BLACK CANYON PRODUCTIONS' WHEN IT WAS A GAME III TO DEBUT JULY 17th ON HBO.

Entertainment Editors

WASHINGTON--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--July 12, 2000

Nine years after the groundbreaking, Peabody-Award winning baseball documentary premiered, WHEN IT WAS A GAME III debuts Monday, July 17 (10:00 - 11:00 p.m. ET/PT) exclusively on HBO.

The show will also air July 20 (12:45 p.m., 8:00 p.m), July 23 (11:30 a.m.), July 26 (6:00 a.m., 6:00 p.m.), July 29 (10:00 a.m.) and August 4 (8:00 a.m., 7:00 p.m.). All times are ET/PT.

"From the days of Mickey Mantle, Roberto Clemente and Willie Mays, WHEN IT WAS A GAME III delves into the personalities on the field and the impact the game made on legions of fans nationwide," said George Roy, senior producer of the WHEN IT WAS A GAME series and co-president of Black Canyon, an SFX Company. "Our goal with the third installment of WHEN IT WAS A GAME III was to create a scrapbook of memories of the 1960's - the last great era of baseball. We wanted to capture the raw emotion that connected fans to the game and to illustrate to future generations the emotional tie that makes baseball America's favorite pastime."

Black Canyon conducted interviews with various Hall of Famers and aficionados of the game to formulate the storyline of this retrospective look at baseball in America during the 1960's. These one-on-one conversations began in December 1999 and continued through May 2000. Some of the stars interviewed were Hall of Famers Al Kaline, Frank Robinson, Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal, Ferguson Jenkins and all-time home run king Hank Aaron; broadcasters and former National Leaguers Tim McCarver and Mike Shannon; former National Leaguers Dal Maxvill, Jeff Torborg and Maury Wills; former American Leaguers Jim Bouton, Bill Monbouquette, Joe Pepitone and Tony Oliva; baseball writers Thomas Boswell and Leonard Koppett; broadcaster Bob Costas; film producer and actor Billy Crystal; and musician George Thorogood.

"WHEN IT WAS A GAME has truly become a significant franchise for HBO Sports, the baseball community, and, most important, our viewers," said Ross Greenburg, senior vice president and executive producer, HBO Sports. "In WHEN IT WAS A GAME III, we explore what many believe was the last decade of baseball's innocence - the 60's. Showcasing the heroes of a generation of baby boomers, this special will rekindle memories of their youth."

Black Canyon was acquired by SFX in May of this year. Co-founded by partners George Roy and Steve Stern in 1988, New York City-based Black Canyon enjoys a distinguished reputation in the television and film industry, having been honored with virtually every prestigious industry award for its work, including three Peabody Awards and three Sports Emmy Awards. The company won its second consecutive Peabody Award this year for "Fists of Freedom," a recollection of the dramatic gloved-fist demonstration at the 1968 Olympic Games which aired on HBO last year. "Fists of Freedom" was also nominated for a Sports Emmy this year. In addition to its award winning sports documentaries for Home Box Office and other networks, Black Canyon also produces direct marketing television campaigns for clients including Sports Illustrated, the NFL and the NCAA, and has assembled a one-of-a-kind vintage sports film library.

"The WHEN IT WAS A GAME series is one of the most compelling and creative sports documentaries in television," said Mike Trager, SFX Sports Group President of Television and Entertainment." "This never-before-seen footage found by George Roy and his partner Steve Stern conjures up memories of when we considered baseball to be `our game' and the connection that we felt to the players. SFX is proud of its association with George and Steve and we look forward to tapping their expertise to strengthen our current productions and create more original sports and entertainment programming."

The SFX Sports Group is a division of SFX, the world's largest diversified promoter, producer and venue operator for live entertainment events. The Sports Group includes many of the world's leading sports marketing and management agencies, specializing in the representation of athletes, integrated event management, television programming and production, and marketing services in the sports, news and entertainment industries.

SFX recently announced that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Clear Channel Communications, Inc. (NYSE: CCU), a transaction that is expected to close by the third quarter of this year, subject to the vote of shareholders, and customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions. Clear Channel is a global leader in the out-of-home advertising industry with radio and television stations and outdoor displays in 36 countries around the world.

