Tom Mees
A founding voice of ESPN whose enthusiastic play-by-play, especially for hockey, helped define sports broadcasting for a cable television generation.
1949–1996 (age 47)·American sportscaster·Birthday: October 13·Baby Boomers
Biography
In the chaotic, pioneering early days of ESPN, Tom Mees was part of the small band of broadcasters who made the network feel legitimate and exciting. With a background in local news sports, he brought a reporter's diligence and a fan's genuine enthusiasm to the anchor desk and, most notably, to the hockey booth. At a time when the NHL received scant national coverage, Mees became the voice of the sport for many American fans, calling games with a clear, energetic style that made the fast-paced action accessible. He was a versatile presence, covering everything from college football to the America's Cup, but hockey was his signature. His sudden and tragic death in 1996 shocked the sports world and left a void at the network he helped build. Mees represented ESPN's original ethos: knowledgeable, unpretentious, and utterly dedicated to bringing the games home.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Tom was born in 1949, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Tom Was Born
The biggest hits of 1949
#1 Movie
Samson and Delilah
Best Picture
All the King's Men
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Tom's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1949Born
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1954Started school
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1962Became a teenager
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1965Could drive
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1967Could vote
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1970Turned 21
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1979Turned 30
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1989Turned 40
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1996Died at 47
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
Key Achievements
- Was one of ESPN's first on-air personalities, joining the network in its inaugural year of 1979.
- Served as ESPN's primary play-by-play announcer for National Hockey League games throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.
- Hosted ESPN's 'SportsCenter' and contributed to the network's coverage of major events like the College World Series and the NFL Draft.
Did You Know?
He was a standout football and baseball player at the University of Delaware.
Mees was originally hired by ESPN to be a news anchor, not a sportscaster.
A recreational pond hockey game in Vermont led to a charity tournament named in his honor, the Tom Mees Memorial Cup.
“Let's go to the videotape and see what really happened.”
