| | The Daily Insider
Morning News & Headlines
Thursday, April 3, 2003
9:00am ET | |
| |
| • | MLS, HDNet To Announce Three-Year TV Agreement Today |
| • | Venues, Details For ’04 World Cup Of Hockey To Be Announced Today |
| • | NFLPA Today To Challenge Jets’ Matching Of Redskins’ Offer To Chad Morton |
| • | San Antonio City Council To Discuss Cowboys’ Training Camp Proposal Today |
| • | Slots Machines At Racetracks To Be Proposed In IL Today; MD Plan Rejected |
| • | Morning Briefs/In Other News/Laugh Track/TV Monitor/Final Jeopardy! |
MLS, HDNET TO ANNOUNCE THREE-YEAR TV AGREEMENT TODAY
In an exclusive to The Daily, the SportsBusiness Journal’s Langdon Brockinton reports that MLS Commissioner Don Garber and HDNet President Mark Cuban will announce they have struck a three-year TV agreement at a 12:30pm ET news conference. This season, HDNet will provide live coverage of at least 28 MLS games in high-definition, the first of which will be the April 12 Rapids-Earthquakes match at 9:00pm ET.
MLBPA PLANS TO RESPOND TO ALL-STAR GAME PLAN TODAY
The AP reports that the MLBPA “plans to respond today to management’s plan to give home-field advantage in the World Series to the league that wins the All-Star Game.” The MLBPA Exec Board held a conference call yesterday, but MLBPA Associate General Counsel Gene Orza said that “a majority wasn’t on the call” (AP, 4/3).
AIR CANADA CENTRE TO BE MAJOR SITE FOR WORLD CUP OF HOCKEY
NHL Exec VP& CLO Bill Daly, NHLPA Senior Dir Ted Saskin and Maple Leafs President Ken Dryden will participate in a 12:15pm ET news conference at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto to announce venues, schedule and broadcast details for the ’04 World Cup of Hockey (THE DAILY). The OTTAWA SUN reported that Toronto “has been chosen as the major site for the games” (OTTAWA SUN, 4/2). The Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE reported that the Xcel Energy Center is also “expected to play host to games for the tournament” (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 4/2).
SAN ANTONIO TO CONSIDER ONE-YEAR TRAINING CAMP PROPOSAL
The DALLAS MORNING NEWS reports that the San Antonio City Council today will discuss “a new training camp proposal between the Cowboys” and the city during an executive session. The sides had originally “agreed in principle to a two-year deal for training camp, but officials at the Alamodome scheduled a religious convention in 2004 that will conflict with training camp.” In the new one-year proposal, the Cowboys “would receive $650,000 from the city and retain all proceeds” from a scrimmage against the Texans, while the city will receive all proceeds from parking and concessions (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 4/3).
Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones, on finalizing the deal: “We haven’t ruled anything out. We’re looking at different things in terms of logistics. We view San Antonio as a long-term commitment, even though the original contract was going to be for just two years” (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 4/3).
NFLPA WANTS MORTON’S RIGHTS TO BE AWARDED TO REDSKINS
ESPN.com reported the NFLPA today will officially contend that the Jets “acted improperly in matching a restricted free agent offer sheet” to KR Chad Morton, and that his rights should be awarded to the Redskins. In a hearing with DC-based arbitrator Richard Bloch, the union will claim that the Jets’ failure to match the voidable years aspect of the Redskins’ offer should free Morton to move to the Redskins. NFLPA General Counsel Richard Berthelsen: “We feel it was not a proper match on the offer sheet, because the voidable years were key, and the Jets should have been forced to accept them as part of the contract” (ESPN.com, 4/2).
IL HOUSE GAMING COMMITTEE TO HEAR SLOT MACHINE PROPOSAL
The CHICAGO SUN-TIMES reports that a proposal will be unveiled today at a House Gaming Committee meeting to “allow slot machines at racetracks and significantly boost the number of gambling machines at casinos.” The plan, which was conceived by IL racetrack owners and calls for 5,000 slot machines at the state’s five racetracks, could “pump nearly $400[M] million annually into the state’s treasury and has not been rejected outright by [Gov. Rod Blagojevich], even though he campaigned against expanding gambling” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/3).
Meanwhile, the WASHINGTON POST reports that the MD House Ways & Means Committee yesterday “firmly rejected [Gov. Robert Ehrlich’s] plan to legalize slot machines at racetracks, delivering a near-mortal blow to efforts to expand gambling in the state this year.” While the bill “squeaked through the Senate,” it was defeated 16-5 by the House committee (WASHINGTON POST, 4/3).
