Gas2No99 Posted February 3, 2018 Share Posted February 3, 2018 memories . . . . Lupica: Leon Hess is a bum for moving the Jets in 1983 (Originally published by the Daily News on October 7, 1983. This story was written by Mike Lupica.) CHICAGO - Here is what you do with a bum who tries to blackmail the city of New York by threatening to take a bunch of football players across the river to New Jersey: You give him a check for $2.50, which will cover bus fare from the Port Authority to the Meadowlands, and you tell the bum to get lost, and not come back. You tell such as Leon Hess that we do not need him in New York, and we do not need his football team, the New Jersey Jets. It has not been such a terrific team, anyway. One world championship in a quarter of a century doesn't keep anybody up nights. We will get another team, an expansion team, and I promise you we will do better. JETS OWNER CONFIRMS MOVE TO MEADOWLANDS I will not even wait for the Mayor of New York, Ed Koch, to send Hess the $2.50. I have already made out a check to Hess the Carpetbagger for that amount and mailed it to the soon-to-be vacated Manhattan offices of the Jersey Jets. Money is apparently the only language Hess the Carpetbagger understands. His is one of those professions where you pay somebody, and they do whatever you tell them. Maybe you have heard of others. What Ed Koch should do is dip into the city coffers and send Hess another check, one for about $200. The Jet players could ride in one bus. The coaches and the trainers and the helmets and shoulder pads could ride in another. Two hundred bucks should just about cover the whole nut. Then this city will be rid of Hess once and for all. How dare this man try to hold up the city and the state, and then act like he is the injured party, the one who has been wronged? Leon Hess is trying to pull a bigtime stickup here, nothing more. He does it in broad daylight without any shame or trace of integrity. And when Ed Koch and Mario Cuomo don't open the safe fast enough, Hess has his feelings hurt. Good riddance to him when he goes. Maybe someday someone will figure out a way to pull this sort of corporate/sporting blackmail off. But Hess won't do. The move will require a lot more style. Leon Hess, owner of the New York Jets that took the team to New Jersey in 1983. (KEVIN LARKIN/ASSOCIATED PRESS) Here is what Leo Hess was saying with his letter to Ed Koch yesterday: If New York will promise to build him a new stadium for about $200 million, and if New York will work out all the permits and leases and contracts and such to his approval, then Leon Hess in the year 1986 will consider bringing the New Jersey Jets back to New York from New Jersey. I say he will consider. Hess the Carpetbagger "pledges" to do so in his letter. I don't accept a pledge from Hess as fact, and neither should Koch, and neither should Mario Cuomo. I figure a pledge from Leon Hess is worth, oh, about $2.50. Bus fare. Again, this is blackmail. Read his letter carefully. Who is he asking to pay for his spanking new stadium, in which the Jets will play 10 football games a year? You. Me. And everybody else who pays city and state taxes. If we don't come across with the dough, he will take his football and he will play across the Hudson River forever. But if we do come across, Hess the Carpetbagger is willing to kiss and make up. Get this Leon: I think you know what you can kiss. The letter is a real beauty, calling to mind the prose of all the great wordsmiths, especially the ones who write the Batman comic books. Leon uses a lot of capital letters in it, just to show he is really exercised. The rhythm and flow of his prose is truly a wonder. At one point Hess says: "The public cannot be fooled, Mr. Mayor." Right. There is only one person trying to fool the public here, and that person is Hess. And it won't wash. In addition to everything else, Hess is a wimp. He was all set to move the Jets a long time ago, and he was all set to have the state of New Jersey take losing proposition called Monmouth Park off his hands as part of the deal. Then a couple of things happened. There were snags in the Monmouth deal, all of which were well-documented in a story in yesterday's Daily News. And then people with typewriters and fans with voices and pens went after Hess, and Hess was portrayed as the carpetbagging louse that he is. So Leon looked for a way to cover his, uh, assets. We should have expected nothing less from him. He runs to form always. So he writes a letter to the Mayor - releasing it, of course, to the newspapers first - and he tries to act like the one done wrong. He was told the city could not afford to build the kind of stadium he wants. But now he offers to come back and play in that same stadium. Beautiful. There is only one man trying to fool the public here. That is why he must be told by the mayor and the governor to get lost. Maybe Koch and Cuomo should use a lot of capital letters, too. And a lot of language you won't find in the Book of Genesis. He can take his football team to the Meadowlands. We will all get along very nicely without it. Maybe he should take the 12 Hess gas stations within the city limits with him. When someone tries to hold up the city, we do not throw benefits. Get out of town, Leon. Stay out of town. The check is in the mail. I HATE and could never stand that B!tch Lupica. