August 5, 2003 For more information: Frank R. Scatoni 619-807-1887 frank@ventureliterary.com "No Kill Date" Venture Literary Sells World Rights for an Inside Look at Hideki Matsui’s Rookie Season with the Yankees to Taylor On August 5, 2003, Greg Dinkin and Frank R. Scatoni, representing Jerry Beach, sold World rights to Godzilla Takes the Bronx to Jill Langford at Taylor, for publication in Spring 2004. Before the start of the 2003 baseball season, the most celebrated baseball player in Japan signed a deal with the most celebrated baseball franchise in the world. In his first game at the most celebrated stadium in the history of sports, he worked the count full…and hit a grand slam! No, it’s not Roy Hobbs from The Natural, but with the nickname "Godzilla," an affinity for the press, and the largest stage in the world for a baseball player to play on, Hideki Matsui is already on his way to becoming an American and Japanese icon. In fact, Matsui has already made history by being the first Yankee rookie to start the All-Star game since Joe DiMaggio. In Godzilla Takes the Bronx: The Inside Story of Hideki Matsui and His First Season with the New York Yankees, veteran baseball writer Jerry Beach details each of Matsui’s headline-worthy ups and downs, while also detailing his evolution into international icon and role model. Beach has collected hours of interviews with Matsui, his teammates, opponents, and the daily American and Japanese newspaper reporters who chronicle his every move. He paints a picture of a player who is as patient off the field as he is on it, a trait that helps Matsui maintain his composure in the face of unprecedented attention and remain remarkably down-to-earth even as he evolves into a worldwide celebrity. Jerry Beach has covered New York baseball since 1997. He has served as the editor of New York Sportscene magazine, during which time he wrote in-depth profiles of Big Apple superstars such as Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly, and Mike Piazza. Beach also covers the Yankees and Mets for Long Island’s largest weekly newspaper, The Long Island Press. He recently won third place honors in the "Sportswriter of the Year" category at the New York State Press Association’s annual convention. To learn more about Venture Literary, visit: www.ventureliterary.com. To learn more about Taylor, visit: http://www.bwl.com/taylor.htm.