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New tourism ads paying off for city: Ten-second promotions attracting more visitors

When Indianapolis promoters were deciding what to do to lure leisure travelers to the city over summer break, they decided being short and to the point was the way to go. So, the Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association partnered with eight area attractions to produce extremely brief television and radio travel commercials. The resulting ad campaign was wellfunded-with a budget $240,000 more than the previous year-and produced stellar results, including more awareness of Indianapolis attractions, more nights spent in Indianapolis,…

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A&E: Skid Stuff at the IMA (via the IMS)

This week, a California artist visits the IMA (via Indianapolis Motor Speedway), a British playwright hits hard at Washington, and a Swedish singing group’s tunes become a Broadway sensation. When you call a piece “2005 Indy 500 Victory Donut: Traces of Dan Wheldon,” you aren’t just suggesting that audiences look beyond your abstractions, you are demanding it. The Wheldon piece is part of “Ingrid Calame: Traces of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” the latest exhibition in the IMA’s Forefront Gallery. The…

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SPORTS: With the football Hoosiers, it’s one play at a time

I just got an e-mail from a good friend inquiring about where (his speculation was the Insight Bowl in Tempe, Ariz.) the Indiana Hoosiers would play their first bowl game since 1993. I responded with the same line I’ve repeated often. When it comes to Indiana football, I never look further ahead than the next play. It’s a lesson I learned 40 years ago, in 1967. I was fresh out of high school. It always was my dream to go…

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SPORTS: Calm on display just days before the big game

On the morning of Oct. 30, just five days before the NFL’s Game of the Century, Regular-Season Variety, I imagine-but don’t know for certain-that New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick was hunkered down in some office bunker at the Patriots training complex, bags under his eyes, hooded sweatshirt pulled over his head, scowl on his face. Certainly, he was poring over game films of the Indianapolis Colts, searching for clues that would help his team continue on its scorched-earth mission…

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IRL widens advertising base

The Indy Racing League will roll out category sponsorship deals with soft drink, energy drink and motor oil brands in the
next two months. IRL officials declined to divulge which companies the deals are with, but said each are multiyear, multimillion-dollar
deals.

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SPORTS: Not all basketball greats are getting their due

An article in the current Slam magazine caught my eye. Written by Brett Ballantini, it was headlined, “The Hall of Shame.” The hall it was referring to was the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass. The gist was that its secretive selection process is preventing eminently worthy candidates from consideration for and ultimately election to the hall. It cites a “secret cabal of 24 unknown voters” for dereliction of duty, with particular concern for the class of 2007,…

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EYE ON THE PIE: News offers savory opportunities

I save newspaper items thinking they will make good columns. But with only one column per week, I end up with piles of good ideas. Here are four items I found interesting: Another sports opportunity: The National Lacrosse League has canceled its season. I didn’t know there was a league of 13 professional lacrosse teams. This was another instance of players and owners not being able to come to agreement on salaries. Both of those groups and the fans are…

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Fieldhouse rolls out season-ticket program: Concert offering could lure mid-size businesses

Businesses looking to entertain clients but not quite ready for a luxury box at Conseco Fieldhouse now have another option-season tickets to all the concerts. The offering, dubbed Your Exclusive Access, will be the first season-ticket package in the nation for arena concerts, said Dave Lucas, owner of Indianapolis-based entertainment firm Live-360 LLC. Live-360 is managing the program for Pacers Sports & Entertainment, which leases the fieldhouse from the city and schedules entertainment there. While season-ticket programs have been a…

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Commentary: Dungy’s book a real eye-opener

I watched the Indianapolis Colts’ Oct. 22 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars with a sense of calm I’d never experienced before while watching a Colts game. It wasn’t because I was certain they were going to win-far from it-or because I had been sedated. It was because I had just read Coach Tony Dungy’s best-seller, “Quiet Strength.” No, I wasn’t “born again” while reading. But I was given a much better idea of how Dungy works and how things are…

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SPORTS: Discipline on court, disappointment in stands

As an Indiana University alumnus, I guess you could say I’m dissed off. Disappointed. Disillusioned. Disheartened. And I know I’m not alone. There is simply no excuse, no rationale and no justification for Kelvin Sampson’s basketball program to be operating outside the NCAA rules or the NCAA sanctions he brought to Bloomington from the University of Oklahoma. I don’t care that the NCAA’s rule book is thicker than the New York City white pages. I don’t buy that those rules…

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City ready to launch bid for USA Basketball

Indianapolis is poised to launch a bid
to attract USA Basketball’s headquarters from its Colorado Springs home. The not-for-profit national governing body for men’s
and women’s basketball in the United States recently put out a request for proposals for a new headquarters city.

