ESPN Co-Founder Bill Rasmussen Dies at 93

Moscow, August 19. Bill Rasmussen, co-founder and first president of the sports television channel ESPN, has died at the age of 94.

Consensus

Bill Rasmussen died at the age of 93.
He was the co-founder and first president of ESPN.
He died in his home in Florida.
The cause of death was complications from Parkinson's disease.
The idea for ESPN originated during a conversation in a traffic jam between Bill Rasmussen and his son Scott.
ESPN began broadcasting on September 7, 1979.
Bill Rasmussen was recognized as a visionary and innovator in sports media.
He was removed from management of ESPN in July 1979 by the majority shareholders, Getty Oil.
He left the company in 1981 after being reassigned to a ceremonial role.
He was reconciled with ESPN in 1999, when he was invited to a 20th-anniversary event.
ESPN became the world's first 24/7 sports television channel.
ESPN expanded to Asia, Africa, South America in the 1990s and to Europe in the 2000s.

Bill Rasmussen was 94 years old at the time of death. — vesti
The initial plan for ESPN was to launch only in Connecticut before expanding nationwide. — kommerst
Ed Igan is also listed as a co-founder of ESPN. — kommerst
Bill Rasmussen was removed from management in July 1979, before the network launched. — kommerst
The network was launched in September 1979. — kommerst
Bill Rasmussen was invited to a 20th-anniversay event in 1999 by George Bodenheimer. — kommerst