A Minor Point

America West Airlines has been boasting about the “exceptional advertising value” it is getting now that the Charles Barkley-led Phoenix Suns are playing the Chicago Bulls in the National Basketball Assn. finals.

In an announcement last week, the Phoenix-based carrier gushed that it is receiving an “invaluable promotional boost” because the Suns play in the America West Arena, which carries the airline’s name for a $550,000 annual fee.

The result is what America West calls “multiple impressions” during prime time whenever the arena’s name is mentioned by an announcer or the camera shows the America West name painted on the hardwood floor.

One can only hope that those multiple impressions will impress America West’s creditors. Not mentioned by America West in its announcement, is that the airline is currently operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.

Still at the Starting Gate

Hollywood Park hopes to be off and running with a card club sometime in the near future, but a prospectus just filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission details a few problems.

The race track, which is trying to raise about $100 million toward the facility, is already facing public opposition from state Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren, who maintains that current law prohibits a public company from operating a card club.

The alternative would be to lease space to a licensed operator unless a bill in Sacramento becomes law allowing the Inglewood company to operate the club.

But still another hang-up could be waiting. Seems that Hollywood Park Chairman R.D. Hubbard has some ownership interests in out-of-state greyhound parimutuel businesses.

The prospectus notes that Lungren can legally deny Hollywood Park a gaming license because Hubbard had not been licensed under the state Gaming Registration Act for five consecutive years before acquiring those interests.

Ancient History

Steven Spielberg’s $60-million film “Jurassic Park” painstakingly creates the prehistoric look of dinosaurs, but its account of recent history is a little shaky.

In the movie, Jurassic developer John Hammond, played by Richard Attenborough, compares getting the bugs out of the new park to the opening of Disneyland in . . . 1956.

For the record, Disneyland’s opening day was July 17, 1955.

Briefly . . .

More Hollywood Park: The prospectus says a proposed 16,000-seat MusicDome would include retractable roof and walls for indoor and outdoor concerts. . . . Star struck? Hollywood sources say White House staff has been collecting release dates of upcoming movies to enter into their computers. . . . Quote from the past: L.A. Mayor-elect Richard Riordan, defending junk-bond financier and philanthropist Michael Milken in 1988, said: “He could have bought a yacht far bigger than Donald Trump’s and jet airplane far fancier than Adnan Khashoggi’s.”