ANNIKA SITS DOWN WITH LENO TO DISCUSS THE COLONIAL
LPGAer Annika Sorenstam appeared on last night’s edition of NBC’s “Tonight Show” where she talked about playing in the PGA Tour’s Bank of America Colonial. Sorenstam: “I don’t how good my game is against the guys and that’s why I want to try this out. (My finish) could be anywhere. ... If I finish top ten or top twenty, it will be terrific for the sport. There’s no secret that men are better than women, and I don’t think a lot of people expect anything from me. This is just a one-time deal. I think a lot of people will have an interest to watch to see what happens” ("Tonight Show," NBC, 4/2).
TODAY THE DAILY GOES ONE-ON-ONE WITH…
Which sports exec considers his home delivery of the N.Y. Post a badge of honor and believes there has been enthusiasm for his newest venture because it’s designed to help break an industry model that some feel isn’t working. To find out, see today’s Sports Industrialists section for “THE DAILY Goes One-On-One With...”
MORNING BRIEFS
The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that the LPGA today will officially announce that the ’05 Solheim Cup will be played at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, IN, from September 9-11. While tickets will go on sale in the fall of ’04, corporate sponsorship packages are currently available (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 4/3).
The L.A. TIMES reports that Trust Company of the West Senior VP Philip Propper, the Kings season-ticket holder the team allowed to examine its financial records, issued his report yesterday and said that his review “not only confirms that the franchise is losing millions but suggests the NHL must shut down as many as six teams to survive” (L.A. TIMES, 4/3).
The BOSTON GLOBE reports that the Red Sox today are expected to approve the Double-A Eastern League New Haven Ravens move to Manchester, NH, next season. While the Ravens are an affil of the Blue Jays, the Red Sox own the territorial rights to the NH city (BOSTON GLOBE, 4/3).
The CP reports that the Canadian Soccer Association has “formally submitted its bid to host the 2007 Women’s World Cup” (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 4/3).
Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie today unveils a new advertising campaign, including two 30-second TV spots via Richards Group, Dallas. Richards Group Art Director Jim Baldwin: “We really wanted people to bring the theme … to life by bringing horses to the people. We think we accomplish that by featuring people in their everyday mundane routines being pleasantly surprised by horses” (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 3/29).
The Peabody Awards were distributed last night, and ESPN won an award for “The Complete Angler.” View the complete list of winners (THE DAILY).
The AP reported that Lebanon has pulled out of its weekend Davis Cup tie in Hong Kong for fear of SARS, which has already killed 16 people in Hong Kong (AP, 4/2).
The CHICAGO SUN-TIMES reports that the Czech Republic might “opt out of its first-round (Federation Cup) match against the [U.S.] because of concerns about a possible terrorist attack” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/3).
ATTENDANCE WATCH:
- The PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE reports that a crowd of 15,718 attended last night’s Hurricanes-Penguins game at Mellon Arena for what might have been Penguins C Mario Lemieux’s final home game. The crowd was 1,240 below capacity and “left the team’s final attendance at 604,970, an average of 14,755,” down 895 from last season (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 4/3).
A LIGHTER BUZZ
The K.C. Explorers of World TeamTennis yesterday selected Anna Kournikova with the first overall pick in the WTT Marquee & Roster Player Draft (THE DAILY).
THE BACK PAGES
The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sports covers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:
| | |
| N.Y. Post | N.Y. Daily News |
TODAY’S EVENTS
Foot Locker President & CEO Matthew Serra and CFO &Exec VP Bruce Hartman will Webcast their presentation from the Bank of America Securities Consumer Conference (THE DAILY).
The NJ Sports & Exposition Authority has invited media members for a walkthrough of the recently installed FieldTurf at Giants Stadium at noon ET (THE DAILY).
RadioShack and Fast Signs will join the Stars and Mavericks in a ceremony at 4:00pm CT to erect a street banner near the American Airlines Center commemorating the teams’ playoff runs (THE DAILY).
The Padres have designated their 2:00pm PT game at Qualcomm Stadium versus the Dodgers “Military Opening Day,” and the team will wear camouflage jerseys as a tribute to the active and retired members of the military who reside in the San Diego area (THE DAILY).
IN OTHER NEWS….
News Corp. Chair Rupert Murdoch, on buying DirecTV parent Hughes Electronics: “We’re a viable bidder, but we don’t know yet if we’ll be successful or not” (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 4/3). Satellite Business News Publisher Bob Scherman, on Cablevision’s chances: “Cablevision buying DirecTV is laughable for two reason – financial and regulatory. It’s Rupert or nobody” (NEWSDAY, 4/3).