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larz Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 I wonder if NY would have made money on the lease now they have no teams way to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billo83 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 "I'm 80 years old and want to win now" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJoTownsell1 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 How can anyone hate an Owner that moves his team from New York to New Jersey, to play in a swamp and be the kid brother to the Giants. Hess makes Woody Johnson look like Robert Kraft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Straw Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Mike Lupica, he of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, has spent the last 40 years trying convince everyone that he's smart and from New York. While he is a pretentious douchebag, he is neither smart nor from New York. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larz Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 12 minutes ago, JoJoTownsell1 said: How can anyone hate an Owner that moves his team from New York to New Jersey, to play in a swamp and be the kid brother to the Giants. Hess makes Woody Johnson look like Robert Kraft. Leon had his faults, but he built an international fortune 500 company from 1 oil truck. He is no trust fund douche He had a corporate accountant run the team for years but then brought in steinberg and Parcells. AL Davis is a rebel but Leon sucks Whatever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SayNoToDMC Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 1 hour ago, Gas2No99 said: memories . . . . Lupica: Leon Hess is a bum for moving the Jets in 1983 (Originally published by the Daily News on October 7, 1983. This story was written by Mike Lupica.) CHICAGO - Here is what you do with a bum who tries to blackmail the city of New York by threatening to take a bunch of football players across the river to New Jersey: You give him a check for $2.50, which will cover bus fare from the Port Authority to the Meadowlands, and you tell the bum to get lost, and not come back. You tell such as Leon Hess that we do not need him in New York, and we do not need his football team, the New Jersey Jets. It has not been such a terrific team, anyway. One world championship in a quarter of a century doesn't keep anybody up nights. We will get another team, an expansion team, and I promise you we will do better. Fast forward: 12539 Days 1791 weeks 411 months 300936 hours 18056160 minutes 1083369600 seconds That spoiled prick didn't know how good he had it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Crimson King Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 I am not a violent person but when I get to the next level, I hope to get a chance to kick Hess and M. Donald Grant in the nuts Mr. Clean ... SELL THE TEAM !!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 37 minutes ago, JoJoTownsell1 said: How can anyone hate an Owner that moves his team from New York to New Jersey, to play in a swamp and be the kid brother to the Giants. Hess makes Woody Johnson look like Robert Kraft. The Jets were treated like sh*t by NYC. They couldn't play any home games until the Mets season was over. In 1973 they actually lost a home game because the Mets made the World Series. Lupica is an ass hole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 I don't uinderstand how Hess is blamed. The City treated the Jets unfairly for years. Lupica is a moron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Yeah because playing in a building where you couldn’t play home games until October was sooooooooo much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Check out the Jets 1973 season, add in that they played 6 preseason road games. