Charlie Ebersol

Last updated

Charlie Ebersol
Born
Charles Duncan Ebersol [1]

(1982-12-30) December 30, 1982 (age 41)
Torrington, Connecticut, U.S.
Alma mater University of Notre Dame (BA)
Occupation(s)Tech entrepreneur, Television producer, television director, film producer, film director, co-founder and CEO of the Alliance of American Football
Spouse
Melody McCloskey
​
(m. 2017)​
Parent(s) Dick Ebersol (father)
Susan Saint James (mother)

Charles Duncan Ebersol (born December 30, 1982) [2] is an American entrepreneur and filmmaker. Ebersol is best known as the co-founder of Tempus Ex Machina [3] and The Company, [4] executive producer of USA Network's NFL Characters Unite and a co-producer of The Profit on CNBC. [5] He was also the co-founder and CEO of the now-defunct Alliance of American Football. [6]

Contents

Early life and education

Charlie Ebersol was born in Torrington, Connecticut, [2] the son of actress Susan Saint James and senior television executive Dick Ebersol. [7]

On November 28, 2004, during Ebersol's senior year at the University of Notre Dame, he was involved in a plane crash along with his father. [8] [9] Ebersol and his father survived the crash while his younger brother, Teddy, along with the pilot and a flight attendant were killed. [10] [11] The injuries the Ebersols sustained in the plane crash were extensive, [12] [13] but he returned to Notre Dame to finish his senior year and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree. [14]

Career

Early career

While studying at Notre Dame, Ebersol created his first documentary entitled Ithuteng: Never Stop Learning in 2006. [15] The movie received critical acclaim, winning the Toronto International Film Festival's first OneXOne award and inspired Oprah Winfrey to donate $1.14 million to the Ithuteng Trust School. [16] He produced the documentaries Don't Look Down, about the life of Olympian Shaun White after he won Olympic Gold in 2006, [17] and Tradition Never Graduates, a film about Notre Dame Football. [18]

In 2009, Ebersol formed and sold Saint James Films and also co-created and executive produced NBC's The Wanted, a primetime show in which Ebersol and producing partner Adam Ciralsky led a team of former Navy Seals, a former UN Ambassador and a former Lieutenant Green Beret around the world in search of the most wanted terrorists and war criminals. [19]

Production career

In 2011, Charlie Ebersol co-founded The Hochberg-Ebersol (THE) Company with Justin Hochberg and Mike Lanigan. [20] Early projects included TNT's The Great Escape, [7] executive produced with Bertram van Munster, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, and History's Off the Grid: Million Dollar Manhunt . [21]

Ebersol created USA Network's The Moment in 2013, a show hosted by Kurt Warner devoted to giving Americans a second chance to achieve their dreams. Ebersol was inspired to create the show after receiving his own second chance at life after surviving a plane crash in 2004. [22] Ebersol co-created and executive produced NFL Characters Unite, a yearly television special with USA Network, [23] as well as The Profit and West Texas Investors Club on CNBC. In 2013 he worked with Dolph Lundgren on the Reelz competition show Race to the Scene. [24]

The production company changed its name from THE Company to The Company in 2013, upon the exit of Justin Hochberg. [25] In 2014, The Company announced a production and finance partnership with Israeli production house Dori Media. [26] [27] Ebersol executive produced The Untitled Yale Drama for USA Network along with Rob Reiner, [28] as well as Warner Brothers' Space Jam: A New Legacy. [29]

Ebersol directed This Was the XFL, a documentary in the 30 for 30 series about the XFL. He was chosen by ESPN to direct the documentary because of his father's co-founding of the league, and he used the longtime friendship between Dick and WWE chairman Vince McMahon as the centerpiece for the film.

Alliance of American Football

In March 2018, Ebersol announced the creation of a new professional football league called the Alliance of American Football. [30] Ebersol co-founded the league, which started playing in February 2019, with former NFL executive and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Bill Polian. [31] On opening night, the AAF launched an app on which fans could follow games with low latency and win points by predicting plays in real time. [32] The AAF app became the top sports app on the iOS store for the league's duration. [33]

Ebersol's father, who co-founded rival league XFL and who led NBC Sports and created Sunday Night Football, sat on the league's board. [34] The league was backed by investors such as Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, The Chernin Group and former NFL player Jared Allen, and employed coaches Mike Singletary, Brad Childress and Steve Spurrier as well as former NFL players including Justin Tuck, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu who held executive roles. [35] [36]

Games were played during the "off-season," from February to April, and aired on CBS, CBS Sports Network, NFL Network, TNT, B/R Live and the league's mobile app. [37]

