Braves and Beef: Hank Aaron thinks about...

Braves and Beef: Hank Aaron thinks about roast beef as well as baseball. The home run king, who is now an executive with the Atlanta Braves, is buying Arby’s franchises and plans to have nine of the fast-food restaurants by the end of the year, according to Success magazine. Aaron gets former teammates to come out to the openings of the restaurants and each one features Aaron memorabilia. “Being my own boss has been a wonderful experience for me,” Aaron says.

Revealing Work: In a capital city full of advocates, the new year has unveiled a new lobbyist who promotes only the bare facts. Kevin Kearney is the first paid and registered lobbyist in Washington representing nudists. Kearney, 38, is the spokesman for the 35,000-member American Sunbathing Assn. “No, I’m not a nudist,” he says, “but I guess I’m becoming one. I got nude at their convention last year--for business purposes.” Kearney says his group lobbies only for “non-sexual” fun such as “hot tubbing and skinny-dipping.” A major part of his lobbying job is to persuade officials in charge of public parks and forests officials to permit “clothing-optional” areas. “Finding a champion in Congress is a problem,” Kearney said. “But we’ll find one.”

There Goes the Neighborhood: Putting together a defense for Manuel Noriega hasn’t been the only problem facing Miami lawyer Frank Rubino lately. The city has been trying to boot Rubino out of his Coconut Grove law office because it’s in a residential area. Rubino’s request for a change in the zoning laws was scheduled to go before city officials Monday night. Long before Noriega was sent to Miami to stand trial on cocaine trafficking charges, Coconut Grove residents complained that they didn’t want Rubino’s criminal clientele coming to their neighborhood. Rubino told board members that if his rezoning request is defeated, he might have to convert the office into a home. “Their worst fears could come true,” Rubino said. “I could move in.”