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CSTV to become the CBS College Sports Network
Currie put 'outrageous' spin on sports
Delaney Joins Fox Sports Radio For Weekends
Hughes Named Illinois Sportscaster of the Year
Griffith hits ground running at Channel 9
Bias seen in silencing 'MNF' sideline reporters
Duluth radio program director, sports announcer leaves local stations
FSN announces coverage of 2008 Marlins seasons
ASU’s Jackson earns state award
The Walt Disney Studios, ESPN, AccessIT Team Up to Bring Fans into Theatres for Live Satellite Streaming of Major College Basketball Event
Andrea Kremer Blasts ESPN for Changing Roles of Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
Setanta Prepared to Consider Offers
'Black Magic' debuts on ESPN

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CSTV to become the CBS College Sports Network
cbssportsline.com

Reorganization of college sports properties will bring the CBS Sports brand to cable television
Network to feature new mix of original programming, including "College Sports Tonight," a news and information hour covering world of collegiate athletics

CBS Sports today announced a comprehensive reorganization of its college sports operations, incorporating the cable, broadcast and online activities of College Sports Television (CSTV) into its world-famous brand.
Effective March 2008, CSTV will become the CBS College Sports Network, bringing the power of the CBS SPORTS name to yet another developing, cross-platform property. In addition, CBS Sports will begin developing proprietary programming for the cable network, and incorporate the growing online activities of CSTV into its industry-leading online operations.

The announcement was made today by Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports, and Tony Petitti, Executive Vice President and Executive Producer, CBS Sports, who will oversee day to day operations of the network.
As part of the reorganization, a new emphasis will be placed on developing original programming for the CBS College Sports Network, drawing on the top on-air and creative talents in the industry. Anchoring the lineup will be "College Sports Tonight", a news and information program examining the day's developments in the world of collegiate sports, and providing previews of upcoming events. The program will air twice a night. "College Sports Tonight" is just one of many new programs to be featured on the CBS College Sports Network. Additional programming will be announced shortly.

"We believe this rebranding will better position our college sports cable network in the competitive world of cable television distribution," said McManus. "It's hard to imagine a cable company going forward that will not welcome the CBS Sports branded channel to its cable systems. In this move, we further build on the value of this important new part of our company."

"The ability to bring unity to the CBS Sports brand across all media -- broadcast network, cable, online and mobile -- is something we know audiences and advertisers will continue to embrace," said Petitti. "CBS College Sports Network will now be easily recognized as an asset of an already proud brand and distributor of the highest quality sports programming."

Additionally, CSTV's existing lineup of online properties will integrate to produce incremental value to CBS' online audience. The combination of CSTV's assets, including Max Preps, the most recognized information site in the high school sports business, with the interactive resources of CBS will create the industry's most coveted collection of sports-related Web sites.

"CSTV has developed a significant online presence within the collegiate sports community, and CBSSports.com has become one of the leading destinations for professional sports coverage," said Jason Kint, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CBSSports.com. "These are two world class operations with complementary audiences, and, taken together, will give CBS Sports the most powerful and varied user profile in all sports media."

"CBS SPORTS has the finest slate of college programming in broadcast television, and that commitment has played out to build one of the most dedicated online audiences for that aspect of our programming," said Petitti. "Adding the power of CSTV -- the CBS College Sports Network -- to the online mix can only help to build that important new audience."

The change to CBS College Sports Network, which will include the full integration of the CBS Sports on air style and graphics, follows the highly successful rebranding of the former CBS Sportsline.com to CBSSports.com last August. In the month following that change, CBSSports.com earned a 27 percent increase in users giving the site the highest growth rate among major sports sites.

CBS Corporation acquired CSTV, the leading digital media company devoted exclusively to college athletics, in January 2006, and last month announced the integration of its business and programming operations into the CBS Sports division. Its many platforms for distribution include CSTV, a national cable network, televising regular-season and championship events for 35 men's and women's college sports; CSTV.com and its network of nearly 215 official athletic sites; CSTV XXL and All Access, broadband services providing live and streaming audio and video of more than 10,000 events annually; as well as satellite television and radio, in-flight entertainment, wireless networks and more. All will now be part of the CBS College Sports Network brand.

CBS Sports, a year-round leader in television sports, broadcasts a portfolio of events on the CBS Television Network, including the NFL's American Football Conference schedule and championship games; "The NFL Today" studio show; college basketball, including regular-season games and the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship; the most comprehensive golf lineup on network television, including the Masters and PGA Championship; the U.S. Open Tennis Championships; SEC college football; CBS Sports Spectacular, including auto racing, skiing, track & field and gymnastics; and NCAA Championships.

