Names In The News
In N.Y., Michael O'Keeffe reported former agent WILLIAM "TANK" BLACK's book, "TANKED!," is scheduled for release today. Black, who was the "key figure in what authorities were calling the biggest case of agent fraud in sports history," served "nearly eight years of an almost 12-year sentence." In the book, Black says that he "was not a villain but a victim, railroaded by federal prosecutors" and the NFLPA (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 9/13). Black, in his first interview "since his release in December 2007," said that it is "tough to be a successful agent without cheating, and he estimates that at least 95[%] of the NFL's most influential agents give money or things of value to college players, an NCAA violation." Black: "They made me the poster boy for everything that's wrong with it" (K.C. STAR, 9/13).
OWNERS IN THE NEWS: Federal regulators have "preliminarily approved a shelf charter" for N.Y.-based SJB Bank, which is led by Dolphins Owner & Related Cos. CEO STEPHEN ROSS, Related Cos. President JEFF BLAU and Exec VP BRUCE BEAL JR. (BIZJOURNALS.com, 9/11)....Former NFL Commissioner PAUL TAGLIABUE sat with NFL Panthers Owner JERRY RICHARDSON in the owner's suite at yesterday's Eagles-Panthers game at Bank of America Stadium (THE DAILY)....EPL club Chelsea Owner ROMAN ABRAMOVICH was "carried to safety after experiencing breathing problems during a failed attempt to ascend" Mt. Kilimanjaro last week. The expedition "had to be cancelled at 15,100 ft" (LONDON TIMES, 9/13).
CARRYING THE TORCH: Suns G STEVE NASH has "confirmed he'll carry the Olympic torch at some point" during the torch relay for the '10 Vancouver Olympics (Vancouver PROVINCE, 9/13). Meanwhile, Nash has "married his fascination with" late Canadian TERRY FOX "and his new interest in filmmaking for a one-hour documentary about his childhood hero that will be shown" on ESPN next spring. The documentary was "given the green light after a single meeting with ESPN's production arm" (GLOBE & MAIL, 9/11).
NAMES: Lionsgate is "in negotiations to pick up domestic rights to 'KNOCKOUT,' a STEVEN SODERBERGH spy thriller that will star" MMA fighter GINA CARANO. Soderbergh has decided to "make the project his next vehicle after his baseball drama 'MONEYBALL' was waylaid in June" (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 9/14)....Penske Racing Owner ROGER PENSKE, Roush Fenway Racing co-Owner JACK ROUSH, former Robert Yates Racing Owner ROBERT YATES and ESPN's RUSTY WALLACE will be inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association's HOF at a ceremony in Concord, North Carolina, on January 16 (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 9/12)....Dick's Sporting Goods Chair & CEO EDWARD STACK last Wednesday "sold 50,000 company shares ... at an average price of $22.4009, for a total of about" $1.1M. Stack also "purchased 50,000 shares at a price of $3 a share," bringing his total to almost 18.8 million shares (Pittsburgh TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 9/12).
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| Kramer Dies At Age Of 88 |
IN MEMORY: Int'l Tennis HOFer JACK KRAMER passed away Saturday at his L.A. home at the age of 88. Kramer, who was "considered by many the most influential person in the game in the last 60 years," was diagnosed in mid-July with soft tissue sarcoma. Kramer in '73 became Exec Dir of the ATP, the "predecessor of today's ATP World Tour." Tennis broadcaster Bud Collins: "From a competitor to an administrator to a broadcaster, Jack Kramer was the most important figure in the history of the game" (L.A. TIMES, 9/14).
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