SeaWorld Names CFO and Chief Creative Officer
August 17 2015 - 5:40PM
Dow Jones News
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. said it appointed two theme park
industry veterans to leadership roles, in the latest management
shifts at the amusement park operator.
The company's board appointed Peter J. Crage as the theme-park
operator's chief financial officer starting next month.
Anthony Esparza also was selected as SeaWorld's chief creative
officer. SeaWorld said current chief creative officer, Scott
Helmstedter is returning to his home state of California and will
continue his work with the company as a consultant.
SeaWorld, which has been hurt by negative publicity about its
killer whales, earlier this year began an advertising campaign to
counter "misinformation" and highlight the company's commitment to
killer whale care and research.
The Orlando, Fla., company has battled with animal-rights
activists, who say that training and publicly presenting killer
whales is inherently cruel. The documentary "Blackfish" raised
these criticisms to a higher level of public awareness, harming the
company's financial results.
Mr. Crage succeeds James M. Heaney, who left SeaWorld to return
to the cruise industry. Mr. Heaney a former finance chief of Disney
Cruise Line, had been the chief financial officer at SeaWorld since
2012.
Mr. Crage, 53 years old, most recently was chief financial
officer at Extended Stay America Inc. His previous experience
includes serving as finance chief at amusement-park operator Cedar
Fair LP.
Mr. Esparza, 54, most recently served as a senior vice president
for guest experiences, design and development at family-owned theme
park and entertainment company Herschend Enterprises.
Marc Swanson, who had been serving as interim finance chief,
will continue to serve as chief accounting officer next month.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 17, 2015 17:25 ET (21:25 GMT)
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