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/nyj/1973.htm This was typical of how the Jets were treated, and you blame Hess? Give me a break! Schedule & Game Results Share & more Modify & Share Table Embed this Table Get as Excel Workbook (experimental) Get table as CSV (for Excel) Strip Mobile Formatting Copy Link to Table to Clipboard About Sharing Tools Video: SR Sharing Tools & How-to Video: Stats Table Tips & Tricks Glossary Score Offense Defense Week Day Date OT Rec Opp Tm Opp 1stD TotYd PassY RushY TO 1stD TotYd PassY RushY TO 1 Mon September 17 9:00PM ET boxscore L 0-1 @ Green Bay Packers 7 23 16 269 200 69 3 14 253 98 155 2 Sun September 23 2:00PM ET boxscore W 1-1 @ Baltimore Colts 34 10 16 276 168 108 1 14 277 188 89 8 3 Sun September 30 1:00PM ET boxscore L 1-2 @ Buffalo Bills 7 9 17 250 148 102 1 15 272 64 208 3 4 Sun October 7 1:00PM ET boxscore L 1-3 @ Miami Dolphins 3 31 12 198 42 156 5 18 370 219 151 2 5 Sun October 14 1:00PM ET boxscore W 2-3 @ New England Patriots 9 7 13 232 232 1 9 172 58 114 2 6 Sun October 21 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-4 @ Pittsburgh Steelers 14 26 9 118 46 72 3 19 360 146 214 2 7 Sun October 28 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-5 Denver Broncos 28 40 17 315 229 86 3 20 432 235 197 1 8 Sun November 4 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-6 Miami Dolphins 14 24 16 281 168 113 2 21 346 193 153 2 9 Sun November 11 1:00PM ET boxscore W 3-6 New England Patriots 33 13 16 326 59 267 4 10 149 108 41 8 10 Sun November 18 2:00PM ET boxscore L 3-7 @ Cincinnati Bengals 14 20 21 357 264 93 4 11 208 76 132 1 11 Sun November 25 4:00PM ET boxscore L 3-8 Atlanta Falcons 20 28 15 290 173 117 6 15 288 141 147 3 12 Sun December 2 1:00PM ET boxscore W 4-8 Baltimore Colts 20 17 18 353 219 134 3 19 319 151 168 2 13 Sun December 9 1:00PM ET boxscore L 4-9 @ Philadelphia Eagles 23 24 24 432 156 276 3 20 358 203 155 3 14 Sun December 16 1:00PM ET boxscore L 4-10 Buffalo Bills 14 34 12 223 184 39 21 374 70 304 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pointman Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 I miss Leon Washington. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billo83 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 55 minutes ago, Larz said: Leon had his faults, but he built an international fortune 500 company from 1 oil truck. He is no trust fund douche He had a corporate accountant run the team for years but then brought in steinberg and Parcells. AL Davis is a rebel but Leon sucks Whatever Hess was certainly great in the oil business, but was one of the worst football owners ever. One doesn't have anything to do with the other. Steinberg wasn't a good GM and IIRC Parcells wasn't even his idea in the first place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billo83 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 40 minutes ago, JetsFanatic said: I don't uinderstand how Hess is blamed. The City treated the Jets unfairly for years. Lupica is a moron. IIRC one of the stated reasons Hess didn't like Shea was the bathrooms were terrible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 3 minutes ago, billo83 said: Hess was certainly great in the oil business, but was one of the worst football owners ever. One doesn't have anything to do with the other. Steinberg wasn't a good GM and IIRC Parcells wasn't even his idea in the first place Hess wasn't a great owner, but deserves no blame for the move to NJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 THIS IS A MUCH FAIRER ARTICLE. IT WAS WRITTEN IN 1977, 7 YEARS BEFORE THE LEASE EXPIRED. (Originally published by the Daily News on Feb. 11, 1977. This story was written by Larry Fox.) The New York Jets, unable to breathe under the restrictive terms of their lease with the Mets for Shea Stadium, are all set to move to the Meadowlands in New Jersey starting with the 1977 season, The News learned yesterday. “The ownership of the Jets has entered into negotiations with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and an agreement is imminent, perhaps even this week,” a source close to the negotiations disclosed. The Jets and their acting president, Leon Hess, made known their intentions to move in meeting with Mayor Beame on Friday. The Jets directors met on Monday to consider the Meadowlands proposal and active negotiations with the Jersey group began the next day. The Jets thus would share the stadium with that other ex-patriate New York team, the Giants, who were forced out of their long-time home, Yankee Stadium, by the recently completed $100 million renovation. The Giants all along have indicated no objection to sharing the new stadium that bears their name and in fact would welcome the Jets as co-tenants. If nothing else, another football team would enable them to share the cost of grounds crews and other football team would enable them to share the cost of grounds crews and other full-time stadium personnel. The Mets made a last-ditch effort to compromise their long-standing prohibition of football games during the baseball season by opening the gates for one exhibition game and two early regular-season contests. PAID CONTENT BY MICHELOB ULTRA #LiveULTRA However, negotiations foundered on the Mets insistence that there be alternate rain dates in case of inclement weather. The Jets could go along with this for the exhibition game, but pointed out that the National Football League would not allow arbitrary cancellation of regular-season games with the attendant television complications. The Jets at