June 21, 1997 will go down in bowling history as the day the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), pulled the plug on the "Professional Bowlers Tour," ending a 36-year tradition.
While watching the St. Clair Classic and viewing the tribute to Chris Schenkel and seeing the emotions of both Schenkel and Nelson Burton Jr., I have to admit I had some mixed emotions, too. Over the years I have written a few columns in which I have not been too kind to Schenkel and Burton, not because of any lack of respect for either of them, but simply because I thought the years had been so kind to them that they had become very complacent, to the point of boredom.
On the other hand, I had to think about the history of the PBA on ABC and realized that no matter who gets the contract now, they will forever be compared to ABC. When the PBA began on ABC, I missed the first few years because I was stationed in Germany with the Army. Upon returning from Germany, I went to Vietnam and after that tour returned for four more years in Germany. It wasn't until 1972 that I began to watch the PBA on ABC. Still, that's a total of 25 years that I have enjoyed my sport. Sure, I missed a few telecasts, but I bought my first VCR because of "Pro Bowlers Tour."
I have always loved sports, but because of "Pro Bowlers Tour" and its lead into ABC's "Wide World of Sports," I became interested in other sports and regardless of what ABC executives say, I will always believe that Jim McKay and "Spanning the Globe ... and the Agony of Defeat" owe their success to "Pro Bowlers Tour."
The Saturday time slot was something we fans could plan on, and over the years we saw such changes as the King of the Hill and arena bowling. It came a long way from the early days of the popular PBT series. We saw the greats of the game: Don Carter, Dick Weber, Carmen Salvino, Mark Roth, Marshall Holman and a crew-cut guy named Earl Anthony. We heard the wit of the great Billy Welu. We went from the black and white whispering silence to color and the raucous arena settings.
Because of the popularity of the ABC telecasts, bowling's television coverage expanded as ESPN, NBC-Sports, CBS, Home Box Office (HBO), Prime Sports and USA Networks carried tournaments. The Ladies Professional Bowlers Tour, the PBA Seniors, and the Brunswick World Team Challenge all benefited from the PBA on ABC.
We watched announcers like Jay Randolph, Denny Schreiner, and Jon Naber all try to measure up to Schenkel's standards. Comparisons were made between Weber, Anthony, Durbin, Holman and Burton as bowling's best color commentator.
The 36-year run of the PBA on ABC made it the second-longest live sports telecast (behind college football).
The final show was an emotional event for Schenkel. As he tried to hold back tears he received flowers in the booth from the parents of professional bowler Ricky Ward. ABC's tribute to Burton and Schenkel also elicited tears from each of them. It was a little moist in the Wright house, too.
Burton stated he plans to take a rest, and compete on both the national and senior tours. Schenkel said he planned to drive the heck out of his Shelby Mustang and wait for the phone to ring. For Schenkel, who has won most of the honors available to a sportscaster, I doubt he will wait long.
I'm excited by the remarks of The Marquee Group's Bob Gutkowski, who said that television coverage is his firm's top priority. But, in all sincerity, having watched it on other networks, they will have to work very hard to come up with a more professional production than the PBA on ABC. Then, let's see if it stands the test of time and can manage a 36-year run.