Don Richman

Don Richman (1931 — 8 November 1986) was an American sports executive. Richman initially worked in public relations and came up the name of the Los Angeles Chargers in 1960. He later became the first general manager of the Seattle SuperSonics from 1967 to 1968 when the basketball team was established. Outside of sports, Richman worked in radio advertising and won multiple Clio Awards.

Early life and education

Richman was born in 1931 and spent his childhood in Hartford, Connecticut. For his post-secondary education, he went to Vanderbilt University and the University of Southern California.[1][2] While he was at USC, Richman was a sports information director from 1956 to 1959.[3]

Career

After graduating from USC, Richman created a public relations company with Al Davis in 1960.[2] During his PR career, he came up with the name of the Los Angeles Chargers when the team was established. Richman decided to name the Chargers after team owner Barron Hilton's credit card company Carte Blanche. The following year, Richman left the Chargers in 1961 to work in television.[4] As a script writer, he wrote for various television shows including The Farmer's Daughter, The Donna Reed Show and The Rat Patrol during the 1960s.[5]

In January 1967, Richman became the first general manager of the newly formed National Basketball Association team Seattle SuperSonics.[6] Richman stepped down as the SuperSonics general manager in May 1968 and was replaced by Dick Vertlieb. He continued working with the basketball team as a consultant after leaving his executive position.[7] After leaving the SuperSonics, Richman moved from sports to join a Los Angeles advertising company owned by Chuck Blore. Richman had worked with Blore's company earlier in his career when he was a screenwriter during the early 1960s.[8] Outside of radio, Richman sang with television writer Mal Sharpe as one half of The Brothers Sincere in the late 1960s.[9]

Awards

In 1983, Richman and Blore won multiple Clio Awards in radio advertising for multiple companies including Roy Rogers Restaurants and AT&T.[10]

Death

On 8 November 1986, Richman died in Los Angeles.[2]

References
  1. Stogel, Jayne (9 December 1984). "'Night Janitor' cleans up at WPLJ". TV/Radio & Cable Week. p. 60.
  2. Eskenazi, David (24 May 2011). "Wayback Machine: Two Trojans Who Changed Seattle". Sportspress Northwest. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  3. Hall, John (21 August 1973). "A Second Look". Los Angeles Times. p. III 3.
  4. Shannon, Bob (2009). Turn It Up! American Radio Tales 1946-1996. austrianmonk publishing. p. 35. ISBN 9781615845453. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  5. Deford, Frank (8 October 1967). "The Sonic Boom in Seattle". Sports Illustrated. p. 40. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  6. "12th NBA Franchise is Awarded to Seattle". Alburquerque Journal. 13 January 1967. p. F1.
  7. "Richman is Consultant". Bakersfield Californian. 14 May 1968. p. 32.
  8. Wilkinson, Bud (29 August 1982). "Party continues for radio 'Janitor' featured in TV commercials". Arizona Republic. p. F13.
  9. "People". Sports Illustrated. 8 December 1969. p. 63. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  10. Salmans, Sandra (9 June 1983). "Advertising; Blore and Richman Win 7 Clio Awards". New York Times. p. 00019. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
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