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SPORTS: These are the most valuable players on our team

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning made news recently when Business Week ranked him 13th among the 100 most-powerful people in sports. Not to be outdone, or to let a good idea go unstolen, here’s my list of the 25 most- influential people in Indianapolis sports. Criteria: my opinion. No. 1: Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George. With three races (including next September’s Moto GP motorcycle debut) bringing in more than $700 million annually, IMS is the elephant in the room that…

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Commentary: WIB-see moves to the FM dial

I noted the passing of WIBC-AM with more than just a little interest. Yes, my little interest-I don’t listen to commercial radio-was coupled with a heavy dose of nostalgia. This is the end of an era, for crying out loud. WIBC, which in my youth we referred to more often as “WIB-see,” was my parents’ favorite station in the morning. I equate the sound of Gary Todd’s voice with the smell of bacon and eggs on school days. I also…

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New leader aims to keep school, students growing: More businesses support private north-side institution

What began in 1994 as a six-room schoolhouse with 38 students has grown into a three-building campus with 602 pupils. The growth of the International School of Indiana, which welcomed a new headmaster this year, has been possible because of increased support from an expanding flock of businesses. They believe in its mission: to help attract scientists and executives from around the world to this community by providing a global education for their children. Before the school opened, recalled Eli…

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SPORTS: Offended by the Pacers? Watch their defense

On Media Day Oct. 1 in Conseco Fieldhouse, all was well in the Indiana Pacers’ world. New coaches. New hope. New optimism. New season. New attitude. Save poor Shawne Williams’alarm clock-and, just askin’, but when was the last time you overslept an appointment with a judge?-and the lingering legal issues still facing Jamal Tinsley and Marquis Daniels, the feeling of looking forward and a fresh start was palpable. For those of you who have not yet met, or heard speak,…

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PROFILE CAROLYN CLAY: Attorney ‘escapes’ from the infamous Rock Challenging open-water Alcatraz race gives a whole new meaning to ‘swimming with the sharks’ Editor’s Note: The original version of this story appeared in the July 11 issue of the Indiana Law

PROFILE CAROLYN CLAY Attorney ‘escapes’ from the infamous Rock Challenging open-water Alcatraz race gives a whole new meaning to ‘swimming with the sharks’ Editor’s Note: The original version of this story appeared in the July 11 issue of the Indiana Lawyer, a statewide newspaper for lawyers published by IBJ Media. Women in Business editor Della Pacheco added to the original story. Carolyn Clay has been swimming for as long as she can remember. The 29-year-old attorney at Indianapolis law firm…

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Players benched for new Pacers ads

The Indiana Pacers recently rolled out a marketing initiative that was in sharp contrast to last year’s campaign, which prominently
featured players and proclaimed, “It’s up to us.” This year’s new television, radio and print advertisements appear with not
a whisper from or mention of anyone actually wearing the blue and gold.

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Chevrolet pleased with ads, but CD sales hit pothole: Mellencamp is selling trucks, but not tunes

Hoosier rocker John Mellencamp is helping Chevrolet sell more trucks, but he’s having less luck when it comes to selling his records. In November, Mellencamp embarked on his first major commercial campaign, selling his song “Our Country” to Chevrolet for its Silverado pickup truck campaign. Since then, tens of millions of people have seen commercials-some that show Mellencamp playing guitar, while others simply play his song-during myriad collegiate and professional basketball and football games. Chevrolet officials said the commercials featuring…

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SURF THIS: On the Net: Buying and branding the Bonds ball

Faithful readers may remember that my last column was about the young man who decided to sell the record-breaking home-run baseball hit by Barry Bonds. I found the story rather telling as it dealt with human nature, our proclivity to place sports figures on pedestals (often undeservingly), and an undercurrent of the value of authenticity and integrity. Even casual sports fans are aware of the mild controversy surrounding Bonds and his suspected use of performance-enhancing drugs. A few interesting things…

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Convention faithful are sticking it out: Trade groups say perks outweigh construction hassle

The Indiana Convention Center isn’t big enough for some large trade shows, but Indianapolis’ location and hospitality are enough to keep certain customers coming back. Despite losing locally based Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association’s CEDIA Expo and California-based Performance Racing Industry’s annual show-and the estimated $45 million attendees spent each year-Indianapolis has managed to keep three other biggies. Do it Best Corp.’s twice-yearly trade show, Advanstar Communications’ Dealer Expo and the Fire Department Instructors Conference are sticking around because…

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