Bill Rasmussen, who co-founded ESPN in 1979 and launched the first ever 24/7 sports channel, died Tuesday. He was 93 years old.

According to ESPN’s Mike Soltys, Rasmussen died at his Florida home from the effects of Parkinson’s disease. Rasmussen had announced in 2019 that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2014.

Known as “The Father of Sports Television,” Rasmussen’s ambition paved the way for the world’s first 24-hour television network.

“Bill was a remarkable man — a visionary and an innovator who conceived the idea of a network entirely devoted to sports,” ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. “Quite simply, none of us would be here today if it wasn’t for Bill’s passion and all the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit he put into building ESPN in the late 1970s — key aspects of our company culture that still carry on to this day.”

Rasmussen was relentless in trying to find investors on his idea. He eventually gained the backing he needed, and on Sept. 7, 1979, the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network was born. Bill and Scott Rasmussen co-founded ESPN, with Bill serving as ESPN’s first president and CEO.

“Bill was our George Washington and a good friend,” said veteran anchor Chris Berman, who joined ESPN three weeks after the original network launch in 1979. “He was such a grateful person and every sports fan can be grateful for Bill. He wasn’t a glass half-full guy; his glass was always overflowing with optimism. He greeted everyone with a smile and we can all smile knowing Bill’s legacy.”

Through it all, however, people felt Bill’s idea was meant to fail.

“When someone tells you you can’t do something, you want to prove them wrong,” Bill Rasmussen said. “Many, many people told us there wasn’t enough sports to do a 24-hour channel. I didn’t argue with anybody. I just thought they were wrong and I was right.”

When the Rasmussens were forced out of ESPN in 1980, Getty owned 85% of the network. Texaco, which had acquired Getty, sold its interest in ESPN to ABC in 1984.

The manner in which the Rasmussens were forced out led to a 15-year estrangement until ESPN invited them back for the network’s 20-year anniversary.

Rasmussen was predeceased by his wife of 56 years, Lois, in 2011. He is survived by two sons – Scott, his wife Laura, and Glenn Rasmussen – his daughter Lynn Van Hollebeke and her husband Louie, seven grandchildren, one great grandson, and one great granddaughter.