RE: Papa John's name coming down from Louisville Cardinal Stadium.
John never got over being pissed on Tom about the basketball arena location. John wanted the new arena built on property between 2nd and 3rd street in Downtown Louisville. Tom, like everyone else in the city except John, wanted the arena built on the riverfront where it is now located.
When John didn’t get his way, he sulked and complained for years. Must be something about rich people being used to getting their way. He became very difficult to work with on the athletic board to the point he complained Tom got his way too much. John resigned from the Athletic Board, and took his money with him, not long after complaining about Tom.
John continued as a member of Louisville Board of Trustees, started complaining about Tom and athletic spending in the BOT meetings. Fast forward six months, Tom’s fired, and John is finally happy: vendetta fulfilled.
When John’s feud started with Tom, he started increasing his ties to UK. John started attending some Uk games. That was a big change. Before that happened the local newspaper ran a story that John would make the UK AD come to Louisville, usually at Louisville basketball games, hat in hand to ask for money for UK athletics. Sure it was a dick thing to do but no one seemed to mind. Everyone laughed because it was Kentucky. In hindsight it shows how petty John is.
John’s problem is he under estimated how much the Louisville market meant to his business. The Louisville market was the foundation his business was built on. When he attacked Tom, Louisville fans stopped buying his pizza. Sales in Louisville plummeted. Keep in mind 30 years ago it wasn’t uncommon for John to deliver pizza to businesses in Downtown Louisville himself. If your neighbors won’t buy your product, why should anyone else?
After his ill advised comments about the NFL, his business suffered in other areas. Again John failed to think about the consequences of his words. It didn’t help John that UofL hired private investigators to dig up dirt on Tom after Tom filed a wrongful termination claim against the university. When the investigators couldn’t find anything, Louisville gave Tom a golden parachute, 7 million dollars and a bundle of retirement perks, to go away.
It’s rather ironic that John made the comment that got him fired from the company he started at a training session to improve his image.
As for John I don’t believe he’s a racist. I believe John is a rich and arrogant. He forgot where he came from. He pissed his friends off with his constant whining about Tom. Hard to find fault with a guy that did what Tom did for UofL. Without Tom, Louisville would still be in CUSA, everyone knows that even John.
I believe John’s comment was taken out of context. There is a difference calling someone that word and discussing the word being used by someone else. I would venture to say if John hadn’t pissed off everyone in town with his whining about Tom and the NFL players, somebody here might have had his back.
As it is in the ultra sensitive times we live, where folks are looking something to be offended by, it wasn’t hard for UofL to be rid of John and his whining and look like they were doing the right thing. Ironically if Tom was on the job, I don’t believe John’s name would be coming down off the stadium. Tom would have given John an opportunity to write another check to the university. John would have attended sensitivity training and all would be forgotten.
By the way UK announced that they had cut ties with John as well...lol Rather strange considering their basketball arena has the name of a guy on it that regularly used the word.
Heading to my safe place. Where is my pink hat...
CJ
(This post was last modified: 07-14-2018 04:24 AM by CardinalJim.)
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Papa John's name coming down from Louisville Cardinal Stadium.
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