Bill Rasmussen, the sports broadcaster-turned-entrepreneur who founded ESPN, the pioneering all-sports cable network, died Tuesday at his home in Florida. He was 93.
Mr. Rasmussen died from the effects of Parkinson’s disease, according to a statement from ESPN. He had been an ambassador for Parkinson’s patients since publicly disclosing his diagnosis in 2019.
The idea for ESPN came to Mr. Rasmussen and his son, Scott, on a Friday afternoon in August 1978 while the two were stuck in traffic on Connecticut’s Interstate 84, discussing programming for a satellite transponder they had just acquired from RCA. Mr. Rasmussen had just been fired as communications director of the New England Whalers and maxed out his credit card to help fund the venture.
The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network launched in 1.4 million homes at 7 p.m. on Sept. 7, 1979, with “SportsCenter” as its debut broadcast. Mr. Rasmussen served as ESPN’s first president and chief executive before being named chairman in July 1979, when Chet Simmons succeeded him as president. He left an active role at the network in October 1980, according to the statement from ESPN.
“Bill was a remarkable man — a visionary and an innovator who conceived the idea of a network entirely devoted to sports,” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement.
Chris Berman, who joined ESPN three weeks after the network’s 1979 launch, called Mr. Rasmussen “our George Washington and a good friend.”
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ESPN has grown from about 80 employees at its Bristol, Conn., launch to more than 5,900 employees worldwide, operating eight U.S. television networks plus sports programming on ABC. The network is now controlled by Disney, with Hearst and the NFL as minority investors.
Mr. Rasmussen was predeceased by his wife of 56 years, Lois, in 2011, and is survived by two sons, Scott and Glenn Rasmussen; a daughter, Lynn Van Hollebeke; seven grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
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