Bill Rasmussen, the co-founder and founder figure behind ESPN, dies at age 93. Multiple outlets report that he dies at his home in Florida after a battle with Parkinson’s disease.
Rasmussen and his son, Scott, conceive the idea for an all-sports, 24-hour television network in the late 1970s while Rasmussen is driving or idling in traffic on Connecticut’s Interstate 84. Sources describe Rasmussen’s earlier career, including his work in sports media and a tenure with the New England Whalers that ends with him being fired from a communications director role. They also highlight that Rasmussen uses the emerging business of satellite television to pursue the network concept.
Outlets vary slightly on specific dates and wording. One report places the idea in 1978, while others describe ESPN’s launch or founding as occurring in 1979. The accounts also differ in emphasis: some foreground his background in local television and satellite know-how, while others focus on his role in building the “world’s first” 24-hour sports channel and his later disclosure of his Parkinson’s diagnosis.
