business

Actress Ashley Judd will be at the Dome tonight
By Jake Levy
March 25, 2010 - 3:42pm
Plus, Syracuse Crunch announces new affiliation with Anaheim Ducks and Indy business owners want 'Cuse in the Final Four.

Kentucky super-fan and movie star Ashley Judd will be at the Carrier Dome tonight when Kentucky and Cornell face off in the Sweet 16. The "Double Jeopardy" star went to New Orleans to watch the Wildcats crush Wake Forest. Judd says she was embarrassed during former coach Billy Gillispie's tenure because of how bad the team was. Even though she had high expectations when new coach John Calipari came in, she says the team's success this year was a pleasant surprise.  

Hefner packs the Herg
By Tamara Vallejos
November 4, 2009 - 9:47pm
Former CEO Christie Hefner, daughter of the world’s most infamous man-about-town Hugh Hefner, helped transform Playboy the magazine into Playboy the brand.

“You’re never entirely sure where your life is going to take you,” Christie Hefner said.

Despite her goal to attend Yale University for graduate school, Hefner agreed to begin working at Playboy.

Christie Hefner delivered a public lecture in Newhouse on Wednesday about her insights gained from more than 30 years working with the company her father, Hugh Hefner, founded in 1953.

Music executive Rick Dobbis on the future of the industry
By Rebecca Schmid
October 9, 2009 - 8:04am
Rick Dobbis spoke to students at the School of Management yesterday about how the music industry is changing.

It is no secret that the music industry is no longer a record business. Nor is it very profitable for the same people anymore. Simon Cowell and the owners of Live Nation may be rubbing their hands together, but long-time execs are wondering how to keep themselves afloat.

Rick Dobbis was anything but idealistic in the face of these global changes. Currently Chairman of R-DOG LLC, a multi-dimensional entertainment company that serves clients such as the Rolling Stones and Yanni, Dobbis challenged to students to wonder what the industry would be like in five years.

Working through an economic funk
By Jamie De Pould
July 16, 2009 - 3:54pm
Business slows at Funk 'n Waffles but owners plan to weather the downturn.

There’s only one place in Syracuse that sells a falafel waffle.

Funk ’n Waffles co-founders Adam Gold and Kyle Corea began experimenting with music and waffles while they were film students at Syracuse University.

“We brought that same [living room] vibe to the restaurant, so a lot of people feel like they’re just hanging out in our apartment,” Gold said. “But now we have a food service permit.”

The business started strong, he said. But then things changed.