Jim Lampley
Jim Lampley | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 8, 1949 |
| Alma mater | University of North Carolina |
| Occupation | Television journalist |
| Notable credit(s) | HBO World Championship Boxing anchor and co-host (1988–2018) Olympic Games reporter and anchor (1984–2008) |
| Spouses | Bree Walker (m. 1990–1999)
|
| Children | 4 |
James Lampley (born April 8, 1949) is an American
Early life and career
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. (August 2016) |
Lampley was born in
He graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1971 with a degree in English and completed some coursework for a Master in Mass Communications also at UNC but never wrote his thesis.
Broadcast network television
ABC Sports
In 1974, while in graduate school, he was chosen along with Don Tollefson in what
From 1983 to 1985, he was the studio host of ABC broadcasts of the
On July 4, 1984, with
In 1985, Lampley along with Al Michaels served as anchors for ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XIX, the first Super Bowl that ABC televised. After the game, Lampley presided over the presentation ceremony for the trophy.
KCBS
In 1987, Lampley moved to CBS. At CBS, he took over duties as co-anchor on the daily news show in
NBC Sports
In 1992, Lampley moved to
In 2004, Lampley was the daytime anchor for NBC's Olympics coverage for the
HBO World Championship Boxing
Fans may best know Lampley for his work on HBO World Championship Boxing, Boxing After Dark, and on the HBO pay-per-view telecasts from March 1988 until December 2018, when HBO announced that they would drop the boxing program. As blow by blow announcer, he called some of boxing's most famous moments, such as Thunder Meets Lightning, when Julio César Chávez saved himself from a decision defeat by knocking out Meldrick Taylor (who was leading the fight on two of the three official scorecards) with only two seconds to go in the last round, and James "Buster" Douglas's upset of Mike Tyson for the world heavyweight championship. Other highlights in his career were the first Riddick Bowe-Andrew Golota fight at Madison Square Garden, where a riot occurred following the "Foul Pole's" disqualification for low blows, and the famous "It happened...IT HAPPENED!" call of George Foreman's miracle comeback against then heavyweight champion Michael Moorer when a straight right ended Moorer's reign.
Lampley also hosted a series called Legendary Nights in 12 installments in honor of HBO's three decades covering boxing in 2004, recounting 12 memorable fights broadcast on HBO in that timespan.
Lampley later wrote, hosted, and executive produced his own studio boxing news show, The Fight Game with Jim Lampley on HBO.
Olympic Coverage
- 1976 Winter Olympics (play-by-play for ABC)
- 1976 Summer Olympics (play-by-play for ABC)
- 1980 Winter Olympics (play-by-play for ABC)
- 1984 Winter Olympics (daytime host for ABC)
- 1984 Summer Olympics (late-night host for ABC)
- 1992 Winter Olympics (coverage for KCBS-TV)
- 1992 Summer Olympics (late-night host for NBC)
- 1996 Summer Olympics (late-night host for NBC)
- 1998 Winter Olympics (primetime host for TNT)
- 2000 Summer Olympics (cable host for MSNBC)[1]
- 2002 Winter Olympics (cable host for both MSNBC and CNBC)[1]
- 2004 Summer Olympics (daytime host for NBC and cable host for USA Network)[1]
- 2006 Winter Olympics (daytime and late-night host for NBC)[1]
- 2008 Summer Olympics (daytime host for NBC)
Sports radio
Lampley was the first program host on New York's sports talk radio station WFAN when it began operation on July 1, 1987.
Awards and recognitions
In 1992, he won the Sam Taub Award for excellence in boxing broadcasting journalism.[2]
For his participation in the Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel HBO series, Lampley earned three
Lampley was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in its 2015 class.[3]
Life outside sports
Film and producing career
Lampley's movie production company, Crystal Spring Productions, has produced a handful of movies, including 2000's Welcome to Hollywood. The company, now known as Atticus Entertainment was executive producer of the HBO documentary series, On Freddie Roach in 2012–13. Since 2012, it has produced the continuing series, The Fight Game with Jim Lampley.
In addition to several minor credits as an announcer in films, Lampley portrayed himself in the movies like Rocky Balboa, Southpaw, Creed, Grudge Match, all in all more than a dozen feature film credits. He also appeared in the 2007 sports comedy films Blades of Glory starring Will Ferrell and Jon Heder, and Balls of Fury, with Christopher Walken. Lampley also appeared on television in shows such as Everybody Hates Chris, MacGyver, the Andy Samberg HBO mockumentory 7 Days in Hell, and Eastbound & Down.
Personal life
Lampley was married to former news anchor Bree Walker from 1990 to 1999.[4] The pair had a son, Aaron James Lampley, born in August 1991.[5]
Lampley and his current wife, Debra, live in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.[6] Their blended family includes five daughters, two sons and nine grandchildren. Lampley is the former owner of two restaurants in Utah, both of which were named the Lakota Restaurant and Bar.
One of his daughters is Brooke Lampley, Global Chairman and Head of Global Fine Art at Sotheby's.[7][8]
Domestic violence arrest
In 2007, Lampley was arrested for suspicion of domestic violence over an incident that took place at his girlfriend’s home.[9] He later pleaded no contest to violating a restraining order and was sentenced to three years of probation, plus required to complete a 52-week domestic violence counseling program.[10]
References
- ^ a b c d "NBCUniversal's Olympic Tradition". NBC Sports Group Press Box. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
- ^ International Boxing Hall of Fame / BWAA Awards Archived 2008-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Bowe, Mancini highlight 2015 HOF class". ESPN.com. 4 December 2014.
- ^ ""L.A.'s Most Visible Office Romance"". Los Angeles Times. 16 March 1990.
- ^ ""Taking the sting out of a disability"". Los Angeles Times. 27 July 2004.
- ^ "HBO Boxing Bios".
- ^ Armstrong, Annie (2022-06-13). "How Type-A Market Dealmaker Brooke Lampley Became the Highly Meme-able Face of Sotheby's Next Generation". Artnet News. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
- ^ "Brooke Lampley, Christopher Papagianis". The New York Times. 20 November 2010.
- ^ "" Jim Lampley is arrested in domestic violence case"". Los Angeles Times. 4 January 2007.
- ^ "" Jim Lampley pleads no contest, gets probation"". sandiegouniontribune.com. 22 February 2007.
External links
- Jim Lampley at the Huffington Post
- Biography at HBO Boxing
- Jim Lampley is arrested in domestic violence case
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