Robert Hutton “Bob” Kent, age 96, peacefully passed away on March 9, 2018. He served as then International Association of Auditorium Managers president during the 1968-69 term while employed in Greensboro, NC.

Born on February 14, 1922, in Olcott, W. Va., he was one of Ernest and Midge Hatfield Kent’s nine children. It was during high school in Mount Hope, WV, that he met the love of his life, Nancy-Ellen Feazell. A talented athlete, he excelled in football, basketball, and baseball and was awarded a basketball scholarship at North Carolina State University. Bob’s college career was interrupted by the advent of World War II when he enlisted in the Army Air Corps. As an Army Air Force officer, Bob, a 1st Lt., was a flight instructor in the Gulf Coast Training Command and was stationed in Texas, South Dakota, and Arkansas. Throughout the war years, Bob persistently courted Nancy, and after her graduation from Sweet Briar College, they were married on October 23, 1945, and briefly lived in Little Rock.

After Bob’s honorable discharge from the Army Air Corps, he and Nancy returned to live in Mount Hope. Their first child, Drema Walker (Dede) Kent, was born on July 8, 1946, and their second daughter, Nancy Hutton (Hutton) Kent was born on February 4, 1949. During the early years of his marriage, Bob owned a sporting goods store in Beckley, refereed football games, coached basketball at Beckley College (now Mountain State University), wrote for the local newspaper, and was the sports broadcaster for WOAY-TV in Oak Hill, WV. As the Beckley College coach, Bob met Press Maravich (father of basketball legend Pete Maravich), who coached a rival team. Bob and Press became lifelong friends.

In 1954, Bob became the general manager of the newly built War Memorial Auditorium in Fayetteville, WV. Arena management was Bob’s calling, and in 1958, he was recruited to become the general manager of the Greensboro Coliseum, then under construction, in Greensboro, NC. Under Bob’s steady and innovative management, the Greensboro Coliseum hosted countless musical and entertainment events as well as numerous ACC basketball tournaments. It was during these years that Bob formed enduring friendships with legendary college basketball coaches Dean Smith, Adolph Rupp, Lefty Driesell and Vic Bubas.

In 1969, developer Tom Cousins tapped Bob to be come the president of the Omni Coliseum, then under construction. Under Bob’s management, the Omni hosted myriad performers, including Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Sammy Davis Jr., Liza Minnelli, Liberace, Pavarotti, Willie Nelson, James Brown (whose career he helped resurrect in the 1970s), Bruce Springsteen and the Grateful Dead to name a few. Bob was instrumental in bringing other exciting attractions to the Omni including numerous ACC basketball tournaments, the 1977 Final Four NCAA tournament, the 1988 Democratic National Convention, Ringling Bros. Circus, Holiday on Ice, Ice Capades, the Harlem Globetrotters and professional wrestling.

For several years, Bob served as president of the Atlanta Hawks, during which time Bob persuaded the legendary Pete Maravich, the son of his old friend Press Maravich, to join the Hawks. Bob worked on the original proposal for Atlanta’s successful 1972 bid for a National Hockey League franchise, the Atlanta Flames. Bob served as president of the Flames until their sale to Calgary in 1980.

Bob was involved in a number of professional organizations including the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and was elected president of IAAM. He also served as a consultant on more than 30 projects throughout the US. He loved his work in Atlanta and turned down offers from other arenas including Madison Square Garden, the Superdome, and the Boston Garden. Bob was named “The Best in the Business” by Sports Illustrated magazine. He was an ordained elder in the Presbyterian church and a longtime member of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Atlanta.

Bob and Nancy loved to travel and enjoyed numerous trips to Europe, several times traveling aboard the Queen Elizabeth II and the Concorde. They especially loved the American West, spending many winters in Arizona. An avid golfer, Bob counted among his friends the legendary Sam Snead and Dow Finsterwald. Bob and Nancy treated their family to numerous vacations over the years, their favorite resort destinations including the Greenbrier, Pebble Beach and the Broadmoor. In the mid-1980s, Bob and Nancy built a house at Hilton Head, SC. For the next 30 years, the family gathered there for long summer vacations and holidays throughout the year. Many happy and hilarious times were enjoyed at the beach house, those memories treasured by the family.

Despite his numerous achievements, Bob, known as Daddy Bob by his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, led a humble, low-key life that focused primarily on his devoted family.

