Jim Lampley

Jim Lampley (born April 8, 1949) is an American sportscaster, news anchor, movie producer, and restaurant owner. Lampley has covered a record 14 Olympic Games on U.S. television, most recently the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. --- Lampley was born in Hendersonville, North Carolina. His father died when he was five. His mother immersed him in sports to make up for what she felt his father would have done. He was raised in Hendersonville and Miami, Florida. He graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1971 with a degree in English and finished coursework in 1974 for a Master in Mass Communications also at UNC but never wrote his thesis because his career took off. --- In 1974, while in graduate school, he was chosen along with Don Tollefson in what ABC called a talent hunt. ABC executives thought that Lampley's youthful looks would make him endearing to the college crowds they looked to attract for their college football games. At ABC, he covered such events as Major League Baseball and college basketball games, the 1986 and 1987 Indianapolis 500, the 1977 Monon Bell game between DePauw University and Wabash College, five Olympics, as well as the program Wide World of Sports. From 1983 to 1985, Lampley was the studio host of ABC broadcasts of the United States Football League(USFL), a spring league that featured stars such as Herschel Walker, Jim Kelly, Steve Young and Reggie White. 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. --- Most casual fans probably know Lampley best for his work on HBO World Championship Boxing show, and on the HBO pay-per-view telecast. Since March 1988, as commentator he has 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; 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. In 1992, he won the Sam Taub Award for excellence in boxing broadcasting journalism. --- Lampley married and divorced news anchor Bree Walker, with whom he has a son. He also has two older daughters from a previous marriage. Walker has a daughter from a previous marriage. Lampley lives in the San Diego, California area near his son. Lampley is the former owner of two restaurants in Utah, both of which were named the Lakota Restaurant and Bar. Lampley runs a production company with his ex-wife. In 2004, they announced on The Larry King Show that they were living together and planning to remarry, but they never did. On January 3, 2007, Lampley was arrested for domestic abuse against fiancée Candice Sanders, Miss California USA 2003, by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. A restraining order was obtained, but in February 2007, he was charged with violating the restraining order by being within 100 yards of her apartment; Lampley pleaded no contest and was sentenced to three years' probation, a fine, a domestic violence counselling program and 40 hours' community service. The DA's office investigated and Lampley will not face charges for the alleged attack. Investigators found "insufficient evidence to prove it". Former spouse and news anchor Bree Walker said her relationship with Lampley led her to believe that "he's not capable of physical violence against anybody." "Jim has been a wonderful father to all four of his kids, and has been a generous husband and ex-husband", Walker said, "Any charges of battery would surprise me." Lampley married event planner Debra Schuss in August 2012.