Sports & Entertainment Spotlight

Welcome back to the Spotlight! Spring is in the air (depending on what day you check the weather), so this past Wednesday marked the official start of the Major League Baseball season, with just two teams (the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants) leading off with a primetime game on Opening Night, as a prelude to the broader, more familiar Opening Day with twenty-two additional teams taking the field for the first time. The Opening Night game was notable for its featuring the ABS Challenge System, allowing catchers, pitchers and hitters the opportunity to elect to challenge an umpire’s ball/strike calls by using automated technology. The broadcast of the Opening Night game was also notable for its being exclusively offered by a streaming service (Netflix), signaling a similar embrace of technology by the MLB, while also leaving baseball fans wanting an opportunity to challenge that call. Indeed, whatever the broadcast was, it was not for true baseball fans—evidenced in part by a lack of execution in a difficult-to-read, vanishing scorebug and missed in-game action. At times, it seemed like the broadcast was trying to bring a Savannah Bananas-type (bananified?) experience to viewers. 

Perhaps that was the point, as Netflix’s stated intention was to bring in a new audience for MLB action. I guess that was the explanation for the over-the-top (I will stipulate to the American flag effect created by drones that emitted red, white and blue smoke being extremely cool), at times head-scratching show for pregame introductions that featured, amongst other things, dancing on New York City-style taxicabs while the Yankees took the field and the Giants emerging from San Francisco-style trolley cars. Notably that show ended up delaying the start of the baseball game, upsetting an audience that was already up in arms about needing to have a subscription to watch what would have ordinarily been a nationally-televised game. So all in all, it seemed misguided to bananify, because Savannah Bananas games are about everything other than the game and Major League games are about the game (the end result of the game, by the way, (a 7-0 Yankees victory) was much appreciated by this writer, even if the background noise was not.

• • New York Yankees First Baseman Ben Rice lands a tailor-made endorsement deal with Ben’s Original Rice. Hopefully those carbs are put to good use.
  • Composer Lebohang Morake sues comedian Learnmore Jonasi for over $27 million over a now viral clip in which Jonasi mistranslated the opening chant to Morake’s “The Circle of Life” from “The Lion King.” Jonasi has launched a GoFundMe campaign to finance his defense—presumably so he can hire the high-powered litigators at Timon & Pumba LLP.
  • OpenAI pulls the plug on its AI video app Sora as Disney steps away from its $1 billion deal with OpenAI that included the licensing of Disney characters in Sora. Not even true love’s kiss seems to be enough to salvage the deal.

Welcome back to the Spotlight! The first round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament affectionately (and trademark-ly) known as “March Madness” officially tipped off yesterday at 12:15pm Eastern Time. Within about three hours’ time, madness turned to sadness as my alma mater University of Wisconsin Badgers were eliminated by a University seemingly named after a Snoop Dogg free throw (“High Point”). But maybe that is for the best. For one thing, the world offers more than enough madness the other 11 months of the year. For another thing, what I have lost in bracket pool entry fees, pride in watching my alma mater’s basketball program and yes, even joy, I have made up in spades with gained productivity and mental bandwidth. I need not concern myself with the outcome of any of the remaining games. So, for those out there considering hiring sports and entertainment attorneys who graduated from Duke, Michigan, Florida, Arizona or any of the other schools still participating in the tournament, might I humbly suggest a humbled Wisconsin alum?

• • At the Oscars, Michael B. Jordan took home the top award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture for his role in “Sinners.” This accomplishment is all the more impressive given that there was no Best Supporting Actor award for Scottie Pippen.
  • Jay-Z announces two back-to-back nights of performances at Yankee Stadium to celebrate the 30th and 25th anniversaries of his iconic albums “Reasonable Doubt” and “The Blueprint,” respectively. This makes me feel so old that I can’t figure out whether to try to get tickets or stay home and watch re-runs of “Matlock.”
  • Phenom starting pitcher Cam Schlittler, who calls Yankee Stadium “home,” was sent a humane insect removal tool by PETA after reports of his calling security to have a spider removed from his locker. Creative, but unless the spider starts weaving webs that say “Radiant Pitch,” I think the real play would be in an endorsement deal with Raid.