Bob was predeceased by his parents and his eight brothers and sisters. He is survived by his beloved wife of 72 years, Nancy; his two daughters, Drema “Dede” Kent Natale (Paul) and Hutton Kent Dhue (former son-in-law Bob); four grandchildren, Laurie Walker Dhue, Nancy Dhue Suh (Chris), Natalie Natale Hinkle (Steve), all of Atlanta, and Paul Michael Natale Jr. (Emily) of Chicago; and six great-grandchildren, Robert Christopher Suh and Thomas Hutton Suh of Atlanta, Cecilia Katherine Hinkle and Walker Joseph Hinkle of Atlanta, and Paul Michael Natale III and Olivia Marie Natale of Chicago, as well as many nieces and nephews.

For friends wishing to make memorial gifts, the family suggests The Atlanta Humane Society, Trinity Presbyterian Church, or Save the Children.

Wakeham + Associates Marketing, Inc. (WAM) announced that it has secured a naming rights agreement with CAA Club Group for the former the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ontario, on behalf of its owner operator, Realstar Group. The multi-million-dollar agreement is for a 10-year term. The facility will be named CAA Centre.

WAM was responsible for establishing a strategic plan and sponsorship valuation for the naming rights associated with the facility, conducting the naming rights sales campaign, and negotiating the agreement.

It is expected that the rebranding transition from Powerade Centre to CAA Centre will be completed by late Spring 2018. Built in 1998, the multi-purpose arena has become the city’s sports and culture hub, hosting hundreds of events each year including major sporting events, headlining concerts, and trade shows, and is the home of ECHL’s Brampton Beast Hockey Club.

“On behalf of the City and my colleagues on the Council, we welcome CAA’s investment in Brampton. We look forward to many years of working together to bring Bramptonians exciting sporting and cultural experiences,” said Brampton Mayor Linda Jeffrey. “This arena has been a visible landmark to the Brampton community and surrounding area. It has hosted and supported local sports teams and significant cultural events that showcase the wonderful diversity of our vibrant city.”

CAA recently made a significant investment to relocate and renovate its Brampton retail store, and the new CAA Centre builds on that established community presence. The CAA Centre is part of a strategy to provide the 56 million CAA and AAA members across North America with increased access to cultural experiences and benefits beyond roadside assistance. As part of the deal, CAA members will gain access to special offers, events, and unique experiences at the Centre. “We are thrilled that CAA’s name will appear on this iconic building for the next 10 years,” said Rhonda English, chief marketing officer, CAA SCO. “We are dedicated to bringing our members value and havemade it a priority to invest in their communities.”

“Sports and entertainment venues are the epicentre of a community, so it was important for us to find a partner understanding of the fabric of such a diverse and lively city as Brampton,” said Jonas Prince, Chairman, Realstar Group. “With CAA we have found a dedicated and collaborative partner interested in building a synergistic relationship with our many stakeholders.”

Hugh Wakeham, President of Wakeham + Associates Marketing, Inc. said, “We are pleased to have secured CAA Club Group as the naming rights partner for the former Powerade Centre. We look forward to helping them to activate their partnership and create special offers for their two million members in the south-central Ontario area. The CAA Centre serves the Greater Toronto Area and is one of Canada’s most utilized sports and entertainment facilities with 1.2 million annual visitors.”

Clifford “Rip” Rippetoe, president and chief executive officer of the San Diego Convention Center, was recently honored as the inaugural winner of the “Catalyst for Change” at the Women of Influence Awards. This first-of-its-kind award “recognizes a man who has shown by deed, actions and accomplishments the advancement of other businesswomen and has a track record of success and accomplishments by mentoring and/or supporting women in their profession, industry or enterprise.”

Rip’s executive team at the San Diego Convention Center is led by a diverse group of professionals, the majority of whom are women including Executive Vice President & General Manager Karen Totaro, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer Mardeen Mattix, Executive Director of Communications Barbara Moreno, and Executive Director of Human Resources Terry Kurtenbach.

IAVM congratulates Rip for his work at the venue, in the community, and in serving as a true catalyst for change!

As someone who has worked the biggest, boldest, and brightest events to light up a marquee for more than 25 years, Frank Supovitz is more than familiar with the subject of what to do when things go wrong. Supovitz, founder of Fast Traffic Events & Entertainment in 2014, an event management and consulting company based in New York, will keynote that exact topic during the Stadiums track session at VenueConnect this July in Toronto.

Supovitz is an award-winning event producer who client list over the years includes the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, New York City’s South Street Seaport, the BIG EAST Conference, Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, Australia’s National Rugby League, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Supovitz also served as senior vice president, events, for the National Football League, overseeing the meteoric growth of the Super Bowl, Pro Bow, and the NFL Draft.

