Bill Dance | |
---|---|
Born | William George Dance, Jr. October 7, 1940 |
Nationality | American |
Known for | Professional fisherman, television host, author |
Spouse | Dianne [1] |
Children | Bill, Jr; Paul; Patrick; Pamela; |
Website | http://www.billdanceoutdoors.com |
Bill Dance (born William George Dance, Jr.; October 7, 1940) is an angler and host of Bill Dance Outdoors , a fishing television series on the Outdoor Channel, and Bill Dance Saltwater on the Sportsman Channel.
Raised in Lynchburg, Tennessee, Dance considered becoming a doctor, but changed his mind after happening upon a grisly motorcycle accident in the early 1960s. He then turned his focus to competing in bass tournaments. A fishing lure manufacturer that sponsored him suggested he should start a TV show to promote the product. The program originally began on WHBQ-TV, then the ABC affiliate in Memphis, in 1968. [2]
Dance's signature look includes sunglasses and a Tennessee Volunteers baseball cap. He received his first cap from their coach, Doug Dickey, in the late 1960s. He lives in Eads, with his wife, Dianne. [2]
Bass fishing is the recreational fishing activity, typically via rod-based angling, for various game fishes of North America known collectively as black bass. There are numerous black bass species targeted in North America, including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, spotted bass or Kentucky bass, and Guadalupe bass. All black bass species are members of the sunfish family Centrarchidae.
The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, game shows, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows. On September 25, 2000, after an attempt to attract younger viewers failed, TNN's country music format was changed and the network was renamed The National Network, eventually becoming Spike TV in 2003 and Paramount Network in 2018.
Barry Clinton Windham is an American retired professional wrestler. The son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan, he is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
Roland Martin is a professional sport fisherman. Martin is host of Fishing with Roland Martin on the NBCSN television channel.
Michael Iaconelli, also known as Mike and by his nickname "Ike", is a professional bass fisherman, television personality, and podcast show host from Pittsgrove Township, New Jersey. Iaconelli competes on Major League Fishing. As of February 11, 2019, Mike's career tournament winnings with B.A.S.S. were $2,500,205, which includes 7 wins. Iaconelli's major accomplishments include the longest active streak of Bassmaster Classic qualifications with 17 consecutive appearances, the 2017 Major League Fishing Summit Cup Champion, 2003 Bassmaster Classic champion, as well as the 2006 Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year. Iaconelli is the only angler to have won the Bassmaster Classic, Bassmaster Angler of the Year and B.A.S.S. Nation Championship.
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Bill Dance Outdoors is a half-hour fishing television series hosted by former professional tournament angler Bill Dance. Each episode focuses on various aspects of recreational fishing techniques, usually targeting black bass species, such as Largemouth and Smallmouth bass, though does occasionally focus on other species such as Channel catfish and Bluegill. Each episode is about half-hour long, and will occasionally include viewer mail, product advertisement, and tips & tricks segments along with the primary topic of the particular episode. The show has featured guest appearances by celebrities such as Terry Bradshaw, Hank Williams, Jr., Mel Tillis, Jerry Reed, and many others. The theme music used for his show is "Gone Fishin' with Bill Dance Today" by David Muir. The show was produced by Strike King Productions from 1988 to 1997. Since 1998, the show was produced by DM Outdoor Teleproductions.
The Best Outdoor Sportsman ESPY Award was an annual award honoring the achievements of an athlete from the world of outdoor sports —understood as those related to outdoor recreation and nature-based occupation, including sport fishing, most especially of bass, and lumberjacking, most especially the logrolling, wood chopping, and high-climbing disciplines thereof—on an amateur or professional level primarily in the United States or Canada. It was first presented as part of the ESPY Awards at the 2002 edition after broadcaster ESPN purchased the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society in mid-2001. The Best Outdoor Sportsman ESPY Award trophy, designed by sculptor Lawrence Nowlan, was given to the outdoor sportsperson adjudged to be the best in a given calendar year. From the 2004 to 2008 ceremonies, the winner was chosen by online voting through choices selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee. Before that, determination of the winners was made by an panel of experts. Through the 2001 iteration of the ESPY Awards, ceremonies were conducted in February of each year to honor achievements over the previous calendar year; awards presented thereafter are conferred in July and reflect performance from the June previous.
Outdoor Sportsman Group, Inc., a subsidiary of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), is an outdoors media group in the United States. They publish 19 hunting, fishing and shooting magazines, and own the Sportsman & Outdoor Channels, and World Fishing Network specialty channels, as well as the MyOutdoorTV.com internet TV network, and 19.9% of the Canadian Sportsman Channel having purchased the Sportsman Channel from its founders in June 2007. In 2014, KSE acquired Outdoor Sportsman Group from InterMedia Partners. InterMedia had acquired the magazines from Primedia in 2006.
The Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) is a fishing membership organization with more than a half a million members. It is geared toward bass fishermen, mainly in the United States but with members located worldwide. The society publishes Bassmaster magazine and other related publications, and also produces The Bassmasters weekly television program. B.A.S.S. is best known for the sport fishing tournament trails it conducts, and for its world championship event, the Bassmaster Classic. The society's logo is a blue shield with a leaping largemouth bass and the society's acronym.
Claude Hamilton Gresham Jr., better known as Grits Gresham, was an internationally known American sportsman, author, photographer and television personality who hosted ABC's The American Sportsman series from 1966 to 1979. Gresham, who resided on the historic Cane River Lake in Natchitoches, the oldest city in Louisiana, traveled throughout the globe, particularly South America and Africa, to engage in hunting, fishing and shooting with various American celebrities. He was a champion of the environment and conservation, the subject of his graduate school thesis.
Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) was the world's largest tournament fishing organization. FLW ran five tournament circuits, four of which offered a path to the largest tournament in professional bass fishing – the Forrest Wood Cup. The organization's initials are taken from Forrest L. Wood, founder of Ranger Boats and developer of the modern bass-fishing boat. The FLW Tour championship - the Forrest Wood Cup - is also named for Wood. In 2007, the tournament was the first to offer a $1 million prize for the winner.
Babe Winkelman is an American sportsman and television producer, known for television programs about hunting and fishing. His program Good Fishing was first syndicated internationally in the mid-1980s. As of 2017, Winkelman produces an additional program, Outdoor Secrets, which with Good Fishing, airs in the United States and internationally on channels such as CBS Sports, American Hero Channel, and Destination America. His programs are also available globally on 25,000 hyper-local websites across the U.S. and Roku, Apple TV, Opera TV, Amazon Fire, and Netflix.
Donald Keith Fraser was an American sportsman and author of Keith Fraser's Guide to Sturgeon Fishing, currently in its 4th printing.
Forrest Lee Wood was the founder of Ranger Boats, and widely acknowledged as the developer of the modern bass boat. He was also the namesake of the Walmart FLW Tour for sportfishing.
Ron Lindner, was a sportsman and fishing industry innovator who has invented, along with his younger brother Al Lindner, many fishing lures and rigs including the Lindy Rig which has been used by tens of millions of anglers to catch walleye since it first hit the market in 1968. Lindner estimates that more than 70 million Lindy Rigs - and, as he put it, "its many imitators" - have been sold. Lindner also co-owns the Baxter, MN based Lindner Media Productions, along with Al and sons James, Daniel and Bill, which specializes in producing educational fishing programs, DVDs, videos, national TV commercials, product sales videos, point of purchase videos as well as providing underwater photography to the sport fishing industry. Lindner Media Productions customers include such well known companies as Rapala, Berkley, Lund Boats, Shimano, Blue Fox, Storm, MinnKota, Mustad, Nature Vision, Lindy Tackle, Humminbird, Frabill, VMC, HT Enterprises, Mercury Outboard Motors, and Gander Mountain. Lindner has been inducted into three fishing hall of fames and the Lindy Rig was featured in the Minnesota State Historical Society's 2008 list of "Minnesota’s 150 — The people, places, and things that shape our state".
Al Lindner is a sportsman, television and radio personality, and fishing industry innovator who has invented, along with his older brother Ron Lindner, many fishing lures and rigs including the Lindy Rig which has been used by tens of millions of anglers to catch walleye since it first hit the market in 1968. The Lindners estimate that more than 70 million Lindy Rigs - and, as he put it, "its many imitators" - have been sold. Lindner also co-owns the Baxter, MN based Lindner Media Productions, along with Ron and sons James, Daniel and Bill, which specializes in producing educational fishing programs, DVDs, videos, national TV commercials, product sales videos, point of purchase videos as well as providing underwater photography to the sport fishing industry. Lindner Media Productions customers include such well known companies as Rapala, Berkley, Lund Boats, Shimano, Blue Fox, Storm, MinnKota, Mustad, Nature Vision, Lindy Tackle, Humminbird, Frabill, VMC, HT Enterprises, Mercury Marine, and Gander Mountain. Lindner has been inducted into three fishing hall of fames and the Lindy Rig was featured in the Minnesota State Historical Society's 2008 list of "Minnesota’s 150 — The people, places, and things that shape our state".
Charlie Moore, sometimes known as Charlie Moore the Mad Fisherman, is an American television sports personality. He is host of Charlie Moore: No Offense airing in national and worldwide syndication and available throughout the world on Google Play, Apple TV, Roku and the Charlie Moore: No Offense app, on Apple and Android devices. and Charlie Moore Outdoors on the New England Sports Network (NESN).
Jimmy Houston is a pro angler and TV host. He was on ESPN for 21 years before he switched to the Outdoor Life Network. He is currently on NBC Sports. In 1990, he was inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame. He is known for his distinctive laugh. With fellow fishermen Roland Martin and Bill Dance, he formed the company Th3 Legends to sell signature products.