After the AAF's primary investor, Reggie Fowler, did not contribute the $200 million he had promised, the AAF was purchased by Carolina Hurricanes owner Thomas Dundon after two weeks of play. [38] Dundon suspended league operations after eight weeks, then filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in April 2019. [39] Former players sued Dundon and Ebersol for breach of contract following the league's collapse, [40] but Ebersol was later removed as a defendant after investigators cleared him of wrongdoing. [41] In 2022, the lawsuit was dropped at the request of all parties involved. [42]

Infinite Athlete

In 2021, Ebersol co-founded Tempus Ex Machina with former AAF CTO Erik Schwartz and COO Annie Gerhart, receiving investment funding from firms including Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, Silver Lake, Endeavor, and Will Ventures. [43] [3]

Tempus Ex Machina provides data stream consolidation, data visualization, and integrated player tracking technology to sporting organizations including the National Football League, the NCAA's Pac-12 Conference, and Chelsea FC. [44] [45]

In August 2023, Tempus Ex Machina merged with biomechanical analytics firm Biocore to form Infinite Athlete. [46]

Personal life

On March 17, 2017, Ebersol announced via Twitter his engagement to Melody Brooke McCloskey, Founder and CEO of StyleSeat. On July 29, 2017, Ebersol and McCloskey were married at Blackberry Farm in Walland, Tennessee. [47]

In her memoir The Woman in Me, pop star Britney Spears discusses dating Ebersol.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">XFL (2001)</span> Former American football league

The XFL was a professional American football league that played its only season in 2001. The XFL was operated as a joint venture between the World Wrestling Federation and NBC. The XFL was conceived as an outdoor football league that would begin play immediately after the National Football League (NFL) season ended, to take advantage of the perceived lingering public desire to watch football after the NFL and college football seasons conclude. It was promoted as having fewer rules to encourage rougher play than other major leagues, while its telecasts featured sports entertainment elements inspired by professional wrestling, including heat and kayfabe, and suggestively-dressed cheerleaders. Commentary crews also featured WWF commentators joined by sportscasters and veteran football players. Despite the wrestling influence, the games and their outcomes were legitimate and not based on scripted storylines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dick Ebersol</span> American television executive

Duncan "Dick" Ebersol 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NBC Sports</span> Division of American broadcast network NBC

NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its dedicated national sports cable channels. Formerly operating as "a service of NBC News", it broadcasts a diverse array of sports events, including Major League Baseball, the French Open, the Premier League, the IndyCar Series, NASCAR, the National Football League (NFL), Notre Dame Fighting Irish college football, the Olympic Games, professional golf, the Tour de France and Thoroughbred racing, among others. Other programming from outside producers – such as coverage of the Ironman Triathlon – is also presented on the network through NBC Sports. With Comcast's acquisition of NBCUniversal in 2011, its own cable sports networks were aligned with NBC Sports into a part of the division known as the NBC Sports Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Lewis</span> American football player and coach (born 1961)

Tim Lewis is an American football coach and former player who is the co-defensive coordinator for the Arlington Renegades of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football for the University of Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft. Following a neck injury that cut his playing career short after four seasons, Lewis began serving as a coach in the collegiate and professional levels and obtained his first head coaching position with the Birmingham Iron of the Alliance of American Football (AAF) in 2019. He also served as the defensive backs coach for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL until the league folded in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Polian</span> American football executive (born 1942)

William Patrick Polian Jr. is an American football executive. He rose to league prominence as the General Manager of the Buffalo Bills, building a team that participated in four straight Super Bowls—the most consecutive appearances by any team—but lost each time. Following his stint in Buffalo, Polian went on to become the general manager of the expansion Carolina Panthers. He then served as general manager and team president of the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL) from 1998 to 2011, where they reached two Super Bowls, winning XLI. He subsequently served as an NFL analyst for ESPN. Polian was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015. Polian co-founded the now-defunct Alliance of American Football in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trey Brown</span> American football player (born 1985)

Theotis "Trey" Brown, III is a former American football cornerback who is currently a senior personnel executive for the Cincinnati Bengals after being hired by the Bengals in 2021.

Willie L. Lewis is an American football executive and former professional player. He was most recently the Director of Player Personnel for the San Antonio Brahmas of the XFL and Assistant Director of Pro Personnel for the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL. He was the general manager for the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football (AAF). He previously served as an executive in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 years, including tenures with the Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs. Most notably, he was the Seahawks vice president of football operations from 2010 to 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. J. McCarron</span> American football player (born 1990)

Raymond Anthony "A. J." McCarron Jr. is an American football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, becoming the first quarterback to win consecutive BCS National Championship Games with victories in 2012 and 2013. He also received the Maxwell, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm, and Kellen Moore Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Austin (American football)</span>

Stephen Austin is a former NFL executive and founder of the NFL Regional Combines and NFL Super Regional Combine.

