Gayle Gardner (born c. 1950) is an Americansportscaster who worked forESPN andNBC Sports beginning in 1987 until 1993. Gardner is considered a pioneer in sports broadcasting, having been the first female sports anchor to appear weekly on a major network.[1][2]
Gardner started her career inBoston under the name Gail Granik.[4] She began working as an intern forWBZ-TV and after graduating from BU she became an associate producer for the station's Sonya Hamlin Show.[3] By 1974, she was the show's executive producer.[5] She then worked as the producer of the Pat Collins Show onWCBS-TV.[3] She returned to WBZ in 1976 as the executive producer and interviewer for the station'sNew England Patriots pregame show.[6] In 1977, she began making appearances on WBZ's news broadcasts, serving as a tertiary sports anchor behindLen Berman and Jimmy Myers.[7] In 1978, she became the nightly sports anchor forWDIV-TV inDetroit. At the time of her hiring she was the only woman to serve as a daily sports anchor in a top-10 market.[8] She then worked as a reporter and weekend sports anchor forWJZ-TV in Baltimore.[9]
Gardner later worked on theFood Network before writing a screenplay. She spent three years on the Food Network.[13]
In 2004 (to celebrate the 25th anniversary ofSportsCenter), Gardner returned to anchor a special "old school" edition ofSportsCenter alongsideStuart Scott.
