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Pioneering television sportscaster Chris Schnekel is dead at the age of 82.
Although best known for his long stint as play-by-play man for ABC's coverage of the Professional Bowlers Association "Winter" tour (January-April each year), Schnekel's accomplishments extended far beyond the bowling alley.
In the early/mid 1950's, he began his network TV career calling Monday-night boxing on the now-defunct DuMont network. Beginning in 1959 (according to a CBS press release issued earlier this year on the network's 50 years broadcasting the tourney), he spent several years as one of CBS' announcers at the Masters' golf tournament. He would also enjoy a thirteen-year stint calling New York Giants' football games, including the 1958 NFL championship game against the old Baltimore Colts. While the Giants lost, the dramatic game, which went into overtime, is credited with establishing the NFL as a major sport and turning what were then the "big three" professional team sports (baseball, hockey, basketball) into the "big four".
After joining ABC, Schnekel was lead play-by-play man for the network's college football coverage from 1966 through 1970. He also spent a number of years doing play-by-play for NBA basketball, including several NBA Finals. And like nearly all of ABC's play-by-play sportscasters, he also called events for "Wide World Of Sports" and worked extensively on ABC's Olympic coverage (serving as studio host for the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City and as a gymnastics commentator for the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal).
This is an obituary from the website of the Indianapolis Star; Schnekel was a native of Indiana.
Although best known for his long stint as play-by-play man for ABC's coverage of the Professional Bowlers Association "Winter" tour (January-April each year), Schnekel's accomplishments extended far beyond the bowling alley.
In the early/mid 1950's, he began his network TV career calling Monday-night boxing on the now-defunct DuMont network. Beginning in 1959 (according to a CBS press release issued earlier this year on the network's 50 years broadcasting the tourney), he spent several years as one of CBS' announcers at the Masters' golf tournament. He would also enjoy a thirteen-year stint calling New York Giants' football games, including the 1958 NFL championship game against the old Baltimore Colts. While the Giants lost, the dramatic game, which went into overtime, is credited with establishing the NFL as a major sport and turning what were then the "big three" professional team sports (baseball, hockey, basketball) into the "big four".
After joining ABC, Schnekel was lead play-by-play man for the network's college football coverage from 1966 through 1970. He also spent a number of years doing play-by-play for NBA basketball, including several NBA Finals. And like nearly all of ABC's play-by-play sportscasters, he also called events for "Wide World Of Sports" and worked extensively on ABC's Olympic coverage (serving as studio host for the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City and as a gymnastics commentator for the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal).
This is an obituary from the website of the Indianapolis Star; Schnekel was a native of Indiana.