HAPPY BIRTHDAY! NESN turns 40
- Thread starter Fenway
- Start date
Happy birthday NESN. Your new logo is still ass. I didn’t forget.
DKH
The Bergeron of HF
- Feb 27, 2002
- 74,312
- 52,239
NESN's early years was a good time in my life.
Our studio at Fenway Park was barebones using equipment WSBK was going to throw in the dumpster. But the Red Sox and Bruins paid us union scale and that continued untill the Yawkey Trust sold out after the 2001 season.
We had some moments that make me blush and I was actually the person who put this announcement on the air. I was the one who answered the phone at NESN master control and I know who gave me the order. I was finally told weeks later that Sox ownership wanted the wrong announcement to air to prove people were watching NESN.
In 1988 NESN bought an AMIGA computer to enhance graphics and lucked into hiring a woman from Brookline who did magic with it - just look at this open
That woman relocated to San Francisco and became a superstar at EA
Our studio at Fenway Park was barebones using equipment WSBK was going to throw in the dumpster. But the Red Sox and Bruins paid us union scale and that continued untill the Yawkey Trust sold out after the 2001 season.
We had some moments that make me blush and I was actually the person who put this announcement on the air. I was the one who answered the phone at NESN master control and I know who gave me the order. I was finally told weeks later that Sox ownership wanted the wrong announcement to air to prove people were watching NESN.
In 1988 NESN bought an AMIGA computer to enhance graphics and lucked into hiring a woman from Brookline who did magic with it - just look at this open
That woman relocated to San Francisco and became a superstar at EA
DKH
The Bergeron of HF
- Feb 27, 2002
- 74,312
- 52,239
My seats were to the right of Bruins goalie first period row 1 corner over clock
Fantastic times
NBC Sports Boston traces back to 1981 when they launched as PRISM New England and featured the Celtics and Whalers. In 1983 it became SportsChannel New England owned by the Dolan family from NY.
It is almost forgotten but the Whalers were given access to the Boston market in the 80s and 90s to allow NESN to enter the Connecticut market.
Johnny Postman
Registered User
Random musings.
Wow, what memories. Has it really been 40 years?
The articles are amazing.
In the Craig article I can only imagine how many of those mom-and-pop providers have since been bought up and consolidated as pieces of one of the major providers.
When my family first heard of NESN, I remember clear as day my father sitting at the kitchen table and grumbling that he now had to pay $7 extra bucks (or whatever it was a month) to watch the B’s (and Sox). As much as he begrudged it, he never thought twice about subscribing. LOL
After we got it, I discovered that it had WWF wrestling from the Garden every month, that was like discovering gold!
I remember watching in the morning where there was no programming on, and they would just scroll digital “write-ups” repeatedly about the previous night’s local sports action.
And of course, who could forget their station identification sound which resembled a noise from an 80’s video game.
Happy B-Day NESN, here's to 40 more years.........
Wow, what memories. Has it really been 40 years?
The articles are amazing.
In the Craig article I can only imagine how many of those mom-and-pop providers have since been bought up and consolidated as pieces of one of the major providers.
When my family first heard of NESN, I remember clear as day my father sitting at the kitchen table and grumbling that he now had to pay $7 extra bucks (or whatever it was a month) to watch the B’s (and Sox). As much as he begrudged it, he never thought twice about subscribing. LOL
After we got it, I discovered that it had WWF wrestling from the Garden every month, that was like discovering gold!
I remember watching in the morning where there was no programming on, and they would just scroll digital “write-ups” repeatedly about the previous night’s local sports action.
And of course, who could forget their station identification sound which resembled a noise from an 80’s video game.
Happy B-Day NESN, here's to 40 more years.........
Bocephus86
Registered User
NESN's bday present for me is the $30/month I give them 7 months a year for the worst streaming application in history. Last night I switched from our basement TV (my fortress of solitude) to the living room TV and it decided to never load anything beyond the top banner. Unplugged the TV, tried again, same issue. Went back down stairs, didn't work there either. Same in the bedroom. It was late in the 2nd when I tried to move so I guess maybe NESN saw the game coming and saved me from it, maybe I should thank them.
McGarnagle
Yes.
