Morning Buzz, July 8, 2004

BANK OF AMERICA BECOMES OFFICIAL BANK OF MLB IN FIVE-YEAR DEAL

The N.Y. TIMES reports that Bank of America today will detail a five-year MLB sponsorship making the company the official bank of MLB. The Octagon-negotiated deal, which is believed to be worth $90-100M over its life, includes co-branded advertising, signage at MLB ballparks and “newly sponsored player-of-the-week segments, which have been around in unsponsored form for more than 25 years. Bank of America will also sponsor an 18-wheel truck carrying baseball exhibits and interactive displays around the country this summer” (N.Y. TIMES, 7/8).

LIONS PLANNING UPGRADES AROUND FORD FIELD FOR ’06 SUPER BOWL

The DETROIT NEWS reports that the Lions and real estate development firm Etkin Equities today will announce an agreement to build a $40M office building and parking deck adjacent to Ford Field. Additionally, an “upscale hotel offering 130-200 rooms is in the works for the former Hudson’s warehouse attached to Ford Field.” Lions COO Tom Lewand: “We’d like to get both projects completed in time for the 2006 Super Bowl.” The office building will house nearly 400 employees from PricewaterhouseCoopers (DETROIT NEWS, 7/8).

BUBBLICIOUS LAUNCHING LEBRON CAMPAIGN

Cadbury Adams USA today will launch a print and online ad campaign, via J. Walter Thompson, N.Y., for its Bubblicious brand featuring Cavaliers G LeBron James during an 11:00am ET event in Times Square. James’ endorsement is the first pro-athlete endorsement deal for Bubblicious, and the campaign is Bubblicious’ first in more than seven years. The campaign features new packaging, graphics, events, promotions, contests and a relaunched Web site (Bubblicious).

SALE OF NETS TO BRUCE RATNER TO BE COMPLETED BY JULY 16

The Bergen RECORD reports that current Nets owners “have been asked to return signed documents to YankeeNets President Ed Stier by today, in order to ensure that the transfer of ownership” to Bruce Ratner’s Brooklyn Basketball group is completed by July 16. Approval from the NBA BOG is “expected to be a formality” (Bergen RECORD, 7/8).

CHURCHILL DOWNS EXPANDS ELLIS PARK RACE MEET BY 13 DATES

The Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL reports that Ellis Park begins its 81^st Summer meet today with its Churchill Downs ownership “trying a different tactic – a six-day race week – to survive in an increasingly competitive environment. With the extra day and the way the calendar breaks this year, Ellis will go from a 41-date meet in 2003 to 54 this year. Other than Saratoga’s and Del Mar’s elite meets, the trend has been away from six-day race weeks” (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 7/8).

MORNING BRIEFS

Japanese Baseball League owners have rejected MLB’s World Cup of Baseball concept, in which MLB and the MLBPA would be in charge of the tournament (AP, 7/8).

The Bergen RECORD reports that NFL Giants execs “seriously are considering whether to build a $600[M] replacement for Giants Stadium” within a few hundred yards of the current stadium. Giants VP John Mara: “We’re months away from making any decision” (Bergen RECORD, 7/8).

The AP reports that though key Athens Olympics construction projects have yet to be completed, IOC Coordination Commission Chair Denis Oswald “expects all problems to be resolved before the Athens Olympics begin in five weeks” (AP, 7/8).

REUTERS reported that the Capitals will have to pay at least $2M to Russian hockey team Dynamo in order to have No. 1 pick Alexander Ovechkin join the NHL team, as an agreement between the IIHF and the NHL regarding player transfer fees has expired (REUTERS, 7/7).

The WASHINGTON TIMES reports that Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich yesterday “demanded that House Speaker Michael Busch take his ‘foot off the brake’ in the slots debate and allow a floor vote on the issue” (WASHINGTON TIMES, 7/8).

The AP reported that media groups, including the AP, L.A. Times, Denver Post, CBS, Fox News and ESPN, yesterday asked the Colorado Supreme Court to “clear the way for publication of closed-door hearing details in the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case, saying fair trial and privacy rights don’t trump the First Amendment” (AP, 7/7).