that time reiterated their offer to advance the money, up to $4 million, to install artificial turf at Shea Stadium as an “interest-free loan.” This is similar to the way in which the Mets beat the city’s fiscal crunch by advancing the money to refurbish Shea last year. The loan is paid back through withheld rental payments. Originally published by the Daily News on Feb. 11, 1977. (NEW YORK DAILY NEWS) The Mets don’t want artificial turf, claiming it disrupts the nature of the game. The Jets’ departure would cost the city (and state) about $100,000 per game, plus other fringe benefits such as increased subway use. The Jets hire about 1,300 people per game day at Shea and these jobs also will be lost. Under terms of the Jets’ lease with the Mets and the city, which has seven years to go, they are committed to paying a minimum fee of less than $10,000 per game. However, in his letter to Mayor Beame, Hess said the club would voluntarily “reimburse our city for the net rental income usually realized from our scheduled games at Shea.” This is roughly $350,000 to $500,000 a year and if they city sets up a legal roadblock to stall the Jets’ move, the matter of a settlement could be the basis of any injunction. The City of New York, according to its Parks Commissioner, will resist strongly any effort by the Jets to buy their way out of the existing lease at Shea Stadium. “The value of a major league team in this city transcends any money they pay in renting the stadium,” said Commissioner Martin Lang. He added: “I have not heard of any such buy-out being offered, and I would not look with equanimity toward losing a team, regardless of any money paid in lieu of performance.” Commissioner Lang said he had heard only of talks between Don Grant of the Mets and Leon Hess of the Jets to solve the scheduling dilemma. “I was pleased to learn of it, and would hope the two men continue to talk,” said Lang. Forced to Play on Road Originally published by the Daily News on Feb. 11, 1977. (NEW YORK DAILY NEWS) In past years, the Jets have been forced to play all exhibition and regular-season games on the road until the Mets have finished using the stadium. In 1973, when the Mets were in the World Series, the Jets had to play eight regular-season games on the road and only six at home. This problem could get worse since the NFL is considering increasing the regular schedule from 14 to 16 games. Moving to the Meadowlands not only would ease this competitive problem for the Jets but also provide them with 16,000 additional seats in a football-oriented ball park. Shea was the first of the multiple-purpose stadiums and opened up to the Jets in 1964. During their early years before they became successful, the Jets were allowed to play an early Saturday-night game at home during baseball season but when the football team became successful, McDonald Grant, board chairman of the Mets, closed the door. Under terms of their original lease with the city, the Mets have total control of Shea from the first day of spring training to the final game of the World Series, even if they are not in it. The Mets negotiated that lease with mayor Wagner’s administration, which was reeling under the adverse impact of the baseball Giants and Dodgers’ move to California. There was no thought then that the Titans of New York, bankrupt precursor of the Jets, would ever be a viable force. Wismer Faced Bankruptcy And when the Mets in turn negotiated with the Titans they were dealing with an owner, Harry Wismer, who was on the verge of bankruptcy. A lease to play in Shea was regard as his only possible salvation and he had to take what they gave him. In his letter to Mayor Beame, mailed after the Friday meeting in City Hall, Hess called “the current lease arrangement… totally unfavorable to the New York Jets.” Originally published by the Daily News on Feb. 11, 1977. (NEW YORK DAILY NEWS) He continued, “We are confronted with the still basic dilemma. The management of the Jets has committed to rebuild… But to do so under the current lease, without ever having the hope calling Shea Stadium our real home, would not be in the best interest of the club.” Hess, multimillionaire owner of the Amerada Hess Oil Co., took over a more active role in the Jets’ direction with the recent death of Phil Iselin. He cited two major causes for dissatisfaction to Beame: The fact that the Jets must negotiate their lease with another, tenant, the Mets, rather than with the stadium owner, the city; and the competitive disadvantage caused by the long period they must be away from home at the start of the season. Grant’s insistence on the regular-season rain dates and refusal to allow the installation of artificial turf - Hess in his letter said Grant vowed that “the Mets would never play on artificial turf” - put the football team “at the impasse, and not one of our own making.” “... we are New Yorkers.” Hess indicated that the Jets were facing an