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Bill Currie, a legendary Pittsburgh TV sports commentator known for donning brightly colored sports coats adorned with a boutonniere, has died.

Mr. Currie died of a brain hemorrhage on Monday, Feb. 11, 2008, in Yelm, Wash., where he was living with his daughter. He was 85.

"Between the outrageous outfits he wore, the toupee, the flowers in his lapel and his outspokenness, he was quite the character," said retired sportscaster Sam Nover, who worked at WPXI when Mr. Currie was on the air at KDKA from 1971 to the mid-1980s.

"When it came to sportscasting, we were on totally opposite ends of the spectrum," Nover said. "I took it all very seriously, while Bill saw humor in everything.

"Despite our differences, we became friends. He was the first person to call and congratulate me when good things happened in my career, like when I went to work for the network in 1979."

Prior to coming to Pittsburgh, Mr. Currie was the voice of University of North Carolina "Tar Heels" sports teams and was known by the nickname "the Mouth of the South." Most Pittsburghers, however, knew him as "Sweet Ol' Bill."
Steelers announcer Bill Hillgrove, who worked for competitor WTAE, said Mr. Currie's "act" was a key to his success.

"If I ever said anything funny on the air it was by accident," Hillgrove said. "But Bill was very humorous and had that homespun charm. He was entertaining, and people enjoyed that about him."

KDKA anchor Patrice King Brown, who was hosting the variety show "Pittsburgh Today" when Mr. Currie was on the air, recalls visiting the station's news operation, where Mr. Currie agreed to "sit down and talk to me about my interest in moving over to news."

"The first thing he said was: 'Put that notebook away because I'm not going to say anything important,'" King Brown said. "But then he went on to give me some advice that has served me well for the past 30 years. He told me: 'The people in this city will see through a phony in a heartbeat. So be yourself, and you will find your niche.'"
King Brown said Mr. Currie's take on sports was almost a secondary aspect of his appeal.

"At least for me, he was worth watching because he could be so hysterical on the air," she said.
KDKA reporter Mary Robb Jackson, who joined the station in 1980, said Mr. Currie "was the reason a lot of woman started watching sports."

"You just never new what he was going to say, and many times what he did say was just so unbelievable," Robb Jackson said. "I think a lot of women enjoyed watching him and as a result, their interest in sports was piqued."
Robb Jackson said there was more to Mr. Currie than his public persona.

"He was a cutup and liked to dress wild -- what you saw was what you got," she said. "But he also had a great deal of depth. He was an accomplished writer and had a melancholy side that many people never knew about."
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Delaney Joins Fox Sports Radio For Weekends
AllAccess.com

Syndicated "AMERICA TONIGHT" host KATE DELANEY adds duties as host of FOX SPORTS RADIO's "GAME TIME REACT" on SATURDAYS 5-8p PT. DELANEY will continue hosting "AMERICA TONIGHT" on weeknights.

DELANEY's resume includes hosting at CBS Sports WFAN-A/NEW YORK and CBS News-Talk KRLD-A and SUSQUEHANNA Sports KTCK-A (THE TICKET)/DALLAS as well as KUHL-A/SANTA MARIA-SAN LUIS OBISPO

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WGN RADIO's PAT HUGHES NAMED 2007 ILLINOIS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
WGN Radio

WGN Radio/Chicago Cubs play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes has been named the 2007 Illinois Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.

This is Hughes' seventh Sportscaster of the Year honor and his fourth in Illinois, having previously won the award in 1996, 1999, and 2006. Hughes was honored as Wisconsin's Sportscaster of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1992.

Hughes is entering his 13th season with WGN Radio and the Cubs, teaming with Ron Santo on the Cubs Radio Network. The 2008 season will be Hughes' 26th season of broadcasting in Major League Baseball.

The award will be presented during the first weekend of May in Salisbury, North Carolina.
WGN Radio 720 is a 50,000-watt station that reflects what's happening in Chicagoland with a format of talk, news, and sports. The Voice of Chicago for over eighty years, WGN Radio is also the voice of the Chicago Cubs and Northwestern University football and basketball. As Chicago's top rated station, WGN Radio's powerful signal reaches thirty-eight states and Canada and live internet streaming is available worldwide at wgnradio.com.
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Griffith hits ground running at Channel 9
Kansas City Star

Anytime Channel 9 hires a sports reporter, the A conversation inevitably turns toward whether or not that person can be the ultimate successor to Lenny Dawson.