Muhammad Ali will throw out the first pitch at Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game at Minute Maid Park (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7/8).

USA TODAY reports that Showtime “is in talks with heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko about an Oct. 2 fight,” which would compete with HBO PPV’s Felix Trinidad-Ricardo Mayorga bout (USA TODAY, 7/8).

ATTENDANCE WATCH:

• The L.A. TIMES reports that a crowd of 7,781 watched Michael Phelps break his own world record for the 400 individual medley yesterday in 4 minutes 8.41 seconds at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials at the Charter All Digital Aquatic Centre in Long Beach (L.A. TIMES, 7/8).

A LIGHTER BUZZ

The N.Y. POST’s Page Six reports that Dennis Rodman yesterday ran with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. Rodman’s agent, Darren Prince, said that he “decided to run after receiving an invitation from goldenpalace.com to run and raise money for multiple sclerosis” (N.Y. POST, 7/8).

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
Philadelphia Daily News	Newsday

TODAY’S EVENTS

Construction workers for the NFL Cardinals’ new stadium in Glendale will “start setting precast concrete seating platforms on stair-stepped rakers high in the northeastern quadrant of the stadium’s upper bowl, a process that will further define the stadium” (AZ REPUBLIC, 6/21).

USA Basketball will hold a 3:00pm ET conference call to announce the ’04 USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team. USA Basketball President Tom Jernstedt, USA Basketball Chair & NBA VP/Basketball Operations Stu Jackson, U.S. coach Larry Brown and select team members will participate.

The UHL will announce K.C. as its latest expansion city in a 12:30pm ET news conference at Hotel Philips in K.C. Expansion franchise Owner Steven Franke and President & GM Richard Adler will attend (K.C. STAR, 7/8).

Hawks/Thrashers President & CEO Bernie Mullin and Hawks GM Billy Knight will introduce Pistons assistant coach Mike Woodson as the franchise’s new head coach during a 3:00pm ET news conference at Philips Arena.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball HOF will salute Bill Cosby in a 1:00pm ET ceremony. Cosby signed a contract in ’72 with the Harlem Globetrotters that pays him $1 annually (USA TODAY, 7/8).

The Int’l Tennis HOF will host the Angela Moore Fashion Show & Champagne Breakfast from 9:00-11:00am ET prior to the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, RI.

IN OTHER NEWS….

MULTICHANNEL NEWS reported that despite protests, Nielsen Media Research “plans to not only proceed with its controversial launch of ‘Local People Meters’ [today in L.A.], but to also roll them out” August 5 in Chicago and September 30 in S.F. (MULTICHANNEL.com, 7/7). The L.A. TIMES notes that supporters believe the system is “more accurate and is widely expected to show lower ratings for some programs aired by broadcast stations while boosting numbers for some lower-profile cable offerings” (L.A. TIMES, 7/8).

FINAL JEOPARDY!

Friday night's "Final Jeopardy!" category was "Writers."

“Born in 1564, he was employed by Elizabeth I’s Secretary of State to uncover Catholic plots against her reign.”

LAUGH TRACK

THE MONOLOGUES:

NBC’s Jay Leno: “Have you all been following the trial of Saddam Hussein? Well in an angry bit of testimony, Saddam claimed that he is the real president of his country, and denounced George Bush as nothing more than a criminal. No, I’m sorry. That was Al Gore. … Today the Bush administration announced that gas prices have fallen for the sixth week in a row, and we can expect a continued downward trend until, I don’t know, maybe election day? … Well good news for John Edwards. It’s been 24 hours, and John Kerry still hasn’t changed his mind, so it looks like it’s going to hold. As you know, John Kerry has chosen John Edwards as his Vice Presidential candidate, and you remember because of the tough Presidential primaries, you know how nasty they were to each other, there was talk whether there’d be a personality conflict between Edwards and Kerry. Fortunately Kerry doesn’t have a personality, so there was no conflict” (“The Tonight Show,” NBC, 7/7).

LAST NIGHT’S TV MONITOR

FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER

“Who was Christopher Marlowe?”

Ken Jennings continued his “Jeopardy” streak last night with his 26^th consecutive victory, bringing his total earnings on the show to $828,960.

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