There was a certain joy in getting in front of a TV on Saturday afternoons. Well before there were 17 ESPN channels, well before the days of the internet bringing you sports stats in real time.
There was that little show called "ABC's Wide World of Sports." Sometimes you watched it because you wanted to see some strange sport such as curling or demolition derby. Maybe you just tuned in to hear that great theme song and see that skier fall off of the mountain and crash. Whatever the reason, it was a constant on Saturdays in America.
And there was Jim McKay taking you to a horse race or to China, or to some place you only ready about in a book. It was great TV for almost 40 years. It was one of those shows that got me interested in the TV world, and wound up leading me into this business.
Last Saturday, Jim McKay died and a little part of me died with him. It seems weird to think of a guy who made you stop what you were doing so he could explain badminton to you or take you to see some guys cut trees down, but somehow he made it must see TV.
Those days are gone. Logging events have their own Olympic-type competition on ESPN and with the internet, you can watch badminton online if you choose to. But I have to say thank you to the late Mr. McKay for bringing me and many others a slice of the world that we had never seen before.
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