MARCH 12 • 2020 | 15
MARCH 12 • 2020 | 15

senior vice president of marketing 
at Viacom, where he headed mar-
keting for MTV
, and was later a 
senior vice president of the National 
Football League and chief market-
ing officer for Major League Soccer. 
One of his pinnacle career 
achievements was as chief market-
ing officer for Virgin Mobile. “We 
built a billion-dollar company and 
we took it public on the New York 
Stock Exchange,
” he said. 
A combination of factors made 
the 313 Presents job a winning deal 
for Handler: the chance to work 
with iconic venues, committed part-
ners, a growing business and a city 
on the rise. 
When he spoke with his wife, 
Wendy, about the job, he just 
thought it was the right time to 
come home “because I can make an 
impact and do something positive 
for the city that I’
ve always loved.
”
The couple have two adult chil-
dren, Rian and Eli. And his parents, 
Wally and Marlene, still live in the 
area. 

ON THE JOB
Handler, 58, arrived back in Detroit 
the day after Thanksgiving 2019, 
caught the Michigan-Ohio State 
football game and then set up an 
apartment downtown. The official 
announcement of his new role at 
313 Presents was made Dec. 5.
The company is a joint venture 
started in 2017 between Olympia 
Entertainment, a division of Ilitch 
Holdings, and Palace Sports & 
Entertainment. Handler replaces 
Tom Wilson, interim president since 
the company’
s creation. Wilson now 
serves as president emeritus.
As president, Handler will over-
see all entertainment events, making 

“I can make an impact and do something 
positive for the city that I’ve always loved.”

— HOWARD HANDLER
continued on page 16