Sam Zell was in Beverly Hills today and more or less swore that he has no plans to sell the Los Angeles Times, assuming that he gets hold of Tribune, of course.

"I said it to Eli Broad. I said it to Ron Burkle. I said it to David Geffen, and I'm saying it to you," Zell said at a conference on corporate growth.

He then quipped: "Now, if you have a price, we can talk."

The remark brought laughter from the standing-room-only crowd at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Sounds like he wants to be rid of the Chicago Cubs as soon as possible, and might sell to Mark Cuban. "I have no idea who is going to end up with the Cubs," Zell said. "But it ain't gonna be me."