And it’s not always the most comfortable topic for that sports reporter to discuss.

“I can honestly say it never came up during my interview, thankfully,” said Channel 9’s Nick Griffith, who was hired last month.

“Obviously it’s something you think about in terms of your future. You hope that can be the case. But you have to worry about right now. Just do your job right now.”

Griffith, 27, knows that in this town, Dawson’s shoes are pretty big to fill.

“You think?” Griffith said, laughing. “But fortunately, Lenny has been so great to work with. I want to say the word ‘mentor.’ He’s just been fantastic.

“And the way he moves around…he is Lenny the Cool. He still has it.”

Griffith, who came here from Topeka’s ABC affiliate KTKA, also feels fortunate that having worked this close to Kansas City has allowed him to hit the ground running.

“Knowing KU and Kansas State and knowing the people around those programs helps,” he said. “It’s made for a pretty seamless transition. Moving and starting a new job can be a scary process. But it hasn’t been that way for me.”
Griffith, originally from Madison, Ind., is getting his shot at sports anchoring on Friday and Saturday nights. The rest of the time he is…

“Paying some dues and working behind the scenes,” he said. “That’s what you should be doing in this position.”
Best of Tynes

There are reports out of New York that former Chiefs kicker Lawrence Tynes is closing in on a five-year, $7 million deal with the Giants.

That is truly amazing. If Brett Favre doesn’t throw a pick in overtime and instead leads Green Bay to a winning field goal in the NFC title game, Tynes doesn’t get a shot at his game-winner in OT. And because Tynes had missed two short field goals during regulation of that game, he probably would have been cut by the Giants.

Sideline silence?
For those of you fed up with all the senseless sideline “reporting” during football games, cheer up: There is speculation that Michele Tafoya and Suzy Kolber will do much less of it next season on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.

Survey time
Now that the Royals have signed Mike Maroth, it immediately made me think: Which Royals pitcher in recent memory delivered the best room-service fastball?

Albie Lopez? Odalis Perez? Joe Mays? Scott Elarton? Or will it be Maroth?
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Bias seen in silencing 'MNF' sideline reporters
By Michael Hiestand, USA TODAY

NBC's Andrea Kremer is in a shrinking club — NFL sideline reporters — and doesn't like the contraction.

With CBS having already dropped its NFL sideline reports, ESPN this week said that its Monday Night Football sideliners —Suzy Kolber and Michele Tafoya— will continue to go to game sites and likely appear in pregame and postgame coverage — but might not appear at all on games.

Says Kremer, who worked at ESPN for 17 years before joining NBC: "They were doing the role that ESPN asked them to do — more feature-ish stuff — and they were fired for it? If you don't like them in that role, change their role.

Don't humiliate them like that. The way (ESPN) handled it was terrible, just disrespectful. … They treated two professionals in a completely non-professional way."

Responds ESPN's Mike Soltys: "Kolber and Tafoya remain an important part of Monday Night Football."

ESPN deploys various women — such as Pam Ward on football play-by-play and Doris Burke as a men's basketball game analyst — in on-air roles rarely, if ever, staffed by women anywhere else.

But Kremer suggests she's "offended" by ESPN's move because "it sets back women." Referring to herself, Kolber,
Tafoya and Fox sideline reporter Pam Oliver, she says "no one accused the four of us for being on television for our looks or figures. … This isn't five years ago, with eye candy on the sidelines. We established ourselves as reporters, professionals. Now, you've completely minimized that. These women don't have to prove themselves anymore."

Fred Gaudelli, who now produces NBC's Sunday Night Football and worked with Kolber and Tafoya when he produced
Monday Night Football when it was on ABC, suggests this is just ESPN's latest "mismanagement" of MNF. He says
ESPN "could have" kept announcers Al Michaels and John Madden when MNF left ABC. But, he says, "I just don't think the people there making these decisions know how a live event gets put on television. They know studio shows. But the people making the decisions just don't understand live events. They're not equipped to make these decisions. If they left things to (producer) Jay Rothman, they'd be better off." (Rothman replaced Gaudelli as ESPN's NFL game producer, although Gaudelli was offered continued work at ESPN before leaving for NBC.)

