Former NBC Sports Exec Bob Basché, and Father of the Phrase “Breakfast at Wimbledon,” Dead at 80
Story Highlights
Bob Basché, a key industry talent and marketing executive for NBC Sports from 1978-1982, died last week at the age of 80 after battling throat cancer. Among Basché’s most memorable accomplishments? In 1979, while still a young assistant for newly appointed NBC Sports Executive Producer Don Ohlmeyer, he came up with the phrase “Breakfast at Wimbledon.”
Bob Basché, who coined the phrase “Breakfast at Wimbledon,” died last week of throat cancer at the age of 80.
Ohlmeyer and NBC Sports President Chet Simmons persuaded NBC to show the 1979 Wimbledon men’s final live at 9 am EST rather than on tape delay and with the live broadcast approved, NBC’s planning included a meeting about how the morning match would be promoted.
“I said, ‘It’ll be 9 o’clock, so it’ll be Breakfast at Wimbledon,’” recalled Basché to the New York Times in 2009 on the 30th anniversary of the launch.
Basché also played a key role in developing NBC’s on-air talent roster, including Bryant Gumbel, Dick Enberg, and Bob Costas. A graduate of Notre Dame University, he first entered the sporting world while skiing in Vermont, where he landed a volunteer job with Phillip Morris Sports and the Marlboro Ski Racing Tour. He eventually became a full-time employee and expanded his expertise to tennis, working with for Virginia Slims Circuit, a precursor for the WTA Tour, which had an annual stop in Newport.
Basché worked at NBC from 1978-82 as head of talent and on-air promotion, winning three Emmys. He then joined Millsport in 1982 and over nearly a quarter-century, helped grow the agency to one of the top sponsorship marketing shops. Millsport was sold to Omnicom in 2004.
Basché is survived by his wife Susan, his son Alex, grandson Steven, and brother Tony. A memorial service/celebration of life is planned for next spring, likely in Newport, with details to be determined.
“He was a terrific problem solver,” former NBC Sports President Ken Schanzer told Sports Business Journal. “All those great relationships he had gave him enormous credibility. Everyone knew he would be fair.”
