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 . Life and career . 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 . Beginning in 1967 , at the age of twenty , 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 . Move to NBC . In 1974 , he joined NBC as Director of Weekend Late Night Programming . It was in 1975 that Ebersol and Lorne Michaels conceived and developed " Saturday Night Live " . Named as Vice President of Late Night Programming at age 28 , Ebersol became NBC ' s first - ever vice president under the age of 30 . After a brief departure , he returned to " SNL " in 1981 as executive producer and remained until 1985 , spanning the Eddie Murphy and Billy Crystal eras . In 1983 , Ebersol formed No Sleep Productions , an independent production company that created Emmy Award - winning NBC shows " Friday Night Videos " and " Later with Bob Costas " . Together with Vince McMahon , Ebersol produced " Saturday Night ' s Main Event " . When Ebersol left " SNL " in 1985 , he devoted his time to his production company until rejoining NBC in 1989 . Ebersol also served as senior vice president of NBC News . NBC Sports . Ebersol became president of NBC Sports in 1989 , and was promoted to Chairman , NBC Sports & Olympics in June 1998 . He served as executive producer for the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games , his first Olympics since Munich in 1972 for ABC . Ebersol ' s early tenure at NBC Sports was highlighted by a string of sports - property acquisitions and renewals , including the NFL , NBA , Notre Dame football and MLB , through the formation of the joint - venture Baseball Network . During the 1995 - 96 television season , for the only time in history , the World Series , Super Bowl , NBA Finals and Summer Olympics were telecast by the same network . It was following this run in 1996 that " The Sporting News " named Ebersol the “ Most Powerful Person in Sports . ” By January 1998 , NBC had become the home of four Super Bowls in six years . In 1993 , he secured the rights to the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics . In August 1995 , he acquired the rights for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City . It marked the first time that rights for consecutive Olympics were awarded at the same time . Later that same year , he spearheaded NBC Sports ' acquisition of the exclusive media rights for the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics , and the 2006 Winter Olympics . The agreements marked the first time that the same network had been awarded the rights to five consecutive Olympics . In 2003 , Ebersol led NBC to acquire the exclusive U . S . media rights to the 2010 Winter Games and the 2012 Summer Olympics . In December 2003 , Ebersol agreed to a nine - year contract to continue running NBC Sports & Olympics through 2012 . He assumed the title as Chairman of NBC Universal Sports & Olympics in May 2004 when NBC and Universal merged . Ebersol produced : On May 19 , 2011 , Dick Ebersol resigned from NBC Sports . The " New York Times " stated that he intended to stay at NBC through the end of June 2011 . It was later reported that Ebersol would return to NBC Sports in time for the beginning of the 2011 NFL season to serve in a senior adviser role . 2004 Plane Crash . On November 28 , 2004 , a private charter jet carrying Ebersol and two of his sons , Charlie and Teddy , crashed during an attempted takeoff from Montrose Regional Airport in Colorado . The jet ' s captain , flight attendant ( Warren T . Richardson III ) , and Teddy Ebersol were killed . Dick Ebersol , Charlie Ebersol , and the first officer were seriously injured . On June 10 , 2006 , Teddy Ebersol Field was dedicated along the Charles River in Boston . Awards and honors . Ebersol has often been in the top 10 honorees on " The Sporting News " annual list of the 100 most powerful sports figures , including in 1996 when he was named the Most Powerful Person in Sports . In 1992 , Ebersol was awarded the Olympic Order , an honor periodically bestowed by the International Olympic Committee to recognize remarkable contributions to the Olympic Movement . In 2005 , Ebersol was inducted into both the U . S . Olympic Hall of Fame and the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame In 2008 , NBC won the Peabody Award for its coverage of the Beijing Opening Ceremony along with Chinese film director Zhang Yimou , who served as the event ’ s creative director . At the 2009 " SportsBusiness Journal " awards ceremony , Ebersol won Sports Executive of the Year and NBC Sports won Best in Sports Television . On April 27 , 2009 , the six “ Commissioners of American Sport ” – Roger Goodell ( NFL ) , David Stern ( NBA ) , Bud Selig ( MLB ) , Gary Bettman ( NHL ) , Tim Finchem ( PGA Tour ) and Brian France ( NASCAR ) – were part of a presentation that concluded with Muhammad Ali awarding Ebersol the Emmy Award for Lifetime Achievement from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences . In May 2010 , Ebersol was the commencement speaker at Sacred Heart University for its graduating class of 2010 . He was presented with a Doctor of Humane Letters by University President Anthony J . Cernera . Personal life . He has been married to actress Susan Saint James since 1981 . They have two surviving children , Charlie and Willie ( a son , Teddy , predeceased them ) ; Saint James has two children from a previous marriage .