WHEN IT WAS A GAME III PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Film producer and actor Billy Crystal describing Yankee Stadium: "As we came over the Major Deegan Expressway, there it was. When you walked in and you heard that sound, the crowd buzzing, there's a smell of those hot dogs, and mustard and beer that gets in the cement and just stays in those tunnels. Then you walk out and there was that field. It was beyond belief how big Yankee Stadium originally was. Four hundred sixty-one [feet] to dead center, with those monuments and I always used to think that Babe Ruth was actually buried in centerfield like most of us. When Mantle came up to the plate, it sounded like the ocean at night. There is no other sound like the waves hitting the shore, and it was loud and it was excitement, like something really great could happen at any moment, and Mickey hit it, and I'll never forget the sound of it, and I remember my father saying, `Oh my God, it's going out,' and it just kept going up, up, up, up, and the ground shook. It was unbelievable."

Broadcaster Bob Costas on Mickey Mantle: "If central casting was to send in a baseball guy they couldn't find anyone better than Mickey Mantle. A big, blond, strapping kid out of Oklahoma gets off the plane in New York, carrying a seven-dollar cardboard suitcase. The hayseed who you could almost see cranking his neck up to assess the skyscrapers. It's a perfect story."

Former Red Sox pitcher Bill Monbouquette on being on the mound against the Yankees: "When I pitched against the Yankees, at Fenway especially, I used to just watch batting practice. Here comes (Bobby) Richardson, he hits line drives all over the place, and Tony Kubek hits a ball the other way and then the Bombers were coming. Oh my God, I couldn't believe you could hit balls that far. It was easy for them. I watch Al Forester, groundskeeper, go up the ladder on the wall with four or five buckets and come down with all of them full. Now you knew how many balls were hit in there, probably 150 balls. When we finished batting practice we only had one bucket, nine balls in there."

Hall of Famer Al Kaline on his baseball career: "Ray Boone, when I first joined the ball club, said, `Al, if you can leave this game by owning your own home, you've had a good career.' What little bit of money I made, I want to be able to keep and not spend it over the winter months, because I had two little boys and I wanted to think down the road that I want them to go to college. You started saving money and getting a job. I got a job every year I played baseball. I played for 21 and a half years."

Bob Costas on players: "Because guys stayed with the same teams, you identified with them with those teams and with their uniforms, and it is strange because relatively few games were on television, so you couldn't say that we actually saw more baseball in the `60's, but maybe what we saw made a deeper impression. So in a sense, you were more distant from those teams but there were a manageable number of teams and the best players tended to stay in one place. So you became familiar with the rosters of teams and if someone said the Pirates you immediately conjured up the notion of Roberto Clemente and Bill Mazeroski. All of us from that generation retained a vivid image of guys' numbers. Only one person could be 24 - that was Willie Mays - and only Al Kaline could be number 6, and only Carl Yastrzemski was number if it was a Boston Red Sox uniform, or Frank Robinson number 20. Only Mickey Mantle could be number 7, only Roberto Clemente could be number 21. There were a couple of 44s that stood out, not doubt about that: Willie McCovey, Henry Aaron. But they were unmistakenable in their own way. Juan Marichal, number 27, with his leg kicking to the sky; Bob Gibson, glaring in fearsome on the mound, number 45. The game meant so much to us that they made an indelible impression."

Al Kaline on restrictions of player movement: "Fathers could take their kids to the ballpark, they really connected with the players more so. The fans knew who they were gonna have on their field from year to year."

Historian Dick Johnson on Bob Gibson: "Grab a bat, step in the box, let me introduce you to Mr. Gibson. That withering look of just disdain and utter menace."

Hall of Famer Bob Gibson: "I had one thing in mind - that was winning the ball game. Losing was not an option. Okay, here I am. It is gonna be a battle, so let's go. The day that I had my good stuff I wasn't concerned too much about anybody."

Former National League Catcher Tim McCarver on Gibson: "He intimidated everybody, he intimidated his teammates, he intimidated his manager, he intimidated the pitching coach, and he intimidated the opposition.

Believe me, you could see it, you could feel it, ferocity."

Former National League Catcher Jeff Torborg on Dodgers ace Sandy Koufax: "He had this very slow delivery that lulled the hitter to sleep, and then when he did let it go, it just rocketed through the top of the strike zone."