With its three-man booth —Ron Jaworski, Tony Kornheiser and Mike Tirico— and the often-used Kolber and Tafoya as, well, celebs dropping by the booth to chat, MNF often got gabby. In her latest column, ESPN ombudsman Le Anne Schreiber writes, "it seems to me that all the complaints I received about MNF have one root: There is too much going on for viewers to feel they are experiencing a game."

But Kremer suggests trimming MNF's chorus shouldn't mean muting Kolber and Tafoya — "don't you think some people would be more interested in hearing what they have to say than some other people on that telecast?" — while Gaudelli puts it this way: "If you ranked MNF's five announcers on ability, Kolber and Tafoya would be in the top three. … But ESPN has a big bet on Kornheiser."

But if NFL TV sideliners are endangered, they don't appear headed for extinction. Fox Sports Chairman David Hill says reporter Oliver and Chris Myers are "absolutely" necessary — "you need up-to-the-moment information that can only be gotten by a journalist who digs" — and he "has no plans to drop either. Nor do I have any plans to put any personalities in the booth."

Fun to see TV sports divisions speak (occasionally) without resorting to bland corporatespeak.
Gophers on Fox: On Sunday, Fox for the first time will plant cameras in the track at a Daytona 500. The four so-called Gopher Cams, says Fox's Hill, will also get their own animated scrambling gopher to pop up onscreen to alert viewers. But don't bother writing protest letters to Fox: Hill hastens to add "no gophers will be harmed in the actual production."

Buried cameras, meant to shoot up, have been put in basketball courts, football fields, baseball diamonds, in ski-jump ramps — and on NASCAR tracks. But Fox's Gopher Cams, located inches inside the yellow boundary line, will be high-def and wired for sound. With a lens less than a half-inch in diameter, they'll have a protective cover rising less than a quarter-inch above the track surface. (Overall, Fox will use at least 77 cameras Sunday, including 24 manned cameras.) Also Sunday, Fox will debut a new theme song, NASCAR Love, whose lyrics include a "love" for "when they're making lots and lots of noise." Romantic.

Spice rack: CBS-owned CSTV, a college-sports channel in about 25 million households, is rechristened with the surprising new name: CBS College Sports Network. Go figure. … Before Roger Clemens was named as a steroid user in the Mitchell Report — a charge he denies — Disney-owned ESPN named him as an "athlete host" — and spokesman in TV ads — for "ESPN The Weekend" fan fest at Walt Disney World, held Feb. 29-March 2. ESPN pulled Clemens' TV ad, but he's still scheduled for the event. Will ESPN's marketing tie-in affect future news coverage of Clemens? Says ESPN's Soltys: "We're a multifaceted company with business relationships with leagues and individuals we cover aggressively every day. The news operation is in no way impacted." … During TNT's NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, its online TNT Overtime on nba.com will offer additional live video shots from cameras on backboards, the overhead scoreboard as well as from the Cable Cam zipping along sidelines. Also new this year: letting users vote online for players that will get cameras focused on them continually.

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Duluth radio program director, sports announcer leaves local stations
Duluth News Tribune

Mark Fleischer has left his job as program director for KRBR-FM 102.5 and KDAL-AM 610.
“Mark Fleischer was let go as part of a budget move by the stations,” Operations Manager Jack Lawson said in an e-mail to the News Tribune.

Fleischer may be best known for doing play-by-play for prep sports on KDAL. Lawson said Sports Director Bruce Ciskie will call the prep playoffs this season. Lawson will handle Fleischer’s programming and other duties at the stations, which are owned by Midwest Communications.

Fleischer has done UMD men’s hockey games on Charter Channel 15 this season. He also broadcast the Minnesota high school hockey tournament for 19 of the past 20 years.

The News Tribune wasn’t able to reach Fleischer on Monday.
Ciskie sent an e-mail to members of the media and others saying KDAL would broadcast the Duluth East vs. Superior game Monday. “That will be the only game this week,” the message said. “We will not be able to cover any other scheduled games.”

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FSN announces coverage of 2008 Marlins seasons
TCPalm.com

SUNRISE — FSN Florida, the regional television home of Florida Marlins baseball, has announced the team’s telecast schedule for the 2008 season, which includes 150 regular season match-ups.
Nine half-hour episodes of FSN’s popular INSIDE THE MARLINS are planned this year and will include player profiles, with rare behind-the-scenes stories and interviews, plus episodes offering inside access to other aspects of the team and its operations.