agonizing decision. “We do not want to leave the City of New York,” he wrote, and he concluded. Yankee Stadium Is Out There is, of course, the Yankee Stadium alternative, but the Jets ruled that out after an unpleasant pre-season experience in the refurbished ball park last summer. Three attractive night games failed to draw and the stadium, down to less than 60,000 seats for football after the renovation, proved unsuitable for the game. A field could barely be fitted into its contours and many seats were unsuitable. The highly promoted game with the Giants, postponed by a hurricane, drew only 35,000. Two other games against Oakland and Washington drew less than that combined. The Giants’ lease with the Meadowlands is reported to have been more highly favorable to the ball club than a lease at Yankee Stadium. The Jets could expect a Jersey agreement similar to the terms under which the Giants operate. The Jets would be coming out from under a much more restrictive contract at Shea where all fees from preferred parking and concessions go to the Mets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T0mShane Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 When I was a kid, I would read Lupica religiously and wanted to be a sportswriter. When I got older and figured out his shtick, I stopped reading the sports section altogether. There was one article in particular, about Kenny Anderson growing up in the projects, that read like Columbus trying to explain Native Americans to the Queen of England. True garbage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Crimson King Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 1 hour ago, JetsFanatic said: The Jets were treated like sh*t by NYC. They couldn't play any home games until the Mets season was over. In 1973 they actually lost a home game because the Mets made the World Series. Lupica is an ass hole. Not true, I forgot which year that they changed this but the Jets were playing Sept home games by the time they moved Examples: 1983: Home games: 9/11 and 9/25, Mets last home game 10/2 1982: Home game: 9/12 (strike afterwards), Mets last home game 9/30 1981: Home games: 9/13 & 9/27, Mets last home game 10/4 1980: Home games: 9/7 & 9/21, Mets last home game 10/1 1979: Home games: 9/2 & 9/16, Mets last home game 9/23 1978: Home games: 9/3 & 9/17, Mets last home game 9/26 1977: doesn't count, Mets season ended 6/15 Were you a ticket holder in 1983? We were furious, every one of us. I have never met another Jets fan from that era who supported this move (insert best Cronkite voice ... and that's the way it was December 1983 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 8 minutes ago, The Crimson King said: Not true, I forgot which year that they changed this but the Jets were playing Sept home games by the time they moved Examples: 1983: Home games: 9/11 and 9/25, Mets last home game 10/2 1982: Home game: 9/12 (strike afterwards), Mets last home game 9/30 1981: Home games: 9/13 & 9/27, Mets last home game 10/4 1980: Home games: 9/7 & 9/21, Mets last home game 10/1 1979: Home games: 9/2 & 9/16, Mets last home game 9/23 1978: Home games: 9/3 & 9/17, Mets last home game 9/26 1977: doesn't count, Mets season ended 6/15 Were you a ticket holder in 1983? We were furious, every one of us. I have never met another Jets fan from that era who supported this move (insert best Cronkite voice ... and that's the way it was December 1983 The only reason they were allowed to play early season home games from 1978-1983 was because Hess defyed the lease and in 1977 played a pre-season and 1 regular season home game at Giants Stadium. The City sued saying that the Jets had an exclusive lease with the NYC and took the Jets to court. The Jets settled the law suit with the City with both sides agreeing to allow the Jets to play home preseason games at Giants Stadium, and allowing 2 early regular season home games at Shea. The lease was not modified, meaning they received no money from parking or concessions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 12 minutes ago, T0mShane said: When I was a kid, I would read Lupica religiously and wanted to be a sportswriter. When I got older and figured out his shtick, I stopped reading the sports section altogether. There was one article in particular, about Kenny Anderson growing up in the projects, that read like Columbus trying to explain Native Americans to the Queen of England. True garbage You would make a good sports writer, although I don't usually agree with you, you have a clever way of writing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugg Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 2 hours ago, Jack Straw said: Mike Lupica, he of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, has spent the last 40 years trying convince everyone that he's smart and from New York. While he is a pretentious douchebag, he is neither smart nor from New York. Fault Hess for