FAC/Equities analyst Youssef Squali, on AOL’s contracting dial-up subscriber base: “We are estimating they are going to lose 250,000 net subscribers this quarter and a million for much of this year. What is happening at AOL will probably happen at MSN and EarthLink too” (N.Y. POST, 4/3).
The N.Y. TIMES reports that forecasts for a “record upfront market this spring – when the [TV] networks will sell most of their advertising for the 2003-4 season – are being tempered as the war in Iraq enters its third week” (N.Y. TIMES, 4/3).
FINAL JEOPARDY QUESTION
Last night's “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Canadian Geography.”
“One of the only two Canadian provinces that do not border a saltwater ocean or bay.”
LAUGH TRACK
THE MONOLOGUES:
CBS' David Letterman: "Tonight’s program will be one-hour long. One hour in length, that’s 60 minutes, that is if you believe Donald Rumsfeld. ... Are you excited about baseball being back? I love it. I mean the leather, the pine tar, the rosin and that’s just the hot dogs. ... Today is the 150th birthday of the elevator. ... One hundred and fifty years ago they invented the elevator, or as they’re known here in (N.Y.), public restrooms. ... Iraq’s elite Republican Guard is doing so badly now, they’ve changed the name to the Democratic Guard. ... We’re hearing a lot about Saddam Hussein’s sons: Uday and Qusay. ... By the way, that’s pig Latin for Marty and Steve. ... Actually, Saddam Hussein has three sons. He has Uday, he has Qusay and the hot-tempered Sonny. ... Iraqi TV is releasing a lot of old footage of Saddam Hussein to try and prove he’s still alive. It’s the same thing we do with Dick Cheney” ("Late Show," CBS, 4/2).
NBC's Jay Leno: “It was reported today Americans now control 40% of Iraq, which is pretty amazing when you consider Americans don’t even control 40% of L.A. ... The Pentagon says that the Iraqi military is having a tough time trying to figure out where we’re going to attack next since we pulled Geraldo Rivera off the air. ... On Monday, former President George Bush threw out the first pitch at the Cincinnati Reds game, and now Al Jazeera network is reporting that the ball missed the catcher, killed five Iraqi civilians and destroyed a baby milk factory. ... The average person will have walked 100,000 miles in their lifetime. You know this is going to change the way people describe themselves in personal ads. ‘Single white male, 5’ 10”, 185 pounds, 45,000 original miles.’ ... Pete Rose is writing a new autobiography, and he says he’ll tell facts about his life not previously known. In fact, do you know why Pete Rose has that haircut? Lost a bet” ("Tonight Show," NBC, 4/2).
LATE NIGHT LAUGHS:
Last night's "Top Ten" list was "Top Ten Things That Will Get You Kicked Out Of Iraq" ("Late Show," CBS, 4/2).
| 10) “Replacing giant mural of Saddam with a giant mural of you.” |
| 9) “Addressing all the officers as 'Cap'n Crunch.’” |
| 8) “Teaching captured Iraqi soldiers to sing Kenny Rogers ballads.” |
| 7) “Giving precise coordinates of Wolf Blitzer’s beard.” |
| 6) “Closing each report with ‘Bless our enlightened ruler Saddam Hussein. May he reign for 1,000 years.’” |
| 5) “Distributing leaflets telling Iraqi citizens how to save money by dialing 10-10-220.” |
| 4) "Senior officer asks to see you at 0400 hours; you show up 400 hours later." |
| 3) "Your name is Geraldo Rivera." |
| 2) "Your name is Saddam Hussein." |
| 1) "Bringing your videophone into the shower." |
CBS’ Craig Kilborn: “I went out last night and I had a few of these local drinks, the Hurricanes. And I’ve got one question, what could a guy have possibly done to get 4,000 beads. … We’re taking the show on the road, and I hate to be bothered by the fans when we travel, so I have a trick. I check into my hotel room under the name Craig Kilborn and nobody bothers me. … Saddam Hussein has said he will dance in the streets when the Great Satan America dies in Baghdad. I’m sorry that’s Peter Arnett that said that. … More controversy with Geraldo Rivera. The Pentagon wants him out of Iraq, but his wife wants him to stay” (“The Late Late Show,” CBS 4/2)
WEDNESDAY NIGHT’S TV MONITOR
ESPN’s 1:00am ET “SportsCenter” led with Hurricanes-Penguins, followed by the possibility Penguins C Mario Lemieux may retire at the end of the season.
FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER
“What is Alberta or Saskatchewan?”
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