Providing extensive HD offerings at the regional level, FSN Florida will once again produce regional high-definition (HD) Florida Marlins game telecasts in 2008. Seventy five of the games will be made available in high definition to HD subscribers of participating cable/satellite affiliates including Comcast, Advanced Cable, Knology, Verizon FiOS, Home Town Cable, DIRECTV and DISH Network.

To help fans get ready for the upcoming season, FSN Florida will produce its annual FLORIDA MARLINS SEASON PREVIEW, hosted by Craig Minervini, premiering Monday, March 17, at 2:00pm.

Tommy Hutton, who spent 12 years in the major leagues as a first baseman, returns to the broadcast booth with expert commentary, marking his 12th season as FSN Florida’s Marlins’ television analyst. Rich Waltz returns for his fourth year as play-by-play announcer and Craig Minervini is back for his seventh season as pregame host and in-game reporter. Raúl Striker Jr. and Cookie Rojas return for their sixth season, providing Spanish-language commentary for all home game telecasts via secondary audio program (SAP).

FSN Florida’s regular season coverage begins on Opening Day with MARLINS ON DECK, a live pre-game show on Monday, March 31 at 3:30pm, followed by live game coverage when the Marlins host the New York Mets at 4:00pm.
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SALISBURY — Appalachian State University associate athletics director for public affairs David Jackson has been named the 2007 North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year, the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association announced Friday.

A 2000 ASU graduate, Jackson is in his eighth year as the “Voice of the Mountaineers,” serving as the play-by-play announcer for Appalachian football, men’s basketball and baseball radio broadcasts. He is also the host of ASU’s Appalachian Football Weekly and Mountaineer Basketball with Houston Fancher television shows and oversees Appalachian’s marketing and ticket operations in his role as associate AD.

Jackson joins an elite group of broadcasters that have previously received the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year award. Past winners include CBS college basketball analyst Billy Packer, legendary University of North Carolina play-by-play announcer Woody Durham and the voice of the Carolina Panthers, Mick Mixon.

“On behalf of the entire Appalachian family, I congratulate David for receiving this well-deserved honor,” director of athletics Charlie Cobb said. “In addition to the outstanding job that he does as the ‘Voice of the Mountaineers,’ David does many things behind the scenes everyday that contribute to the unprecedented growth that ASU athletics has experienced over the past several years.”

Jackson will be honored along with the rest of the NSSA’s state and national award winners during the organization’s national convention, May 3-5 in Salisbury. In addition to Jackson, CBS’s Jim Nantz will be honored as the National Sportscaster of the Year and the Boston Globe’s Bob Ryan will receive the National Sportswriter of the Year award.
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MORRISTOWN, N.J., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Walt Disney Studios, ESPN and Access Integrated Technologies, Inc. ("AccessIT") will team up to stream a live HD broadcast of the classic rivalry between the University of Texas and Texas A&M into digital cinema- equipped theatres throughout Texas on February 18, 2008. The game will be shown on a total of 15 screens in Carmike Cinemas, Galaxy Theatres and Rave Motion Pictures cinema locations. Excited fans, unable to be in the Longhorn's sold-out Frank Erwin Center, will be able to cheer together from the equivalent of courtside seats as the teams tip-off.

This is the first time Disney, ESPN and AccessIT have joined forces to provide a live sporting event to paying audiences following tests last year. It is also the first event at which AccessIT's CineLive(TM) technology, providing live 2-D and 3-D streaming of alternative content to theatres, will be employed for a major sports spectacle since the product was announced last fall.

"One of the many reasons we've supported AccessIT's leadership in transitioning the industry to digital cinema is to be able to provide events such as this one to eager audiences," said Chuck Viane, President, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Distribution. "Fans get to enjoy the action of often sold-out games and the camaraderie of others without having to travel great distances, and each one gets the best seat in the house."
"Working with Disney and ESPN to bring this event to geographically- dispersed exhibitors and their patrons is a dramatic example of the shift we anticipate in the industry. With digital cinema, not only can theatergoers enjoy more events like this basketball showdown, but we anticipate large audiences will also enjoy an increasing number of Disney programs like the recently released Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus concert in 3-D," added Bud Mayo, Chairman and CEO of AccessIT.
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Andrea Kremer, who works as the sideline reporter during NBC Sunday Night Football games, isn't happy with the way ESPN treated Suzy Kolber and Michele Tafoya, whose roles on Monday Night Football will apparently be downsized in 2008. Kremer tells USA Today:

"They were doing the role that ESPN asked them to do - more feature-ish stuff - and they were fired for it? If you don't like them in that role, change their role. Don't humiliate them like that. The way (ESPN) handled it was terrible, just disrespectful. ... They treated two professionals in a completely non-professional way." ...

