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· September 4,2003 · » · ` T ,,,,,,,,, Mm,
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Dear Alumni, .
As you all know, the Harlem Globetrotters have been around for more than 75
` years. During that time, the Brand Name Harlem Globetrotters in itself has _ _‘ 4
achieved a highly public persona on a worldwide basis. ln recent years, we have » ` `
decided not to feature a particular player and we have very purposely adopted a
» Brand strategy versus a star system strategy. This is not new — for all the great
talent the team has had over the years, except for Marques Haynes, Wilt _
Chamberlain or "Goose†Tatum there wasnt much individual publicity until the
television cartoon era of the ‘70's, which saw the emergence of personalities like .
‘ Meadowlark Lemon and Curly Neal. Because of this, stars like "Sweetwater"
Clifton, “Showboat"Hall, Leon Hilliard, "Twiggy" Sanders, Bobby Miiton,,Hallie ‘
Bryant, Johnny Kline and several other greats were pushed into the background]
ln my opinion, these and several others are bonalide Hall of Famers. · Over -500 " i ;
athletes like yourself have participated in the Globetrptter program but unlike '
league basketball and the other professional levels, no individual statistics were
routinely jised to measure success. Everything was based on the team and that ` ‘
is how we chose in 1 993 tomarket the product. A few players who wanted to `
see their "name in lights" have in the past left the organization to form their own
teams. Globetrotter player contracts expressly cover this area of name and · .
likeness as being part of the Globetrotters‘ assets. When l took the company out . y
of bankruptcy in 1993. this is one ofthe conditions. that appealed to investors and i I
to myself. · s _ _
' Nevertheless, today’s fashion trends have caused ourishoe and apparel i
manufacturer to express interest in having names and numbers of current and y 4
former players on clothing and shoes. We certainly d—on't mind and we decided .
· to share a portion of the overall proceeds with the alumni. Frankly, the numbers
are not extremely largej therefore, it is not worthwhile to keep track of each l
uniform displaying a particular players number or name; and the manufacturer ‘ '
‘ has been reluctant in providing spéicihc numbers, so we have decided to take 5% l
of the dollars we receive and place the money into the Globetrotter Foundation T _
giving credit equally to all former and current players whose names are used. {
To give you an idea how complex this has become; 10 players over the years ·`
have the name Jackson and 30 players have worn the number 32 (including "
· Magic Joh‘nson". it ` 4 _ ‘ ‘ · , ’
Harlem Glcberrotters Irrtomntionat Inc. · 400 E Van Burnn. Suite 300 • Phoenix, Arizona 85004 • (602) 258-CdD • FAX (602) 2566925 !.
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. A Case 2:04-cv—OO299*DGC ' < UmG * ·=¤ ¤ J V'_ y gi ‘l·l led 11/21/200 ` Q
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_ Everyone seems to like the jerseys of Chamberlain, Tatum, Lemon, "Sweet Lou" i h I `
— ···· “ . and Hawkins. in faci several stores, including our warehouse, carry patches that
can be stitched on after the sale to reflect abuyer's_request. Of course the new i . ‘
guys are the most popular because one million kids see them each year in the ·
arenas. i " · ‘ ·
divided over current and former players whose numbers and llikériessihave been
used — it's not a lot of money for an individual, but it begins to add up as a gift to
i l ¤¤<¤ s¤s¢$ ·'¤r_·°¤¤¤¤ r Players- lf aw ¤f
youâ€ha\ie other ideas for use of the funds, let me know; l i “ 2 in 2 "
As promised, I have enclosed a sample of merchandise that will be in the stores "
this Fall, l hopeyou enjoy the gift and encourage. others to purchase more, ` A ·
_ est Regards, l
' , n '
n ` Manriie Jackson 4 I ‘ i.
Owner and. Chairman ‘ 2 i _
Q a 4 Case 2:04;cv—OO2`s9—DGC Document 238-17 ` Filed ll/21/200.5 _` Page 2 of 2 l .
Case 2:04-cv-00299-DGC
Document 238-17
Filed 11/21/2005
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Case 2:04-cv-00299-DGC
Document 238-17
Filed 11/21/2005
Page 2 of 2