March 24, 2010 at 5:26 p.m.
Filed under:
Sports
Associated Press | Less than two weeks before the start of his first season as owner of the Chicago Cubs, Tom Ricketts says he’s having trouble sleeping.
That might be from some of the sticky issues he’s already had to confront since his family took over the team in October. But those restless nights also stem from the anticipation and excitement of getting the season under way — as both the guy in charge and a longtime fan.
The latest incident in Ricketts’ short tenure stems from the Cubs desire to erect a Toyota sign above the left field bleachers at Wrigley Field, which some critics say would infringe on the historical ambiance of the second-oldest ball park in the majors, built in 1914.
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March 22, 2010 at 5:43 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Food,
Sports
(Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Tribune staff report | Oak Brook-based McDonald’s announced in a statement Monday that golfer Michelle Wie will participate in an ad campaign for the restaurant chain. The campaign will launch in April and be available in five languages.
March 17, 2010 at 4:02 p.m.
Filed under:
Sports
A view from beyond the left field wall at Wrigley Field from the Brixen Ivy Rooftop, 1044 W. Waveland Avenue. (Michael Tercha/ Chicago Tribune) Below, an illustration of the proposed sign. (Cubs rendering)
By Ameet Sachdev | The Chicago Cubs are finalizing a sponsorship agreement with Toyota and
its Chicago area dealers that would display a giant logo of the Japanese
car company over the left-field bleachers.
Wally Hayward, the
team’s chief sales and marketing officer, said negotiations for a
multi-year agreement are ongoing but could be completed by the close of
business Wednesday.
He provided the Chicago Tribune with a rendering of the proposed signage
that shows Toyota’s familiar red logo above the carmaker’s name in
block letters. The entire sign would be backlit.
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March 8, 2010 at 12:23 p.m.
Filed under:
Media,
Sports,
Technology,
Telecommunications
By Phil Rosenthal
| Comcast SportsNet Chicago plans to live stream telecasts of its Chicago Bulls games online, beginning with their Mar. 19 game against Cleveland. But the only people who will have access to the online version of the cable channel’s game coverage will be those who already receive Comcast SportsNet Chicago from a TV provider that has agreed to participate in the network’s authentication process.
Get the full story: Tower Ticker.
Feb. 26, 2010 at 4:40 p.m.
Filed under:
Sports
Associated Press | Add Gatorade to the list of endorsement deals that Tiger Woods has lost.
A spokesperson for the drink, sold by PepsiCo Inc., confirmed late Friday that it had ended its relationship with the golfer.
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Feb. 22, 2010 at 11:39 a.m.
Filed under:
Sports
Karen Stuart takes a picture of her husband Doug and grandson Royce Geymer, 5 months, beside the Ernie Banks statue outside Wrigley Field in August. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
By Kiah Haslett | The Chicago Cubs filled two newly created positions on Monday. Jahaan Blake has been hired as a “Director of Fan Experiences,” and Kevin Saghy has been named a public relations and marketing specialist.
Blake has eight years of major league experience and previously worked for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox. According to the official press release, she will be responsible for the creation and maintenance of the fan experience at Wrigley Field and fan interaction in forums.
Saghy previously worked at Ketchum and was named the Public Relations Society of America’s Chicago 2009
Young Professional of the Year.
Feb. 19, 2010 at 9:44 a.m.
Filed under:
Sports
New Cubs owner Tom Ricketts talks with fans buying tickets Friday at Wrigley Field. (David Pierini/Tribune)
By Fred Mitchell | New Cubs owner Tom Ricketts and other members of his family were on
hand Friday morning in front of Wrigley Field to greet fans as they
waited in line to purchase tickets for the 2010 season.
“We are fans, so it is not hard for us to come out,” said Ricketts, who shook hands and helped hand out coffee to fans in line.
“We are as excited as they are. We had a great off-season and we are ready to get it rolling,” said Ricketts.
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Feb. 13, 2010 at 3:16 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Media,
Sports
From Bloomberg News | Retired NBA star Magic Johnson is in talks to buy Chicago-based Johnson Publishing Co., publisher of Jet and Ebony magazines. No definitive agreement has been reached at this point, a Magic Johnson Enterprises spokesman said.
Read the full story: bloomberg.com
Feb. 12, 2010 at 12:22 p.m.
Filed under:
Housing,
Real estate,
Sports
Feb. 11, 2010 at 1:04 p.m.
Filed under:
Sports
Associated Press | The majority owners of the St. Louis Rams have reached an agreement to
sell the team to an Illinois businessman who doesn’t want to move the
team, according to published reports Thursday.
Both STLtoday.com, the Web site for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and
the online newspaper Globe-Democrat.com cited unidentified sources in
disclosing the pending sale to Shahid Khan of Urbana.
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Feb. 10, 2010 at 10:52 a.m.
Filed under:
Sports
By Paul Sullivan | The Cubs are following the lead of the Red Sox, opening up the space underneath the right-field bleachers for corporate pregame events and for bleacher fans who may want to come down during the game to watch the action on flat-screen TVs.
A pane of one-way glass will separate fans from the right-field batting cage, allowing them to watch batting practice in the area.
Read the full story: chicagotribune.com/sports
Feb. 9, 2010 at 3:25 p.m.
Filed under:
Airlines,
Sports
By Julie Johnsson | Football
fans on some United Airlines flights Sunday evening were left in the
dark as to the Super Bowl’s outcome after dispatchers refused to share
game updates with pilots.
Pilots were angered by the black-out of a football game that drew
record audiences, the result of an apparent communications break down
within United. But the incident also highlighted the increased
sensitivity over distractions to airline workers performing critical
functions, experts said.
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Feb. 1, 2010 at 7:20 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Media,
Sports
Tribune newspapers | On Monday, CBS executives said they had finished selling commercial time for the NFL championship game between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts. Despite the weak economy, CBS is charging $2.5 million to more than $3 million for each 30-second spot, about the same amount that NBC collected a year ago.
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Jan. 21, 2010 at 8:59 a.m.
Filed under:
Real estate,
Sports
By Bob Goldsborough | Former Chicago Bears quarterback Rex Grossman has taken a major loss on the sale of his 36th-floor condominium unit in Chicago’s Trump International Hotel & Tower, unloading it for $2 million.
Now calling plays for the Houston Texans, Grossman, 29, closed on the sale of the 3,437-square-foot unit on Wednesday. The buyer is not yet identified in public records.
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