Alan Singer, a Hollywood studio exec rumored last week to be
pursuing the Blue Jays, said "nothing is happening" in talks to
purchase the team, according to David Israelson of the TORONTO
STAR. Singer is said to be part of an 11-member consortium
headed by Toronto developer Murray Frum that has discussed buying
the Jays from Interbrew SA, the Belgian brewery which wants to
sell the team. But in an interview with the STAR, Singer said
he's not part of the group and "doesn't know others in the
consortium either." Paul Smith, a spokesperson for Labatt
Breweries of Canada, an Interbrew subsidiary, said team ownership
has been talking with the 11-person consortium, but none of the
details of a possible sale are firm -- including whether to sell
the Jays alone or include the CFL Argonauts and the SkyDome, as
well as possible approval from MLB to go further with sale talks.
Frum was asked to head the group made up of business execs from
the Toronto area as well as other parts of Canada. MLB has given
Interbrew a November 15 deadline to sell the team, a limit which
has been extended twice and could be extended again, depending on
how close owners are to a deal and the "market conditions for
selling" (TORONTO STAR, 8/13).
