Santa Barbara County (CA) Fire Department officials want to talk to MICHAEL JORDAN concerning a criminal arson investigation after a fire near the Rancho San Marcos Golf Course last Saturday where Jordan and “about a dozen friends” were playing. Santa Barbara County Fire Department Captain KEITH CULLOM said, “While we do not believe Mr. Jordan is personally responsible for starting the fire, our investigators have been told that members of his party could have started it, and we would like to speak to Mr. Jordan or his managers to learn more about their group. So far, we are not getting any cooperation from him” (ESPN.com, 8/11).
SUIT AND TIE: A California appeals court reinstated Broncos Owner PAT BOWLEN four months ago as a defendant in a legal dispute with former business partner DIANE RUSSOMANNO. Russomanno claims that a “soured limited partnership controlled by” Bowlen and producer GIANNI RUSSO “led to the rip-off of her idea” for a show in which Bowlen “shared in the profits.” Russomanno, who won a $54M judgment against Russo in ’00, is seeking over $10M from Bowlen (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 8/12)....U.S. District Judge MATTHEW BYRNE JR. denied the Orioles’ motion to dismiss a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by VAN HALEN, which is suing for at least $2M in damages after claiming the Orioles backed out of a concert deal (Mult., 8/12).
FITTY SENT: ESPN’s “SportsCenter” as part of its “50 States 50 Days” visited Arizona Thursday, where Suns CHAIR & CEO JERRY COLANGELO discussed the NHL in Phoenix: “I was responsible for bringing hockey to Arizona when Winnipeg was looking for a new home, and I just wanted to see that this marketplace would have the opportunity to be truly a major market with all four professional teams. ... It’s a tough sell in the hot Southwest” (ESPNews, 8/11).
NAMES: CATHERINE ZETA-JONES and
MICHAEL DOUGLAS will play on opposite teams as part of
THE ALL STAR CUP, a “celebrity version of the Ryder Cup.”
MARK O’MEARA will captain the U.S. team, while
COLIN MONTGOMERIE will captain the European team. Other players on the U.S. side include
SYLVESTER STALLONE,
HALEY JOEL OSMENT,
ROB LOWE and
KENNY G (
ANANOVA.com, 8/10). BMXer
DAVE MIRRA appeared on CBS’ “Late Show” where he talked about extreme sports becoming a part of the Olympics. Mirra: “I believe skateboarding is in for sure and we’re working on BMX right now for 2008.” CBS’ David Letterman asked Mirra, “Do you guys make a lot of money doing this?” Mirra: “You can make great money (with) endorsements. I have a lot of support. The X Games is $50,000 for first. ... There’s great money” (
CBS, 8/11)....
JESSICA CANSECO, ex-wife of
JOSE CANSECO, has written “
JUICY: CONFESSIONS OF A FORMER BASEBALL WIFE,” that hits stores September 6. Canseco’s first book is called, “
JUICED” (
BOSTON HERALD, 8/12).
