Hall of Fame Beverages, Inc (HFBG)

[Frzframe]

Looks like a brewing topic. Hmmmmm....
http://www.nypost.com/seven/12142007/news/regionalnews/bad_sports_167661.htm

'BAD' SPORTS
EX-ATHLETES PUSHING THUG FOOD: POL
By FRANKIE EDOZIEN
UNLEASHED: Atomic Dogg is under fire.
December 14, 2007 -- Former Knick Larry Johnson and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Brown are engaged in marketing the gang lifestyle to inner-city kids, a peeved Queens lawmaker charged yesterday.

The two are part of O.G. Nation, which markets beverages and snacks branded with names such as "Thug Chips" and "Atomic Dogg."

Council aides claim that in street parlance, "O.G." means "original gangster."

The company is preparing to unleash a wave of thug-themed products to supermarkets in urban areas.

Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-Queens), who has been crusading against the marketing of gang paraphernalia on city streets, today will call on investors to pull out and buyers to stay away.

"They are people trying to exploit our youth," Comrie said.

"It's even more insidious because these are people that work directly with gangs . . . enticing people into thug life and gang life. It makes no sense to me," the lawmaker told The Post.

He said Johnson and Brown's products will end up hurting "generations of people."

"Why would you harm an entire culture just to help a few people" make money? Comrie asked.

Meanwhile, at a Council Public Safety & Consumer Affairs hearing yesterday, cops said the attention paid to gang paraphernalia has resulted in a shift from hats and jerseys to more subtle forms of identification.

"The blatant wear that we used to see two years ago [is dissipating]. Things are a little more subtle now - shoe laces, things of that nature," said Deputy Chief Robert Boyce.

"One of the things we're seeing more often now is shoes . . . In particular, lime-green shoes have been adopted" by Dominican gangs uptown, Boyce added.

Lawmakers were peeved that representatives of New Era, makers of Major League Baseball caps that have been decorated and used as gang wear, didn't show up. Company officials said scheduling was an issue.

"They are marketing death to our kids, pure and simple," said Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Queens). "They are such a busy company that they couldn't get here with two weeks' notice on such a serious issue."

[e-mail]