Kremer suggests she's "offended" by ESPN's move because "it sets back women." Referring to herself, Kolber, Tafoya and Fox sideline reporter Pam Oliver, she says "no one accused the four of us for being on television for our looks or figures. ... This isn't five years ago, with eye candy on the sidelines. We established ourselves as reporters, professionals. Now, you've completely minimized that. These women don't have to prove themselves anymore."

It's still not clear what role Kolber and Tafoya will play on Monday Night Football, and ESPN says they'll still be an important part of the broadcast, but it is almost certain that they'll have less time on the air during the games, which means they've been demoted. And that means while they won't say so, they must feel the same way Kremer does.
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Setanta Sports, said recently that it would consider offers that have been made for the company, but it denied the claim that it has started a formal selling process.

At least five UK and US telecommunications, media and financial groups, including BT and ITV have put forward unsolicited approaches to Setanta in recent months, according to investment bankers.

Goldman Sachs, a 20 per cent shareholder in Setanta and its long-term adviser, has not been instructed to begin a formal auction process.

Leonard Ryan and Michael O'Rourke, Setanta's founders and chief executives, told their staff that: "There is frequently speculation of this sort regarding Setanta but we have not put the company up for sale."

They continued: "If we receive offers we will look at them, our adviser and shareholder, Goldman Sachs, will act for us in this regard, and we will let you know of any significant developments if and when they occur."
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ESPN Original Entertainment, in collaboration with Shoot the Moon Productions and award-winning director Dan Klores, has announced plans for ESPN to televise a two-part, four-hour film tentatively titled "Black Magic" about the injustice which defined the civil rights movement in America, as told through the lives of basketball players and coaches who attended Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). Co-produced by basketball legend and Winston-Salem State University graduate Earl "The Pearl" Monroe and former New York Times film critic Elvis Mitchell. The film will be aired on ESPN?on March 16 and 17th in two two-hour long excerpts.

""Black Magic" is an important story that we look forward to telling on all of our platforms," said John Skipper, ESPN executive vice president, content. "It's a living history of sports and culture that invites a broader discussion about race, society and how we think about modern day athletes and sports. It's the kind of project we embrace wholeheartedly. Dan Klores continues to prove his mettle as a filmmaker and his rare ability to reveal what we thought we knew, but turns out we didn't know at all."

"This is a story of injustice, refuge and joy," said Klores, "It's an epic that has not been told." Klores added that Ben Jobe, the 75-year-old retired coach at six HBCUs, and the 15th child of Tennessee sharecroppers, best summarized the film when he said, "I remember when it went from 'Whaddya want?' to 'May I help you?'"

From more than 200 hours of interviews and footage, the film reveals the plight of these players and coaches as a stark but proud one, filled with obstacles at every turn. From separate leagues and facilities, to championship games and titles that never qualified for the history books, all the way to secret games played between blacks and whites in defiance of the law, players and programs at HBCUs not only thrived, but laid the groundwork for the proliferation of the modern athlete. Klores conducted interviews with Willis Reed, Avery Johnson, Ben Wallace, John Chaney, Bob Love, Al Attles, PeeWee Kirkland, Earl Lloyd, Dick Barnett, Woody Sauldsberry, Cleo Hill, Bob Dandridge, Sonny Hill, Perry Wallace, Dave Robbins, Harold Hunter, Miriam Samuels, Charles Oakley, Donnie Walsh, Bobby Cremins, Howie Evans, the widows of coaches Clarence "Big House" Gaines and John McLendon, historians Skip Gates, Cleveland Sellers and Milton Katz, amongst others.

Klores's directing credits include "The Boys of Second Street Park" and "Ring of Fire: the Emile Griffith Story" which both premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In addition, his recent film, "Viva Baseball" captured the 2006 BANFF global award and the Imagen Foundation's 2006 "Best Documentary for TV or Film" award. His feature length documentary, "Crazy Love," to be released on June 1 by Magnolia Films, also was premiered at Sundance. "Crazy Love," the rollicking and disturbing story of an obsessive relationship between a married man and single woman, won the Jury Prize at the Santa Barbara Film Festival.