many things. But Shea was a total dump. ANd Hess was a genuine American war hero. Lupica is a pillow-biting bedwetter who knows less about sports than he does about politics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoBowles Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Its no secret why we are a joke of a franchise.... Leon Hess and Woody Johnson. Dumb and Dumber Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Crimson King Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Here's the story as told to me in the mid '80's. The individual who told me was a real character but one who would have knowledge of the situation. We were having an very long and "enjoyable" lunch at the time (different times back then). I was sad to note when he passed away years ago. I have no proof of what he told me but have always believed it to be true because it suits my feelings on the event. Ole' Leon was part owner of horse race track near Camden. I think it may have been called Garden State Race Track or something like that and it was bleeding cash. They owed over 7 figures in the Trust Fund portion of payroll taxes. If you are familiar with what a TRFP Assessment is and who is responsible for paying it, you know that Leon was about to get hit with a huge bill personally. Mr. Character said that of the group owners, he was the one with the deepest pockets at the time. Brendan Byrne, governor of the state at the time approached Hess (not the other way around) and said that if he moved the team that the state would buy the race track, which was losing money, assume all debt and pay the back taxes IF Leon signed a lease at the stadium in NJ. Of course, it is hard to believe that there have ever been any shady dealings in the State of New Jersey government. As I note, this is hearsay but from a source that should know. The story made sense in the fact that the club was moving to a place that was, frankly, an insult to the fan base, created an uproar therein and certainly not a place conducive to the branding of the franchise. I relate the story here not as a claim of what actually happened but as an interesting possibility. I haven't bought a tank of Hess gasoline to this day. I would like to see a post from any season ticket holder from 1983 who thought that this was a good move and why. I'm willing and open to listen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Better2bgreenthanblue Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 5 minutes ago, The Crimson King said: Here's the story as told to me in the mid '80's. The individual who told me was a real character but one who would have knowledge of the situation. We were having an very long and "enjoyable" lunch at the time (different times back then). I was sad to note when he passed away years ago. I have no proof of what he told me but have always believed it to be true because it suits my feelings on the event. Ole' Leon was part owner of horse race track near Camden. I think it may have been called Garden State Race Track or something like that and it was bleeding cash. They owed over 7 figures in the Trust Fund portion of payroll taxes. If you are familiar with what a TRFP Assessment is and who is responsible for paying it, you know that Leon was about to get hit with a huge bill personally. Mr. Character said that of the group owners, he was the one with the deepest pockets at the time. Brendan Byrne, governor of the state at the time approached Hess (not the other way around) and said that if he moved the team that the state would buy the race track, which was losing money, assume all debt and pay the back taxes IF Leon signed a lease at the stadium in NJ. Of course, it is hard to believe that there have ever been any shady dealings in the State of New Jersey government. As I note, this is hearsay but from a source that should know. The story made sense in the fact that the club was moving to a place that was, frankly, an insult to the fan base, created an uproar therein and certainly not a place conducive to the branding of the franchise. I relate the story here not as a claim of what actually happened but as an interesting possibility. I haven't bought a tank of Hess gasoline to this day. I would like to see a post from any season ticket holder from 1983 who thought that this was a good move and why. I'm willing and open to listen. Garden State Park. Burned to ground in the late 70's. Before the fire it was a very successful and I imagine profitable track. Rebuilding it was a bad decision. This story makes sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanatic Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 13 minutes ago, The Crimson King said: Here's the story as told to me in the mid '80's. The individual who told me was a real character but one who would have knowledge of the situation. We were having an very long and "enjoyable" lunch at the time (different times back then). I was sad