35454_12R -- ABC SPORTS -- CHRIS SCHENKEL -- 11/83
TRACKING #41056
Chris Schenkel was a major part of ABC Sports: host of the PROFESSIONAL BOWLERS TOUR for 33 years; the voice of NCAA college football for 12 years; sportscaster for the New York Giants (football), professional boxing, horse racing, professional golf and NBA basketball; anchorman for 10 Summer and Winter Olympics (including Squaw Valley; Grenoble; Mexico City; Munich, Montreal, Lake Placid, Los Angeles and Calgary; he was the recipient of the George Peabody Award for his work as anchorman at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City). Among his awards: four-time Sportscaster of the Year (1963, 1964, 1967 and 1970); recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award (1993); and recipient of the Pete Roselle Award (for exceptional longtime contributions to radio and TV in pro football, 1991 and 1992).
MUST CREDIT: STEVE FENN/ABC
DOG COMMENTARY:
I could not find any reference information on Italy’s Bruno Scolari….the 1984 Olympics equestrian competitor…..so, the man bringing the show jumping competition for ABC sports was one of Bone Daddy’s long-time favorite sportscasters….Chris Schenkel….who over the course of five decades called play-by-play for numerous sports on television and radio….becoming known for his smooth delivery and baritone voice.
ABC Sports hired Schenkel in 1965….where he broadcast college football, Major League Baseball, NBA basketball, golf and tennis tournaments, boxing, auto racing, and the Summer and Winter Olympic Games….but he was best known for covering professional bowling….mainly for the Professional Bowlers Association (also known as the Pro Bowlers Tour). He covered bowling from the early 1960’s until 1997….as it became one of ABC’s signature sports for Saturday afternoons. His broadcast partners on the PBA telecasts included Billy Welu (through 1974) and Nelson “Bo” Burton, Jr. (1975–97). Schenkel and his broadcast team provided exciting and colorful coverage to a sport not typically considered attractive to a television audience.
During his 36 years on The Professional Bowlers Tour….there were occasions when ABC sent Schenkel away to cover other assignments….and strangely, he was away on assignment for the first three of the PBA’s televised 300 games. He would eventually witness a 300 game on January 31, 1987 when Houstonian Pete McCordic bowled one in the first match of the Greater Los Angeles Open. Schenkel told McCordic it was a great moment for him, since he was away all the other times. Schenkel would witness and call five more televised 300 games.
Contrary to current popular belief, Chris Schenkel, not Jim McKay, anchored ABC’s prime time coverage of the ill-fated 1972 Summer Olympics. When the terrorist attacks (otherwise known as the Munich Massacre) occurred….Schenkel was asleep after hosting the previous night’s coverage live from Munich from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. local time….so McKay….who was on his way to the Stadium for track and field coverage….was told to return to the ABC studio to report on the situation unfolding at the Olympic Village. Schenkel returned to anchor Olympic coverage after the Games resumed.