Welcome back to the Spotlight! If you’ve had bad luck up to this point on this Friday the 13th, then carefully set down your mirror, throw some salt over your shoulder, step over that crack and let this week’s edition be the rune that reverses the magical curse. This past week, a reversal of magic incidentally puts you in good company with the likes of the NBA. Indeed, after public outcry surrounding the Atlanta Hawks’ decision to pay homage to the southern city’s well-known (not to me, I promise) strip club, “Magic City” during an upcoming home game against the Orlando Magic, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has stepped in to put the kibosh on the idea. Although fans who purchased tickets for the game in hopes of celebrating the establishment may seek refunds (presumably in $1 bills), I must say it is refreshing for common sense to prevail in a world where so much is upside-down. Still, it’s fair to question why anyone thought the promotion would have been a good idea. Atlanta does have other, more wholesome things that it is known for. Even if peaches aren’t in season, you still have a vibrant musical scene, Coca-Cola, the Civil Rights Movement…the list goes on. Enjoying this so far? As luck would have it, there is a bunch more…

• • Years after famously cashing in on their Casamigos Tequila brand in a deal valued at about $1 billion, George Clooney, Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman are venturing into the growing non-alcoholic beer business with a new brand, “Crazy Mountain.” Evidently, they used the tequila money to buy a wagon.
  • An ongoing trial between independent hip hop artist Chancelor Bennett (professionally known as “Chance The Rapper”) and his former manager highlights the risks of working with a manager without a written agreement in place. After all, since friends may later become enemies, it’s best not to leave the financial terms up to chance.
  • TD Garden, the home arena to the Boston Celtics is in a trademark dispute with local cannabis shop, The Boston Garden Dispensary. Whatever the outcome, green is guaranteed to prevail.
  • Netflix is shelling out as much as $600 million to acquire Ben Affleck’s AI filmmaking company, InterPositive. Affleck’s only regret?: his company wasn’t around to salvage “Gigli.”

Welcome back to the Spotlight! I am not sure what’s more amazing – that today marks exactly five years since the Spotlight’s inception or that I have not been shut down yet. Whatever the answer, the amazement pales in comparison to my bemusement that it appears you all forgot once again. According to my sources (Ask Jeeves), the traditional gift for a five-year anniversary is wood. Instead, it appears to be would—as in I would have appreciated a card, flowers, balloons—something to commemorate the occasion. Nevertheless, I will do as I have done for the past five years in this one-sided relationship and bring you this week’s sports and entertainment industry tidbits. In honor of 5 years, I’ll even highlight 5 headlines below.

• • Musician Charlie Puth joins “ethical” AI-powered music platform Moises as Chief Music Officer, emphasizing that artificial intelligence should not be viewed as a replacement to musicians but rather a useful tool to aid in the creative process. He may just be on to something, after all, without AI, he’d just be Chrle.

• • Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s studio, Artists Equity expands its relationship with Netflix, striking a first-look production and distribution agreement, effectively telling a competing streaming service, “how do you like them apples?”

• • Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are looking to duplicate their Wrexham success in Colombia with Colombian soccer club La Equidad. It will be no easy task for two of the hardest working guys in the business, but fortunately they’ll be able fuel their engines with kilos of Colombian co…ffee.

• • Seeking a place at which to kick it during the World Cup (or the NFL postseason), Dallas Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey invests in Dallas area soccer entertainment concept TOCA Social.

• • The Mississippi Legislature passes a bill that would make NIL income exempt from state taxes to decrease the difference what college athletes think they will receive and what they actually get to take home. Savvy move to attract talent by a state that knows a thing or two about deltas.