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Peter Guber joins Magic Johnson’s Dodgers bid group

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Peter Guber, the co-owner of the Golden State Warriors and a veteran Hollywood executive, has joined the Dodgers bid group led by Magic Johnson.

Guber would be a minority investor in the group. Johnson is an investor in the Dayton Dragons, one of several minor league baseball franchises owned and operated by Guber’s Mandalay Sports. The Dragons have sold out 844 consecutive games, an ongoing record for a North American professional sports franchise.

Guber and Johnson also have been partners in the entertainment business. When he was chief executive at Sony Entertainment, Guber helped Johnson launch his chain of movie theaters.

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Guber declined to comment. His decision to join the Johnson bid group was confirmed by two people familiar with the Dodgers sale process but not authorized to comment publicly.

The Johnson bid is one of four expected to be submitted to major league owners for approval next week, according to people familiar with the sale process. Frank McCourt, the Dodgers’ outgoing owner, has agreed to select the winning bidder by April 1 and close the sale of the team by April 30, the same day he must pay his ex-wife $131 million in a divorce settlement.

If the Johnson bid is successful, longtime baseball executive Stan Kasten would run the Dodgers. Guber would help the team develop its strategies in such areas as marketing, fan experience and community affairs.

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Guber, 70, is chairman and chief executive of Los Angeles-based Mandalay Entertainment. In an entertainment career that has spanned half a century, he has served as an executive producer for such films as “Rain Man,” “The Color Purple,” and “Flashdance.”

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