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Tigers/Red Wings Owner Mike Ilitch Passes Away

Started by TheNorm, February 10, 2017, 09:38:23 PM

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TheNorm

 :-[

http://www.freep.com/story/money/business/columnists/2017/02/10/ilitch-detroit-pizza-red-wings-tigers-hockey-forbes/91475642/

Really don't know what else to say here. Some of you might know him mainly as the owner of Little Caesar's Pizza, home of "Pizza! Pizza!" and the cheap and easy Hot N' Readys. But I have a feeling most of you know him as the owner of the Detroit Red Wings and the Detroit Tigers. Without his guidance, Detroit probably doesn't become Hockeytown, and while the Tigers did struggle his first few seasons as owner, they too soon found some sustained success in the 2000s. While he wasn't able to fulfill his dream of seeing the Tigers win the World Series as owner, he did do what it took to get the Tigers back to competing again. And we all know what the Red Wings were able to accomplish during his time as owner: 4 Stanley Cup Championships, and a playoff streak that started in 1991.
His contributions to the city of Detroit are also worth mentioning. He helped restore the Fox Theatre back to its former greatness, and that entire district area will soon be home to not just one of his arenas (Comerica Park in 2000 for the Tigers), but two this coming fall when the new Red Wings hockey arena opens. He also has many charitable foundations in the Detroit area that support a number of different causes.
He was a native of Detroit that was able to build an empire, and had great love for the city. And as someone that also grew up in this town and will always consider Detroit home, I'm definitely bummed out by this news but also forever grateful for what Mike Ilitch has done for this city.
"But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity." - Martin Luther King, Jr