view raw text
California — By Oscar Oth 1 Cornell Case Up for Board Decision Iron Maiden Originally Sold for ,500 Derby TV Coverage Neared Saturation HOLLYWOOD PARK, Inglewood, Calif., May 11. — The mystifying stimulation case of trainer Reggie Cornell comes up before the California Horse Racing Board on Monday for determination, while two other stimulation cases involving quarter horses will be heard at a later date mainly because the state lacked the time to prepare a proper accusation against the quarter horse folks involved. Cornell has been advised there will be no "hearing officer" present, which means that under the circumstances, the most the Racing Board can decree would be suspension for the remainder _ - - ■•»■--- la fn - - - - A__ is ,,n to _ - - ■•»■--- la fn - - - - A__ is ,,n to of the calendar year. Any lesser suspension up the judgment of the commissioners. The Cornell case has drawn nationwide attention, and here in California, it has commanded a lot of space in the newspapers with speculation rampant as to what could have happened. But nobody, it seems, has taken the trouble to point out that rule 1871, which holds the trainer responsible for the condition of his horses, regardless of the acts of third parties, has been held constitutional by the U. S. Supreme Court, through refusal to review an appeal from a decision of Californias highest court. The rule has been termed "un-American" but we dont think it is because racing is a privilege and, to participate, one must be licensed by the state. Acceptance of a license demands that the licensee accept certain responsibilities, and the safeguarding of his horses from outside tampering is one major responsibility that the trainer cannot duck. It also has been said that the situation is comparable to "jailing a man for murder" if one of his employes, or someone outside commits a stimulation even if the man were in a distant state at the time. This is not a fair comparison. The more exact one is the comparison made by Loyd Wright, past president of the American Bar Association, and chairman of the California Horse Racing Board at the time the long court battle over the rule was in progress, who said in effect, "A trainer is the same as the owner of a restaurant, in that the trainer guarantees his horses will appear in public not stimulated; the restaurant owner agrees to serve food fit for human consumption. If the restaurant man goes fishing and the cook serves poisoned food, the owner, even though not there, is civilly liable. The cook could be held for manslaughter if someone died through his negligence, and if the actual tamperer with the horse is ever caught, he could go to prison, too." Reveal Four Borderline Incidents It has been almost seven years since there was a stimulation case in California, and it seems to me that things have become a bit lax. We learn on indisputable authority that prior to the Cornell incident faint traces of a drug had shown in at least four instances, the trace being not enough to show an actual stimulation, but nevertheless, a warning that everyone should be more careful. Some pretty big stables in California are operating without a foreman, and when the trainer is away from the barn area, there really is no one in a responsible position. At the same time, the Cornell incident made no sense whatsoever. Cornell is personally innocent, and under the circumstances, it seems that the best possible solution would be for the commission to be as lenient as possible. W. W. "Tiny" Naylor has retired from racing on the advice of his doctor, but events of recent days have made him an "ex-breeder" of some distinction, for he has owned, through the victory of Iron Liege, the dams of two Kentucky1 Derby winners. The other, of course, was Iron Reward, dam of Swaps. Chatting with Naylor on the subject, and asking him if he was sorry now that he sold, he replied, "no, for I made a profit on both mares, and besides, Ive sold a lot of fillies and mares who WERENT dams of Kentucky Derby winners. I got Iron Maiden from her breeder, Louis B. Mayer, on the spur-of-the-moment deal and without ever having seen her. I was out visiting at the farm, and we heard that the filly, then two, had won her first race at Santa Anita. I liked the time, I forget just what it was now, and told Mayer Id give him ,500 for her. Mayer accepted. I raced Iron Maiden myself, then the war blackout came along, and bred her to Beau Pere. The foal was Iron Reward. Later, I sold Iron Maiden to Ellwood Johnston for 2,000, sold Iron Reward to Rex Ellsworth for 5,000, so I didnt do badly on the deal. Im most happy that a former California mare produced this years winner of the Kentucky Derby." Classic Carried by 207 Stations I The ARB and Trendix ratings of the TV-viewing audience of the Kentucky Derby will not be tabulated for a few more weeks but it probably had an all-time high Derby rating. Ed Wilhelm of Maxons, New York ad agency, tells us that the Derby telecast went to 207 stations this year and was seen live almost everywhere in the nation save in a few spots like Montana, whose stations are not yet connected with the network. In addition to the stations in the United States which aired the running, 16 in Canada, and two in Hawaii. "Our basic net consists of 70 stations, which service almost 90 per cent of all home TV sets in the United States," says Wilhelm. But the addition of the other Continued on Page Fifty-Nine ■ .. CALIFORNIA By OSCAR OTIS Continued from Page Four stations gives us what we are striving for, 100 per cent saturation of the market. Of course, we never know far in advance, just what our actual coverage will be, because any station may reject the Derby in favor of a program the stations management feels might have more local interest. In the past, we have had a few turndowns on the Derby, but never a one on the Worlds Series." Which observation, coupled with the fact that the Series, year after year, has a higher audience rating than the Derby, shows that racing still has a ways to go public relations wise. And speaking TRAs new one man brain trust on the subject, is cerebrating the problem and the approach, and, by the time the NASRC convention rolls around in Los Angeles, it is understood he will have something concrete in the way of both an analysis of said problem and a recommended rr»H tn
