Dick Ebersol

Duncan "Dick" Ebersol (; born July 28, 1947) is an American television executive and a senior adviser for NBC Universal Sports & Olympics. He had previously been the chairman of NBC Sports, producing large-scale television events such as the Olympic Games and National Football League broadcasts. Early life Ebersol was born in Torrington, Connecticut, the son of Mary (née Duncan) and Charles Roberts Ebersol, a former chairman of the American Cancer Society. He and Josiah Bunting III are half-brothers. In 1967, aged 20, Ebersol began his long history with the Olympics when he temporarily dropped out of Yale University to join Roone Arledge and ABC Sports as television's first-ever Olympic researcher. Career Move to NBC In 1974, he joined NBC as Director of Weekend Late Night Programming. In 1975, at the suggestion of Paramount Pictures executive Barry Diller, Ebersol and NBC president Herbert Schlosser approached Lorne Michaels for help in creating a show to fill the Saturday night time slot. Michaels's idea for a variety show featuring high-concept comedy sketches, political satire, and music performances eventually became Saturday Night Live.