Gary Bender | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gary Nedrow Bender (1940-09-01)September 1, 1940 (age 85) Norton, Kansas, U.S. |
| Education | Wichita State University (BA) University of Kansas (MA) |
| Occupation | Sportscaster |
| Years active | 1969–2011 |
| Spouse | Linda Bender |
| Children | 2, includingTrey |
| Relatives | Landry Bender (granddaughter) Amy Bender (daughter-in-law) |
| Sports commentary career | |
| Genre | Play-by-play |
| Sports | |
Gary Nedrow Bender (born September 1, 1940)[1] is a retiredAmericansportscaster and 2008 inductee into theKansas Sports Hall of Fame. He officially retired, April 13, 2011,[2][3] fromFox Sports Arizona after 18 years calling theNBA'sPhoenix Suns games.Gary Bender has also worked as a play by play man for the NBA on TNT mainly during the NBA Playoffs.
Bender, who was born inNorton, Kansas, and raised inUlysses, Kansas,[4] graduated from Ulysses High School in 1958. He then attendedWichita State University (then known as the University of Wichita), graduating with a journalism degree in 1962 and a master's degree from theUniversity of Kansas in 1964. Bender then began his broadcasting career calling games atHutchinson Community College inHutchinson, Kansas. He then went on to do the same at theUniversity of Kansas'football andbasketball programs in the 1960s. He also spent years as a broadcaster in Wisconsin and called all of the Wisconsin Athletic Association championship games, as well asGreen Bay Packers radio andMilwaukee Brewers television in the early 1970s.
He did play-by-play for theNFL on CBS from1975 to1981, and again in1986 (among his partners wereJohnny Unitas,Sonny Jurgensen,Hank Stram, andJohn Madden, all members of thePro Football Hall of Fame) and the1981 NBA Finals along with color commentatorsRick Barry andBill Russell, both members of theBasketball Hall of Fame.
He was CBS' first play-by-play announcer for thenetwork's coverage of theNCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, calling theFinal Four alongsideBilly Packer in1982,1983 and1984. In1982 and1983, he was CBS' leadcollege football play-by-play man.
On October 26,1987, Bender (along withLynn Swann) called theMonday Night Football game between theDenver Broncos and theMinnesota Vikings. That game had been scheduled for October 25, but when theMinnesota Twins (who at the time, shared theHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome with the Vikings) played Game 7 of theWorld Series that day, the football game was moved to Monday and shown to a regional audience.
In1988, Bender did play-by-play for theAmerican League Championship Series alongsideBaseball Hall of FamersJoe Morgan andReggie Jackson.
He also announced college football games forABC Sports, where he formerly worked alongsideDick Vermeil.
As previously mentioned, Bender did play-by-play for the1988 American League Championship Series[5] between theOakland Athletics andBoston Red Sox. Bender spent two years (1987-1988) as the #2 baseball play-by-play man for ABC behindAl Michaels. Bender worked the backupMonday Night Baseball broadcasts (withTim McCarver in 1987 andJoe Morgan in 1988) as well as serving as a field reporter/post-game interviewer for ABC's1987 World Series coverage.
Gary Bender would ultimately be taken off ABC's baseball team in favor ofGary Thorne in1989.
Bender also calledNFL games forTNT from1992 to1994, teaming withPat Haden. Bender also did play-by-play forThe NBA on TNT from 1992 to 1995, calling games with various color commentators includingChuck Daly,Jack Givens,Mike Glenn,Dick Versace, as well as his former NBA on CBS partnersHubie Brown andDoug Collins.[6] He returned to the NBA on TNT to help with coverage for the 2004 NBA Playoffs, calling games withRex Chapman andJohn Thompson. On December 17, 2009, Bender filled in forMarv Albert, who was battling throat problems, to call thePhoenix Suns atPortland Trail Blazers game on TNT and called the game withReggie Miller.[7]
As previously mentioned, for 18 years, Bender was the television play-by-play announcer onFox Sports Net (FSN-Arizona) for theNational Basketball Association'sPhoenix Suns; he worked alongside former Suns players Eddie Johnson and Scott Williams. In 2006, he was named as the play-by-play announcer for theVersus network'scoverage ofMountain West Conference football, where he would be partnered with formerNFL playerGlenn Parker.
Bender is also co-author with Michael Johnson of thebiographyCall of the Game, in which he shares his life story, tips on how to become a better broadcaster, and hisChristiantestimony.
Bender did a series of Kendall Motor Oil commercials in mid-1980s.
In the first five months of 2001, Bender presided as host of the nationally syndicatedFocus on the Family radio show after the resignation of previous host Mike Trout (1985–2000) because of an extramarital affair. Bender was replaced on a full-time basis by Focus vice president of broadcasting John Fuller.
Gary Bender is an alumnus of the Kansas Delta chapter ofPhi Delta Theta at Wichita State where he received his bachelor's degree. He received his master's degree in radio and TV from the University of Kansas.
His son,Trey, is also a sportscaster and playedPop Warner Little Scholars. He portrayed his father in season 2 of the HBO series,Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty. His granddaughterLandry Bender is an actress who is best known inCrash & Bernstein andFuller House.
| Year | Title | Role | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969–1975 | WKOW-TV | Sports Director | ABC |
| 1975–1976 | Milwaukee Brewers | Play-by-play | |
| 1975–1981, 1986 | NFL on CBS | Play-by-play | CBS |
| 1977,1979—1986 | NBA on CBS | Play-by-Play (Lead Play-by-Play from1980—1981) | |
| 1981–1987 | College Basketball on CBS | Play-by-Play (Lead Play-by-Play from 1981–1984) | |
| 1982–1986 | College Football on CBS | Play-by-Play (Lead Play-by-play in 1982 and 1983) | |
| 1987–1988 | MLB on ABC | #2 Play-by-Play | ABC |
| 1987 | World Series | Reporter | |
| 1987–1992 | College Football on ABC | Play-by-Play | |
| 1988–1991 | Phoenix Cardinals | Play-by-Play[8] | |
| 1992–1994 | NFL on TNT | Play-by-Play[8] | TNT |
| 1992–1995 2004 2009 | NBA on TNT | Play-by-play | |
| 1992–2011 | Phoenix Suns | Play-by-Play[8] | FSN Arizona |
| 2003–2005 | College Football on ESPN | Play-by-Play | ESPN/ABC |
| 2006 | College Football on Versus | Play-by-Play | Versus |
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Play-by-Play announcer,NBA Finals 1981 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Play-by-Play announcer,NCAA Men's Final Four 1982–1984 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | #2 play-by-play announcer,Major League Baseball on ABC 1987–1988 | Succeeded by |