“We work in an industry where the law of averages simply work against us,” Supovitz said during a break before traveling to speak before another conference. “We bring hundreds of thousands of people through our buildings each year for anywhere from a dozen to multiple dozens of events. We have a diverse number of experiences and environments, from the seating bowl to clubs, restaurants, hospitality venues, back-of-house, and fan plazas.

“We operate facilities with systems for security, ticket sales, dining and drinking, guest services, presentation technologies, connectivity, and points-of-sale. There are processes, procedures, load-ins, load-outs, and routine events operations. With that many details, something large or insignificant is going to go wrong every single event, maybe every single day. What’s funny is that I speak almost as much to organizations that are not in our industry as those who are, because every organization in every kind of business if faced with the challenge of making things NOT go wrong or dealing with them when they do anyway.”

Prior to joining the NFL, Supovitz led the National Hockey League’s Events & Entertainment department from 1992 to 2005, managing and producing the NHL All-Star Weekend, the Stanley Cup Finals, the NHL Awards Television Special, and international competitions across the globe in Canada, Europe, and Japan. So, yes, things can and do go wrong not just in the good old USA, but at all points of the world.

With that backdrop and expertise, Supovitz is sure to have plenty of takeaways for attendees in Toronto in a session where the format will differ as Supovitz is interviewed and asked questions rather than the standard keynote address.

“I generally talk less about how to plan to avoid a crisis or disaster to people like us because we plan for a living,” he said. “I concentrate more on what to do in real-time when trouble happens, and as much on what not-to-do, and when time is not on your side. Because I’ve managed or produced mega-events in a stadium, arena, or public setting for almost 30 years, lots of things have gone wrong under my watch. Some have been minor, some have been miserable, and some have been very public, but in looking at all those experiences and how they were handled, or could have been avoided, I’ve noticed a number of patterns and consistent truths. I call them Mega-Truths, and I’ll share a list of 10 of them that have helped to guide me though some tough spots, like the blackout at Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans, or when the Stanley Cup proved that gravity is still a law on its 100th birthday. It’s fun to laugh about those things now. But, they were serious business at the time.”

Supovitz is the first to admit he has led a charmed life in getting to do things he often dreamed about.

Managing events like the Super Bowl and NFL Draft for the National Football League my dream job for nearly a decade, and 13 seasons at the NHL before that provided a great launching pad for that experience,” Supovitz said. “I left the NFL in 2014 to start my own event management, production and consulting business and have since been able to contribute to, and learn about sports, events, and venues that are new to me like the Indy 500, the National Rugby League in Australia, the BIG EAST Men’s Basketball Tournament, even beach volleyball and extreme calisthenics. But, it all started as a 15-year old usher at Radio City Music Hall, where I worked my way through the organization to usher captain, upholsterer’s helper, mail room clerk, marketing manager, and eventually, the director of special events.

“I learned something really important about training and customer service on my very first day at Radio City, something that I remind myself of all the time, and worth sharing with you: the people that you most rely on to provide the best service experience to your fans and guests are often the ones that are the least paid, the least appreciated. The secret sauce is getting them invested in your venue’s success. Take that from a guy who’s walked miles of aisles.”

Visit VenueConnect 2018 for more.

The Wisconsin Center District (WCD) has named Doug Johnson as Vice President of Entertainment and Sports, effective April 16, 2018. The WCD owns and operates the Miller High Life Theatre, UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, and Wisconsin Center.

Johnson’s hire comes just weeks after the WCD announced the start of new President and CEO, Marty Brooks. Brooks has been tasked by the WCD Board to increase both utilization and profitability of all properties, especially the Miller High Life Theatre.

“A building as beautiful and versatile as the Miller High Life Theatre cannot go underutilized,” Brooks said. “It seemed to me that we needed the right person with the right relationships to book the space. I created this new position and we were lucky to find that person just down the road. The future of entertainment for the WCD is very exciting.”

With more than 25 years of consistent and progressive entertainment management, agent, and promoter relationships, Johnson will influence the future of entertainment and non-traditional sports programming across WCD properties.

“The WCD facilities and administrative staff are in a great position to take entertainment to the next level for the people of Wisconsin,” Johnson said. “I am really excited to bring local, regional, and national promoters into the superb properties of the Wisconsin Center District.”

Most recently Johnson has been the Senior Director of Arena Entertainment for the BMO Harris Bradley Center. While there, Johnson positively influenced the routing of significant shows and productions, bringing them into the Milwaukee market.

“The way to increase utilization is to increase meaningful relationships,” he said.

Prior to his tenure at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, Johnson spent nearly two decades as Senior Entertainment Director for Milwaukee World Festival, Inc., better known as Summerfest. While there he influenced all facets of the global festival, including operations, marketing and communications, logistics, hospitality, security, and production.