Biography
Hanson was born in East St. Louis, Illinois, on June 16, 1947. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Education from St. Benedict’s College (now Benedictine College) in Atchison, Kansas, in 1968; two years later, in 1970, Hanson earned his master’s degree in Education from Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. After this, he began his professional career at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where he was the head coach in both soccer and baseball, and he was named the National Soccer Coach of the Year in 1974 by the NAIA.
Hanson spent four summers as an associate scout for two major league baseball teams: the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Diego Padres. He also spent five seasons as a senior executive for three North American Soccer League (1968–1984) teams: the Rochester Lancers, the Washington Diplomats, and the Atlanta Chiefs.
From 1980 to 1984, Hanson worked as a Turner Sports executive. In 1982, Hanson, Robert Wussler, and Russ Potts successfully outbid CBS to air what was dubbed "The Game of the Decade" on Turner Network Television—a college basketball game pitting The University of Virginia against the Georgetown Hoyas in a matchup which featured the two biggest stars in college basketball at the time, Ralph Sampson and Patrick Ewing. This was an important step for sports broadcasting on cable television, as high profile sporting event broadcasts had always been featured on major networks prior to this. it was also the first use of the name "Turner Network Television" (or TNT).
From 1984-1991, Hanson was a PGA Tour executive serving as Director of Communications and Broadcasting. He also negotiated network coverage.
Hanson was hired in 1991 to oversee the Raycom Sports events division, which included the Blockbuster Bowl and the Diet Pepsi Tournament of Champions, later titled by Harris Teeter, Food Lion and Hardee’s, which was a high profile college basketball tournament.
Since 2007, Hanson has been a regular ensemble member on The John Boy and Billy Big Show. He has also done television color analyst work in college basketball and professional soccer.
Read more about this topic: Terry Hanson
Famous quotes containing the word biography:
“In how few words, for instance, the Greeks would have told the story of Abelard and Heloise, making but a sentence of our classical dictionary.... We moderns, on the other hand, collect only the raw materials of biography and history, “memoirs to serve for a history,” which is but materials to serve for a mythology.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Just how difficult it is to write biography can be reckoned by anybody who sits down and considers just how many people know the real truth about his or her love affairs.”
—Rebecca West (1892–1983)
“The best part of a writer’s biography is not the record of his adventures but the story of his style.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)