A Havas Sports & Entertainment study conducted in September revealed that 51% of Great Britain believes the London Games made the country a better place. The study found that the two most recognized sponsors were McDonald's (55%) and Coca-Cola (52%), which were at the top all the way through the study beginning in March '11 (Havas).
LET’S BE FRANK: The GLOBE & MAIL’s Greg Keenan reports Magna Int'l Honorary Chair & Dir FRANK STRONACH is “stepping down from the board of directors of the company he founded in 1957.” Stronach said that he is “too busy starting a new political party in Austria and getting his latest venture -- a chain of steakhouses serving organic beef -- up and running to remain on the board of a company that is on track to surpass $30-billion (U.S.) in sales this year for the first time” (GLOBE & MAIL, 11/9).
THE TRIBE HAS SPOKEN: Former MLBer JEFF KENT was voted off of “Survivor: Philippines” on Wednesday night. Only one contestant recognized Kent “as a former baseball player.” Kent said, “Part of the reason I did the show was to pull up the shades and let people see what I’m really like. I was only antisocial in baseball because of having to deal with jerks like you.” Kent ends the show with a 23-second rant, saying, “You know what pisses me off is that I think I’ve made about 60 million dollars playing baseball and I want this frickin’ million dollars in this game and it’s not even a million bucks it’s 600 grand by the time OBAMA takes it” (L.A. TIMES, 11/9).
NAMES: The U.S. Sports Academy awarded golfer ERIK COMPTON its Babe Didrikson Zaharias Courage Award this year (PGA Tour)….Late Baseball HOFer GARY CARTER’s Harley Davidson motorcycle will be auctioned to benefit charity at the Steiner Sports “Perfect 25th Anniversary Auction.” The auction also includes Baseball HOFer DON LARSEN’s perfect game uniform and ESPN college basketball analyst BOB KNIGHT’s NCAA championship rings (Steiner Sports)….Patriots Owner ROBERT KRAFT and team players via iPad “chatted with NASA astronaut SUNITA WILLIAMS,” a “loyal Patriots fan” who is currently aboard the Int'l Space Station (CSNNE.com, 11/8)….Knicks F CARMELO ANTHONY on Thursday “went back to the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, one of many areas hit hard by last week’s hurricane, to hand out boxes of food and housing supplies to those in need” (ESPNNY.com, 11/8)….Main Events announced that it has signed former heavyweight title boxer EDDIE CHAMBERS to a promotional agreement and that Chambers “would move down to cruiserweight” (SI.com, 11/7)….Celtics G RAJON RONDO on Election Day visited Burke High School in Dorchester, Mass., and the visit “took students and school officials by surprise” and was “just to connect with kids” (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/8)….Bluewater Productions included Nets Owner MIKHAIL PROKHOROV in a comic book series (NORTHJERSEY.com, 11/8).