to note when he passed away years ago. I have no proof of what he told me but have always believed it to be true because it suits my feelings on the event. Ole' Leon was part owner of horse race track near Camden. I think it may have been called Garden State Race Track or something like that and it was bleeding cash. They owed over 7 figures in the Trust Fund portion of payroll taxes. If you are familiar with what a TRFP Assessment is and who is responsible for paying it, you know that Leon was about to get hit with a huge bill personally. Mr. Character said that of the group owners, he was the one with the deepest pockets at the time. Brendan Byrne, governor of the state at the time approached Hess (not the other way around) and said that if he moved the team that the state would buy the race track, which was losing money, assume all debt and pay the back taxes IF Leon signed a lease at the stadium in NJ. Of course, it is hard to believe that there have ever been any shady dealings in the State of New Jersey government. As I note, this is hearsay but from a source that should know. The story made sense in the fact that the club was moving to a place that was, frankly, an insult to the fan base, created an uproar therein and certainly not a place conducive to the branding of the franchise. I relate the story here not as a claim of what actually happened but as an interesting possibility. I haven't bought a tank of Hess gasoline to this day. I would like to see a post from any season ticket holder from 1983 who thought that this was a good move and why. I'm willing and open to listen. I've been a season ticket holder since 1978. As my previous posts on this thread indicate, I don't blame Hess for moving the team to NJ, as the team was not treated well by NYC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugg Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 16 minutes ago, The Crimson King said: Here's the story as told to me in the mid '80's. The individual who told me was a real character but one who would have knowledge of the situation. We were having an very long and "enjoyable" lunch at the time (different times back then). I was sad to note when he passed away years ago. I have no proof of what he told me but have always believed it to be true because it suits my feelings on the event. Ole' Leon was part owner of horse race track near Camden. I think it may have been called Garden State Race Track or something like that and it was bleeding cash. They owed over 7 figures in the Trust Fund portion of payroll taxes. If you are familiar with what a TRFP Assessment is and who is responsible for paying it, you know that Leon was about to get hit with a huge bill personally. Mr. Character said that of the group owners, he was the one with the deepest pockets at the time. Brendan Byrne, governor of the state at the time approached Hess (not the other way around) and said that if he moved the team that the state would buy the race track, which was losing money, assume all debt and pay the back taxes IF Leon signed a lease at the stadium in NJ. Of course, it is hard to believe that there have ever been any shady dealings in the State of New Jersey government. As I note, this is hearsay but from a source that should know. The story made sense in the fact that the club was moving to a place that was, frankly, an insult to the fan base, created an uproar therein and certainly not a place conducive to the branding of the franchise. I relate the story here not as a claim of what actually happened but as an interesting possibility. I haven't bought a tank of Hess gasoline to this day. I would like to see a post from any season ticket holder from 1983 who thought that this was a good move and why. I'm willing and open to listen. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_State_Park_Racetrack Believe Hess did have a stake. The story is plausible; Hess was no fool. But Shea was a nasty place in summer, even worse on a cold day. The open centerfield made it windy as hell even on relatively nice fall and winter days. The City did nothing to address any of these issues. Yet the Mets (and Yankees) made the same exact arguments in their bids for new stadiums going back decades. While it made the ride home a lot longer personally, Giants Stadium was by far a better stadium in every way. Metlife? well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joewilly12 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 Leon Hess is dead and to attack this man is low life. I would rather him as our owner instead of Woody Johnson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joewilly12 Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 3 hours ago, Jack Straw said: Mike Lupica, he of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, has spent the last 40 years trying convince everyone that he's smart and from New York. While he is a pretentious douchebag, he is neither