For more information:
Frank R. Scatoni
619-807-1887
frank@ventureliterary.com

"No Kill Date"

Venture Literary Sells Louisville-Kentucky Basketball Book to Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press

On January 3, 2008, Frank R. Scatoni of Venture Literary, representing ESPN’s Pat Forde, sold the North American rights to Bluegrass Battle: The Inside Story of Coach Rick Pitino and the Louisville-Kentucky College Hoops Rivalry to Pete Wolverton at Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press.

In a state without pro sports or significant competition from other colleges, the Louisville-Kentucky basketball rivalry stands apart as the signature athletic event of the winter. Its only serious competition on the entire calendar comes from the Kentucky Derby—and even that does not resonate in daily conversation and incessant one-upsmanship the way Cards vs. Cats does. The most passionate and deeply held rivalry in college basketball, Louisville-Kentucky is hotly debated somewhere in the commonwealth of Kentucky every single day of the year. Bragging rights from a single forty minutes of basketball can last an entire year in a state where there often is little else to boast about.

The rivalry is as much a cultural conflict as a matter of simple school loyalty. It is urban vs. rural, and in some cases black vs. white. Yet despite the differences between the two fan bases, they share a common ardor that has placed both schools among the top six nationally in attendance for twenty-six straight years. In a poor state of only 4.2 million people, about 1 percent of the population can be found in Freedom Hall and Rupp Arena on any given winter Wednesday night or Saturday afternoon. The fans care too deeply to tolerate bad basketball, and they rarely have to: Louisville and Kentucky have combined to win nine NCAA Tournament titles and have appeared in 22 Final Fours.

ESPN.com Senior Writer Pat Forde has lived in Kentucky since 1987, and has covered both the Cardinals and Wildcats extensively. He currently is writing a book with Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino, and contributes coverage of college sports for all of ESPN’s entities: website, television, magazine, and radio. He also has contributed to the forthcoming ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia, is a regular guest on National Public Radio’s Only a Game, and has won numerous national writing awards.

To learn more about Venture Literary, visit: www.ventureliterary.com.
To learn more about Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press, visit: http://www.stmartins.com/