United States Court of Appeals FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT _____________

No. 97-2151EM _____________

Bobby L. Goodman, * * Appellant, * Appeal from the United States * District Court for the Eastern v. * District of Missouri. * Brown Group, Inc., * [UNPUBLISHED] * Appellee. * _____________

Submitted: December 10, 1997 Filed: December 17, 1997 _____________

Before FAGG, BEAM, and MORRIS SHEPPARD ARNOLD, Circuit Judges. _____________

PER CURIAM.

Bobby L. Goodman appeals the district court's grant of summary judgment to Brown Group, Inc. on Goodman's age discrimination claim. Having reviewed the record and the parties' briefs, we conclude Goodman is not entitled to relief. We reject Goodman's argument that the district court improperly failed to apply a "mixed- motives" analysis to his case, because Goodman did not present enough evidence of a discriminatory component to meet the threshold showing required for this analysis. Additionally, even if we assume for the purpose of our review that Goodman established the elements of a prima facie case, we agree with the district court's analysis that Goodman failed to present any evidence tending to show that Brown Group's articulated reasons for Goodman's separation during a legitimate reduction in force were a pretext for age discrimination. We thus conclude the district court correctly granted summary judgment and we affirm without further discussion. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.

A true copy.

Attest:

CLERK, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS, EIGHTH CIRCUIT.

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