LOMBARDI Producer Tony Ponturo Inducted Into Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame

Tony Ponturo, CEO of Ponturo Management Group and co-producer of the recently opened Broadway play LOMBARDI, will be inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame at their annual banquet at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel Wednesday night, October 27. Ponturo spent 26 years leading the diverse sports and entertainment portfolio for Anheuser Busch before returning to New York in 2009, where his recent focus has gone to the theater. He has served as associate producer for the Tony winner "Hair" and producer for fellow Tony winner "Memphis" in the last two years. His most recent project, "Lombardi," (co-produced with Fran Kirmser in association with the National Football League) opened to solid reviews last Thursday at Circle in the Square Theater in Manhattan.

"It is a thrill to be honored with such a diverse list of broadcasting and entertainment industry luminaries, and I am very thankful to Broadcasting and Cable for including me in this group," said Ponturo.

Other honorees at the event will include BMI president and CEO Del Bryant; Time Warner Cable COO Landel Hobbs; Hearst Entertainment & Syndication founder and former president Raymond Joslin; Meredith Local Media Group president Paul Karpowicz; BET Networks chairman and CEO Debra Lee; CBS News and Sports president Sean McManus; Fox Broadcasting Company president of sales and Fox Television EVP Jon Nesvig; ID, Military Channel and HD Theater president and GM Henry Schleiff; and Comcast Cable EVP and CTO Tony Werner. The 20th annual event will be hosted by Regis Philbin, with Jim Nantz serving as co-host.

The induction is the latest in a series of accolades for the Ponturo for his work over the past 25 plus years. Annually recognized as one of the most powerful executives in sports and entertainment, Ponturo was ranked by Business Week as #14 out of the top 100 most influential executives in 2008. He was ranked as the 12th most influential person in sports by the Sports Business Journal in 2007 and the #1 sports advertiser executive in 2004. He was also recently feted the Sports Business Journal, as an inaugural member of their "Champions" program, which will honor select industry leaders for their career accomplishments..The New Jersey native has developed Ponturo Management Group in many prominent areas, including his work in the theater and in other sports and entertainment consulting projects. "Lombardi" represents the marriage of his two passions, sports and the theater, in one unique project.

Directed by Tony Award nominee Thomas Kail, LOMBARDI is an original play by Academy Award-winning playwright Eric Simonson, based on the best-selling biography When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi by Pulitzer Prize winner David Maraniss. Joining producers Tony Ponturo and Fran Kirmser as special producing partner is the National Football League, marking the organization's first foray on Broadway. The production opened on October 21 at Circle in the Square to rave reviews.

Starring Dan Lauria as the legendary Hall of Fame football coach Vince Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife Marie, the cast of LOMBARDI also features Keith Nobbs as Michael McCormick, Bill Dawes as Paul Hornung, Robert Christopher Riley as Dave Robinson and Chris Sullivan as Jim Taylor.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.telecharge.com<http://www.telecharge.com>, by phone at 212-239-6200, or in person at the Box Office (50th Street, West of Broadway).