Giuliani was booed by fans when his name was mentioned midgame at Yankee StadiumGETTY IMAGES
Former N.Y. Mayor RUDY GIULIANI spent his 74th birthday watching Astros-Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Monday, and was booed by fans when his name was "mentioned midgame." Yankees President RANDY LEVINE, who was Giuliani's Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, said Giuliani "didn't ask" to have his name mentioned. Levine also said there were "just as many cheers as there were boos." Levine: "You could hear the boos more because they're louder than the cheers." He added Giuliani has "been in a lot more difficult situations than Yankee Stadium" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/31).
EASY BREEZY: Saints QB DREW BREES won an auction for a 1930s Purdue jersey "believed to have been worn" by JOHN WOODEN. Brees is loaning the jersey to Purdue and said it "will reside in the halls of Mackey Arena forever." The jersey's auction price was $264,000 (Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER, 5/30). Meanwhile, the Brees Dream Foundation donated $200,000 to Benjamin Franklin High School in New Orleans. The Saints, in concert with the NFL, matched that $200,000 donation (NOLA.com, 5/30).
ALONG FOR THE RIDE: Booster Juice Founder, President & CEO DALE WISHEWAN, a Golden Knights investor, said of the team's run to the Stanley Cup Final, "You couldn't script this story if you tried and to be a very small part of it is beyond anybody's expectations. We (minority owners) know what our role is and that's to stay out of the way." Other investors include Mets LF JOSE BAUTISTA, former NHLers MARK RECCHI and ALEXEI YASHIN, and model CAROL ALT (EDMONTON SUN, 5/31).
HEADED TO COURT: JEWEL UPSHAW, the mother of late G League Grand Rapids Drive G ZEKE UPSHAW, who collapsed during a game and later died, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the NBA, the Pistons, SSJ Group (investors who handle the Drive's marketing and community relations) and the DeltaPlex Arena. The lawsuit said that for "several minutes after Upshaw went down, video showed a lack of life-saving measures being taken" (MLIVE.com, 5/30).
ON THE BIG SCREEN: SYLVESTER STALLONE is teaming up with MGM to produce a movie about late boxer JACK JOHNSON. The film will launch Stallone's Balboa Productions (VARIETY.com, 5/30)....Paramount has “picked up a sci-fi action comedy pitch” from Pistons F BLAKE GRIFFIN and Panthers C RYAN KALIL’s Mortal Media. Plot details “are being kept under wraps, but the project is shaping up to be the first original feature being developed" by the group (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 5/29)....KEVIN DURANT’s Thirty Five Media will executive produce “Q BALL” for Fox Sports Films’ Sports Emmy-nominated “MAGNIFY” documentary series. The film chronicles lives of incarcerated basketball players at the San Quentin State Prison (Fox).
NAMES: NBA Exec VP & CMO PAM EL, Twitter Global VP & Head of Content Partnerships KAY MADATI, House of Highlights Founder OMAR RAJA and Barstool Sports CEO ERIKA NARDINI were among those named to Fast Company’s list of “The Most Creative People in Business 2018” (FASTCOMPANY.com, 5/30)....The Mets have hired MARYSOL CASTRO and COLIN COSELL as their new PA announcers for the ’18 season. Castro becomes the “first female PA announcer in team history.” Cosell, the grandson of HOWARD COSELL, comes to the Mets after “winning a trio of Emmy awards as a sports broadcaster for MSG Varsity” (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 5/30)....The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High football team yesterday “watched the Dolphins go through offseason team activities before meeting the pros.” They also met with Dolphins Vice Chair, President & CEO TOM GARFINKEL and were “given a tour of the training facility” (PALMBEACHPOST.com, 5/30). ...The Mall of Georgia-area project backed by Falcons WR JULIO JONES, known as Ariston, will be “significantly scaled back from the original vision presented” in ’16 (AJC.com, 5/30)....Gold Medal-winning U.S. gymnast ALY RAISMAN is “making a cameo in a new musical collaboration” between MAROON 5 and CARDI B (BOSTONHERALD.com, 5/31)....Actress JOSIE LOREN and MATT LEINART were married last weekend in downtown Asheville, N.C. (CHARLOTTEOBSERVER.com, 5/30)....Former U.S. Secretary of State HENRY KISSINGER was spotted in a “luxury suite at Yankee Stadium” watching yesterday’s game against the Astros (POLITICO.com, 5/30)....KOBE BRYANT yesterday visited with the Patriots and “took pictures with players” (BOSTONGLOBE.com, 5/30).
IN MEMORY: Former Indianapolis Motor Speedway Medical Services Dir DR. HENRY BOCK died at the age of 81. Bock served as Medical Services Dir for IMS from ’82-’06, and he “held the same post in IndyCar” from ’96-’06 (INDYSTAR.com, 5/30).
