PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIG SHOW: KEITH OLBERMANN AND DAN PATRICK TOGETHER AGAIN {LONG VERSION ANAMORPHIC}
Summary
One in a series of seminars presented by The Paley Center for Media in New York. This seminar honors the 20th Anniversary of political commentator Keith Olbermann and sportscaster Dan Patrick's first day hosting "SportsCenter," ESPN's sports highlights television program. Ron Simon (curator, The Paley Center for Media in New York) offers opening remarks before introducing moderator James Andrew Miller, author of "Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN." Miller offers his own comments before introducing Olbermann and Patrick to the stage. The guests touch on such topics as: their thoughts during their first night of "SportsCenter" together; the difficulty of hosting an hour-long live television program; the influence of CNN on ESPN's sports highlights; the minimal preparation for each night's show; Patrick on the trust he and Olbermann established with each other on their first night; the influence of the show's executives on Patrick and Olbermann; positive media feedback to Patrick and Olbermann's show; how Olbermann devised the epithet "the Big Show" for "SportsCenter" and how it affected his and Patrick's perception of the show; how the ESPN executives reacted to the "Big Show" label and Olbermann and Patrick's on-screen demeanor; a joke they created on the show revolving around former United States President James K. Polk and the reasons why Olbermann and Patrick were so jovial on-air; the "SportsCenter" Olbermann and Patrick hosted concerning the death of baseball player Mickey Mantle; Olbermann on his stint at ESPN2 and Patrick on his replacement partners on "SportsCenter"; promotional advertisements for "SportsCenter" featuring Olbermann and Patrick; their "gradual awareness" of the size of their viewing audience and interactions with the athletes who watched their show; Olbermann on his decision to leave "SportsCenter" and how a story involving an autistic child contributed towards it; the public reaction to his departure and how Olbermann likens it to his meeting with actress Elizabeth Montgomery; and Patrick on his changing sense of "loyalty" to ESPN and how it affected his departure. Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics among others: Olbermann and Patrick on an amusing anecdote involving fellow ESPN sportscaster Gary Miller; Olbermann and Patrick on the many inside jokes they peppered their "SportsCenter" episodes with; their opinions on Aaron Sorkin's television series "Sports Night" and its realism or lack thereof; how the internet might have affected audience response to their "SportsCenter" episodes; their opinions on modern sports highlights shows; Patrick on his appearances in the films of actor Adam Sandler; the possibility of Olbermann and Patrick reuniting in a different show; and their influence on modern "highlight culture." Clips are interspersed throughout, including: a clip from Olbermann and Patrick's first "SportsCenter" episode together on April 5th, 1992; a segment they did covering Mantle's death in 1995; a promotional advertisement for "SportsCenter" featuring Olbermann and Patrick; and another clip involving a technical malfunction on the show.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: April 5, 2012 6:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:29:42
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 101431
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Ron Simon … Host
- James Andrew Miller … Moderator
- Keith Olbermann … Guest
- Dan Patrick … Guest
- Mickey Mantle
- Gary Miller
- Elizabeth Montgomery
- James K. Polk
- Adam Sandler
- Aaron Sorkin