"George Michael, famed D.C. sportscaster, dies"
By Adam Bernstein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, December 24, 2009; 11:55 AM
George Michael, a high-rated and hyperanimated Washington sportscaster
whose use of game highlights on his syndicated sports program became
the model for successful broadcasters such as ESPN, died Thursday
morning at Sibley Memorial Hospital, according to a statement issued
by his former employer, WRC (Channel 4).
Mr. Michael, who became the dean of Washington sportscasters during a
28-year career at the station, had cancer.
Mr. Michael was a popular DJ in Philadelphia and New York before
making a successful transition to television. He worked at WRC from
1980 to 2008, leaving abruptly after the station sought to cut the
budget of the interview programs and segments he hosted.
He had already stepped down a year earlier from the station's lead
sportscaster position, in an effort to prevent further layoffs from
the sports team at the NBC-owned-and-operated station.
He was one of the most immediately recognizable figures on local
television, joining news anchors Doreen Gentzler and Jim Vance and
weatherman Bob Ryan to form the area's dominant local TV news team in
1989.
Over the years, Mr. Michael not only held his own at the anchor desk
but also created and produced such ratings winners as "Redskins
Report" and "Full Court Press," featuring guests such as former
Redskins Hall of Fame quarterback Sonny Jurgensen and local print
sports reporters including Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser of The
Washington Post. The exposure helped launch the TV careers of Wilbon
and Kornheiser.
Starting in 1984, Mr. Michael oversaw a trendsetting show that made
liberal use of action highlights from games in addition to interviews
and other reports. "The George Michael Sports Machine," as it was
eventually called, was syndicated to more than 200 stations at its
peak and was credited with inspiring ESPN's "SportsCenter" and CNN's
"Sports Late Night."
George Michael was born in St. Louis, where he played soccer in high
school and graduated from Saint Louis University with a degree in
philosophy, political theory and speech. He entered radio and worked
for a series of stations throughout the Midwest. "I had deflatable
furniture and a red Nash Rambler," he told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
in 1992. "I didn't stay put very long."
From 1966 to 1974, he was a rock-and-roll DJ in Philadelphia before he
was offered a job as a radio personality in New York.
"George Michael was our friend and colleague for more than 25 years,"
WRC said in a statement issued Thursday morning. "He was a dynamic
force around our newsroom and in the entire Washington area.
"George was a pioneer in sports broadcasting. He was a gifted
interviewer, a master storyteller and one of the hardest working
journalists out there. Our hearts go out to his wife, Pat, and his
daughter, Michelle, both of whom also worked with us for many years,
as well as the rest of his family."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/24/AR2009122401535_pf.html
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