Jim McKay

Infobox actor
name = Jim McKay


imagesize = 175px
caption =
birthname = James Kenneth McManus
birthdate = Birth date|1921|9|24
birthplace = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
deathdate = Death date and age|2008|6|7|1921|9|24
deathplace = Monkton, Maryland
othername =
occupation = Sportscaster, sportswriter, actor
yearsactive = 1955 - 2004
spouse = Margaret Dempsey
emmyawards = Sports Emmy Awards

*Outstanding Host or Commentator
1967-68 for ABC
1970-71 for ABC - tied with Don Meredith
1972-73 for ABC
1973-74 for ABC
1974-75 for ABC
1975-76 for ABC
1978-79 for ABC
1979-80 for ABC
*Outstanding Host or Play-by-Play
1981-82 for ABC
*Outstanding Achievement in Sports Programming
1968 - "ABC's Wide World of Sports" - ABC - Jim McKay, Sports Commentator
1971 - "ABC's Wide World of Sports" - ABC - Jim McKay, Commentator
1973 - "1972 Summer Olympic Games" - ABC - Jim McKay, Commentator
1974 - "ABC's Wide World of Sports" - ABC - Jim McKay, Host
*1990 - Sports Lifetime Achievement Award
awards = 1972 - George Polk Award for Television reporting

James Kenneth McManus (September 24 1921 – June 7 2008), better known by his professional name of Jim McKay, was an American television sports journalist.

McKay is best known for hosting ABC's "Wide World of Sports" (1961–1998). His "Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sports... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... the human drama of athletic competition... This is "ABC's Wide World of Sports!" introduction for that program has passed into American pop culture. He is also known for television coverage of twelve Olympic Games, and for his reporting on the Munich massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics.

McKay covered a wide variety of special events, including horse races such as the Kentucky Derby, golf events such as the British Open, and the Indianapolis 500. McKay's son, Sean McManus, a protege of Roone Arledge, is president of CBS' Sports and News divisions.

Biography

Early life

McKay was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and raised in the Overbrook section of the city in an Irish Catholic family. He attended Our Lady of Lourdes Grade School and Saint Joseph's Preparatory School.cite web
last =Schudel
first =Matt
authorlink =
coauthors =
title =Philadelphia native Jim McKay dies at 86
work =
publisher =Philadelphia Inquirer
date =June 8, 2008
url =http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/20080608_Philadelphia_native_Jim_McKay_dies_at_86.html
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-06-08] At the age of 14 his family moved to Baltimore, Maryland, where he attended Loyola Blakefield high school. He received a bachelor's degree from Loyola College in Maryland in 1943. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy as the captain of a minesweeper.

Television

Later he gave up his job as a reporter for the "Baltimore Sun" newspapers to join that organization's new TV station WMAR-TV in 1947. He was the first voice ever heard on television in Baltimore, and he remained with the station until joining CBS in New York in 1950 as host of a variety show, called "The Real McKay", which necessitated the changing of his on-air surname. Through the 1950s, sports commentary became more and more his primary assignment for CBS. He had a six-episode stint as host of the game show "Make the Connection" on NBC in 1955.

He moved on to ABC and was the host of ABC's influential "Wide World of Sports" for more than 40 years.

While covering the Munich massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics for ABC, McKay took on the job of reporting the events live on his only scheduled day off during the Games, substituting for Chris Schenkel.Hiestand, Michael. [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/hiestand-tv/2008-06-08-mckay_N.htm "Jim McKay's wide world spanned eras."] "USA Today". 8 June 2008.] He was on air for fourteen hours without a break, during a sixteen hour broadcast. After an unsuccessful rescue attempt of the athletes held hostage, at 3:24 AM German Time, McKay came on the air with this statement:

Although McKay received numerous accolades for his reporting of the Munich hostage crisis (including two Emmys, one for sports and one for news reporting), he stated (in a 2003 HBO documentary about his life and career) that he was most proud of a telegram praising his work he received the day after the massacre - from Walter Cronkite.

In 1994, he was the studio host for the FIFA World Cup coverage, the first ever held on American soil. McKay also covered the 2006 FIFA World Cup for ABC.

In 2002, ABC "loaned" McKay to NBC to serve as a special correspondent during the Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.

In 2003, HBO released a documentary by McKay called "Jim McKay: My World In My Words", tracing his career. This film outlines McKay's personal and professional accomplishments.

Maryland horse racing

McKay was the founder of Maryland Million Day, a series of twelve races designed to promote Maryland's horse breeding industry. The day-long program has grown to become a major racing event in the state of Maryland, second only to the Preakness Stakes day at Pimlico Race Course. It has spawned more than twenty other similar events at U.S. race tracks such as the Sunshine Millions.

Death

McKay died on June 7, 2008 from natural causes.cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Jim McKay, ABC Sportscaster, Dies at 86 |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/sports/08mckay.html?hp |publisher=The New York Times |date=June 8 2008 |accessdate=2008-06-07 ] [cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Sports' McKay Dies, Told World Of Munich Tragedy |url=http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/sports/sports-mckay.html |quote= |publisher=Reuters |date=June 7 2008 |accessdate=2008-06-07 ]

Honors

*McKay won numerous awards for journalism and auto racing. McKay won the George Polk Award for his sports and news coverage of the 1972 Munich Olympics.

*McKay won over twelve Emmy Awards in his lifetime. [cite news|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=3430672|title=Jim McKay, Olympics and ABC announcer, dies at age 86|date=2008-06-07|publisher=ESPN |accessdate=2008-06-07 ] [cite news |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/more/06/07/obit.mckay.ap/index.html|title=Sportscasting legend Jim McKay, famed for Munich coverage, dies|date=2008-06-07|author=Associated Press|publisher=Sports Illustrated |accessdate=2008-06-07 ] .

*In 1988, McKay was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.

*McKay was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame during its 11th induction. [ [http://www.emmys.org/awards/halloffame/hofarchive.php "Hall of Fame Archives & Honorees"] . Accessed 7 June 2008.]

*He was selected as the inaugural Dick Schaap Award for Outstanding Journalism recipient in 2002.

*The NBC broadcast of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was dedicated to McKay, per a message at the closing of the broadcast.

References

* [http://iviesinchina.com/in-remembrance/ Ivy League Remembers Jim McKay]

External links

*imdb name|id=0570996|name=Jim McKay