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that former IN Univ. men's basketball coach Bob Knight has agreed to pay former assistant Ron Felling $25,000 to settle a $1M lawsuit over Felling's dismissal. The deal was filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 9/4).
ATTENDANCE WATCH:
- USA TODAY reports that during the first 18 sessions of the World Basketball Championships, the tournament has averaged just 6,373 fans. The crowds "are less than one-fourth of capacity" of Conseco Fieldhouse and the RCA Dome, which are combining to host the event (USA TODAY, 9/4).
- A crowd "of about 400" celebrated the WNBA Sparks' second consecutive championship at a rally held in a shopping center on Hollywood Boulevard near the Kodak Theatre in L.A. (USA TODAY, 9/4).
TODAY'S EVENTS
Fox Sports will host a 3:30pm ET conference call to preview the '02 NFL season. Fox Sports Chair David Hill, Fox Sports President & Exec Producer Ed Goren and the "Fox NFL Sunday" crew will be available to answer questions (THE DAILY).
Rangers Owner Tom Hicks, 1B Rafael Palmeiro, P Kenny Rogers, C Ivan Rodriguez, SS Alex Rodriguez, OF Kevin Mench and 2B Michael Young are scheduled to visit President Bush at the White House today (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 9/4).
The 76ers mascot, "Hip-Hop," will appear from 10:30-11:30am ET at the Grover Washington Middle School in Philadelphia to welcome students back to school (THE DAILY).
IN OTHER NEWS….
The AP reported that TV cameraperson Brian Blodgett died yesterday "in a forklift accident while taping the Shell's Wonderful World of Golf exhibition between Fred Couples and Mark Calcavecchia" at Santa Lucia Preserve in Carmel, CA. Blodgett, a cameraperson for "all 42 of the Shell's matches since they were revived in 1994," is survived by his wife Kelly (AP, 9/3).
The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that a DE bankruptcy judge has "blocked the sale" of Napster Inc. to Bertelsmann AG, finding that Napster CEO Konrad Hilbers' "ties with both companies had 'tainted' the deal." As a result, Napster faces Chapter 7 bankruptcy (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 9/4).
MULTICHANNEL NEWS reports that "cable stocks were pounded [yesterday], caught up in an overall selloff and lingering investor concerns about the sector." The DJIA fell 355.45 points, or 4.5%, yesterday, while five of the eight "publicly traded MSOs dropped more than $1 each, with Comcast leading the pack, down $2.28 (9.6%), to $21.55" (MULTICHANNEL NEWS, 9/4).
FINAL JEOPARDY QUESTION
Last night's "Final Jeopardy!" category was "September 1984."
"History-making woman whose September 1984 itinerary included speeches in Dallas, Spokane, Syracuse and Youngstown."
LAUGH TRACK
THE MONOLOGUES:
CBS' David Letterman: "Man, I had a lousy weekend. ... I got a call from Serena Williams' father and he said if I call her one more time, he's going to kick my ass. ... I just pray to God that Kelly wins (on Fox's 'American Idol') because if she doesn't, I'm going to get another beating from my bookie. ... Well, we blew it. We waited too long over the weekend. Sweden invaded Iraq" ("The Late Show," CBS, 9/3).
NBC's Jay Leno: "Thank you for coming out on such a hot day. ... I had a guy cut me off in traffic. Instead of saying, 'Go to hell,' he said, 'Go to the valley.' ... It was so hot in Beverly Hills, women were having frozen embryos implanted in them just to keep cool. ... At Burbank Airport, airline pilots were putting down their vodka and drinking Gatorade. ... When it hits 116 degrees, Ted Williams' son charges people $5 to lick his father. ... When it goes to 121 degrees, Mike Tyson sexually harasses 'Eskimo bitches.' ... Former President Bill Clinton has been meeting with CBS about hosting his own syndicated talk show. ... A spokesman said that Clinton is listening to offers, but has not turned anyone down. So it's just like his sex life. ... The good news, there's no baseball strike. ... Would somebody just tell the (N.Y.) Mets? Do they know there's no strike? I think they're still on that slowdown. ... Here in (L.A.), they are going to ban the sale of soft drinks in high schools. ... You don't want the kids hopped up on sugar and caffeine when they're being jammed into overcrowded classrooms, while being shot at by gangbangers on their way to having sex with the teacher. ... Michael Jackson has a new baby boy. No word yet on who the father is. ... USA Today is reporting that Jean Claude Van Damme is the most popular movie star in Afghanistan. ... See, they are hundreds of years behind the times" ("Tonight Show," NBC, 9/3).
LATE NIGHT LAUGHS:
Last night's "Top Ten" was "Top Ten Things Overheard At The Letterman Family Barbecue" ("The Late Show," CBS, 9/3).
| 10) | "How do you get Labor Day off? You only work one hour a day." |
| 9) | "So, are you still doing the Big Ten list?" |
| 8) | "Well, it's no worse than his last hairpiece." |
| 7) | "I wonder if we're going to be on 'Cops' again this year." |
| 6) | "I'm more of a Leno man myself." |
| 5) | "What kind of idiot needs cue cards at a family barbecue?" |
| 4) | "It's awfully smoky – maybe we should move the grill outside." |
| 3) | "Who brought the erotic pastries?" |
| 2) | "I wish we were related to Oprah." |
| 1) | "I have no son." |
Dennis Miller appeared on last night's edition of NBC's "Tonight Show." On leaving "MNF": "The football thing was fun for me. I was in the middle of a maelstrom and I just decided not to pay attention to it because for me, getting hired was a freakish act of nature. I had never gone to a football game. ... I remember the day I heard that John Madden had quit Fox (and) I remember calling Dan Fouts that afternoon and saying, 'Get ready babe, we're getting whacked.' ... I don't have any hard feelings" ("Tonight Show," NBC, 9/3).
ESPN's Jay Mohr: "(Rockets G) Steve Francis was diagnosed with Meniere's Disease. It's a condition where too much fluid builds up in the inner ear causing migraine headaches. That's what was giving Steve Francis headaches. Who knew? I thought it was trying to figure out what (Rockets head coach) Rudy Tomjanovich was saying after a couple of drinks. ... The Miss America pageant has announced that they will have their first black host ever this year and they were immediately corrected when they were told it was Wayne Brady. ... The senior pastor at the world's largest gay church in Dallas is man named Mike Piazza and to avoid any confusion (N.Y. Mets C), Mike Piazza is changing his name to Richard Simmons" ("Mohr Sports," ESPN, 9/3).
TUESDAY NIGHT'S TV MONITOR
ESPN's 11:00pm ET "SportsCenter" led with Rangers-Orioles.
FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER
"Who was Geraldine Ferraro?"
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