Summary of Jeff Pearlman's Showtime EPUB

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 Jack Kent Cooke was the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, and he was a snarling bully behind closed doors. However, he was a financial genius when it came to buying struggling radio stations and magazines, and turning them around and selling them for large profits.

#2 In 1966, the Los Angeles Lakers played in the Los Angeles Sports Arena, a seven-year-old facility located near the University of Southern California’s downtown campus. The only other professional organization to regularly use the building was the Los Angeles Blades, a minor league hockey team. In 1967, the Kings made their NHL debut, sharing the Forum with the Lakers.

#3 By the mid- to late 1970s, Cooke was, arguably, the most powerful man in professional sports. He also, secretly, wanted out. In 1977, the City News Service published a piece that revealed Cooke may have to sell some of his interests to meet a community property challenge by his recently divorced wife.

#4 The owner of the Los Angeles Strings, Jerry Buss, was asked to move his team to the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena by Claire Rothman. He agreed, and the two began speaking semiregularly. They were an odd couple, with Buss wearing denim jeans and a rumpled western shirt unbuttoned from the chest up.