- Aug 5, 2017
- 28,912
- 38,603
I don't know about everywhere else, but at least in my local cable system growing up, NESN was premium tier cable until about 2002 IIRC, when it finally went on the basic package and we could start to follow the Bruins and Red Sox more regularly. I think we had NESN on channel 51 prior to that but it was scrambled like HBO or Skinemax.
- Jan 29, 2003
- 25,532
- 21,049
1984…
Prior to NESN, I believe the only other pay TV service/channel was HBO, at least around Boston.
HBO had no commercials, so when we tuned into our first Bruins game on NESN, my father was so angry when they ran the first commercial.
He assumed that like HBO, we’d just watch the whole game, with no stoppages, aside from intermissions.
I remember him complaining that the extra $2 was a rip off and they should just play all the games on TV 38.
(Not sure it was $2, but it wasn’t much more)
lol….thinking back, it may have been $1.
Prior to NESN, I believe the only other pay TV service/channel was HBO, at least around Boston.
HBO had no commercials, so when we tuned into our first Bruins game on NESN, my father was so angry when they ran the first commercial.
He assumed that like HBO, we’d just watch the whole game, with no stoppages, aside from intermissions.
I remember him complaining that the extra $2 was a rip off and they should just play all the games on TV 38.
(Not sure it was $2, but it wasn’t much more)
lol….thinking back, it may have been $1.
Remarkable stories Kevin. You need to write a book!
"Bruins the Bruins what? Bruins the Bruins what? Cap'n zahhhdeeynooo! Watch em' on Nesn"
"Bruins the Bruins what? Bruins the Bruins what? Cap'n zahhhdeeynooo! Watch em' on Nesn"
The Whalers' owner Peter Karmanos made a gigantic blunder when he walked away from Hartford as he also walked away from his 20% ownership of Sportschannel. RSNs were about to explode in value.
@BMC - He admitted his hatred of Connrcticut Governor Rowland fueled the move and Bettman and Jacobs pleaded with him to stay in Hartford.
July 1987 was when I first realised the potential monster NESN could be.
I was asked to drive my sister in law's car from LA to Tampa stopping in Dallas where her brother lived. The trip gets off to a bad start when we blew a head gasket in the Mojave Desert and was told we had 2 options, being towed to Barstow, CA or Las Vegas.
The machine shop in Vegas got us a special rate at the Palace Station Casino which years later became infamous because of OJ. Thaey had a sportsbook and at 3 PM I walk in and I see Bob Gamere on every screen hosting candlepin bowling on NESN
When the car was fixed it was off to Dallas and that required driving from Hoover Dam to Kingman, AZ on US-93. About an hour south of Hoover Dam there was a gas station/bar and we needed a bathroom break. No exaggeration there was no sign of human life - it was tumbleweed city.
I open the door and the first thing I heard made me feel like I had entered 'The Twilight Zone'. What I heard was 'I'm Bob Sullivan and I want it that way'.
There are 6 people in the bar and they are watching the Red Sox at Toronto on NESN. The bar just added 3 more customers.
I asked the barmaid who are these other customers and she said the locals...............
I was asked to drive my sister in law's car from LA to Tampa stopping in Dallas where her brother lived. The trip gets off to a bad start when we blew a head gasket in the Mojave Desert and was told we had 2 options, being towed to Barstow, CA or Las Vegas.
The machine shop in Vegas got us a special rate at the Palace Station Casino which years later became infamous because of OJ. Thaey had a sportsbook and at 3 PM I walk in and I see Bob Gamere on every screen hosting candlepin bowling on NESN
When the car was fixed it was off to Dallas and that required driving from Hoover Dam to Kingman, AZ on US-93. About an hour south of Hoover Dam there was a gas station/bar and we needed a bathroom break. No exaggeration there was no sign of human life - it was tumbleweed city.
I open the door and the first thing I heard made me feel like I had entered 'The Twilight Zone'. What I heard was 'I'm Bob Sullivan and I want it that way'.
There are 6 people in the bar and they are watching the Red Sox at Toronto on NESN. The bar just added 3 more customers.
I asked the barmaid who are these other customers and she said the locals...............
The names Karmanos & Rowland are mud in CT. Both made the situation into a pissing contest that the fans eventually lost (as usual).
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