smart nor from New York. Mike Lupica is a doucha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetsons Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 but but but we now have bigger bathrooms :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAR I Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 4 hours ago, JoJoTownsell1 said: How can anyone hate an Owner that moves his team from New York to New Jersey, to play in a swamp and be the kid brother to the Giants. Hess makes Woody Johnson look like Robert Kraft. Here we go again. The Mets took a huge sh-t all over the Jets from 1964-1983. Practically no home games for the first month of every season, no effort to modernize conditions, the pennant of the Montreal Expos was visible through the uprights on every FG and extra point attempt. The place was awful. Giants Stadium was a football stadium. That's really all that we needed and the city of New York had zero interest in providing it. SAR I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAR I Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 3 hours ago, JetsFanatic said: The Jets were treated like sh*t by NYC. They couldn't play any home games until the Mets season was over. In 1973 they actually lost a home game because the Mets made the World Series. Lupica is an ass hole. Jets win the Super Bowl in the most shocking upset in modern sports history. The New York Mets don't allow them to have a home game to raise the Championship flag until Week 6 by which point the Jets were 3-2 and no one was excited about the prior season any more. The City Of New York doesn't give the Jets a well-deserved tickertape parade because they decided to have yet another parade celebrating the Apollo 8 astronauts instead. F the Mets. And F New York. You people who don't know your history need to brush up on just how bad the Jets had it and why they had to leave. SAR I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Harris Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 I hate Leon Hess because he is responsible for the SOJ legacy we have. one of the worst owners ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dcat Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 4 hours ago, JetsFanatic said: Check out the Jets 1973 season, add in that they played 6 preseason road games. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/nyj/1973.htm This was typical of how the Jets were treated, and you blame Hess? Give me a break! Schedule & Game Results Share & more Modify & Share Table Embed this Table Get as Excel Workbook (experimental) Get table as CSV (for Excel) Strip Mobile Formatting Copy Link to Table to Clipboard About Sharing Tools Video: SR Sharing Tools & How-to Video: Stats Table Tips & Tricks Glossary Score Offense Defense Week Day Date OT Rec Opp Tm Opp 1stD TotYd PassY RushY TO 1stD TotYd PassY RushY TO 1 Mon September 17 9:00PM ET boxscore L 0-1 @ Green Bay Packers 7 23 16 269 200 69 3 14 253 98 155 2 Sun September 23 2:00PM ET boxscore W 1-1 @ Baltimore Colts 34 10 16 276 168 108 1 14 277 188 89 8 3 Sun September 30 1:00PM ET boxscore L 1-2 @ Buffalo Bills 7 9 17 250 148 102 1 15 272 64 208 3 4 Sun October 7 1:00PM ET boxscore L 1-3 @ Miami Dolphins 3 31 12 198 42 156 5 18 370 219 151 2 5 Sun October 14 1:00PM ET boxscore W 2-3 @ New England Patriots 9 7 13 232 232 1 9 172 58 114 2 6 Sun October 21 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-4 @ Pittsburgh Steelers 14 26 9 118 46 72 3 19 360 146 214 2 7 Sun October 28 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-5 Denver Broncos 28 40 17 315 229 86 3 20 432 235 197 1 8 Sun November 4 1:00PM ET boxscore L 2-6 Miami Dolphins 14 24 16 281 168 113 2 21 346 193 153 2 9 Sun November 11 1:00PM ET boxscore W 3-6 New England Patriots 33 13 16 326 59 267 4 10 149 108 41 8 10 Sun November 18 2:00PM ET boxscore L 3-7 @ Cincinnati Bengals 14 20 21 357 264 93 4 11 208 76 132 1 11 Sun November 25 4:00PM ET boxscore L 3-8 Atlanta Falcons 20 28 15 290 173 117 6 15 288 141 147 3 12 Sun December 2 1:00PM ET boxscore W 4-8 Baltimore Colts 20 17 18 353 219 134 3 19 319 151 168 2 13 Sun December 9 1:00PM ET boxscore L 4-9 @ Philadelphia Eagles 23 24 24 432 156 276 3 20 358 203 155 3 14 Sun December 16 1:00PM ET boxscore L 4-10 Buffalo Bills 14 34 12 223 184 39 21 374 70 304 1 Am I counting right? In a 14 game season, I see 6 home games and 8 away games. I knew the Mets refused to let the Jets touch the field until after they lost their 100th game of the season, but 6 home and 8 away? WTF? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adb280z Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 3 hours ago, billo83 said: IIRC one of the stated reasons Hess didn't like Shea was the bathrooms were terrible I went to a Mets opening day game years ago at Shea, there was an inch of filthy water on the ground behind my seats. It was always dirty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.