Alizé Mack is an American football tight end for the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Notre Dame.

Thomas Dundon is an American billionaire businessman, specializing in financial services, real estate and sports entertainment. He is chairman and managing partner of Dundon Capital Partners in Dallas, Texas, chairman of pickleball.com, and is the sole owner and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League and was on the board of the former Alliance of American Football.

The XFL was a professional American football minor league consisting of eight teams located across the United States in mid-sized to major markets. It is now one of the two-component conference of the United Football League (UFL), along with the United States Football League (USFL). The league headquarters were in Arlington, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alliance of American Football</span> Former professional American football league

The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan areas with at least one major professional sports franchise.

Scott Daly is an American football long snapper for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Notre Dame.

Malachi Fitzgerald Jones is an American gridiron football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Appalachian State.

Dexter Vidal Williams is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Notre Dame and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Coan</span> American football player (born 1998)

Jack Coan is an American football quarterback for the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football for Wisconsin and Notre Dame.

Minor league football, also known as alternative football or secondary football, is an umbrella term for professional gridiron football that is played below the major league level.

Infinite Athlete is a sports data technology corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California. Formed from the merger of Biocore and Tempus Ex Machina, it provides data stream consolidation, data visualization, and integrated player tracking technology for organizations including the National Football League, Chelsea FC, and the NCAA's Pac-12 Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WMT Digital</span> US web technology developer

WMT Digital is a web engineering and technology company in Miami, Florida. They specialize in engineering web platforms for college and professional sports leagues that includes content, streams, subscriptions, ticketing, and marketing.

References

  1. ↑ "Susan Saint James". Yahoo Movies Canada. Archived from the original on May 30, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Newsmakers > Susan Saint James [gives birth to William James Ebersol]". Kentucky New Era. Associated Press. October 23, 1986. p. 8E. Retrieved June 22, 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Behind the curtains at Tempus Ex Machina: Up close with the leadership team that's developing the cutting-edge technology". www.sportsbusinessjournal.com. February 8, 2023. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  4. ↑ AJ Marechal "THE Co. Co-Founder Justin Hochberg Exits Shingle (Exclusive)"] "Variety" July 3, 2013
  5. ↑ "The Profit (2013– ) Full Cast & Crew on CNBC"
  6. ↑ Ourand, John. "Ebersol says upstart football league will showcase technology". New York Business Journal. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  7. 1 2 John Ourand “Young Ebersol finds his place in TV production”, "Sports Business Journal", April 1, 2013
  8. ↑ Sam Davis “Notre Dame senior Charlie Ebersol survives Colorado plane crash”, "The Observer", November 29, 2004
  9. ↑ "National Transportation Safety Board Aviation Accident Final Report, Accident Number DEN05MA029". NTSB . May 3, 2006. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  10. ↑ “Ebersol family discusses plane crash that killed son”, "USA Today", February 2, 2006
  11. ↑ “Susan Saint James remembers her son Teddy” Archived February 7, 2015, at the Wayback Machine , "TODAY.com", December 12, 2004
  12. ↑ "Ebersols break silence to Oprah // The Observer". The Observer. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  13. ↑ Claire Heininger "The Observer", Wednesday, January 12, 2005
  14. ↑ Klowetter, Barbara. Records Management Team, Office of the Registrar, University of Notre Dame.
  15. ↑ Kaitlynn Riely “Ebersol to again go on ‘Oprah’”, "The Observer", April 20, 2006
  16. ↑ Richard Sandomir “Film About Despair in South Africa, and School That Offers Hope”, "The New York Times", July 2, 2005
  17. ↑ “Don't Look Down: Shaun White”, "Eye Candy Cinema", November 30, 2014
  18. ↑ “Notre Dame: Tradition Never Graduates”, stephanmazurek.com, November 26, 2014.
  19. ↑ Jim Halterman “Interview: "The Wanted" Executive Producers Charlie Ebersol & Adam Ciralsky”, "Futon Critic", July 20, 2009
  20. ↑ Stuart Levine “Hochberg Ebersol Co. takes off”, "Variety", November 11, 2011
  21. ↑ Jacob Goodwin “Off the Grid reality TV depicts real-world surveillance technologies”, "GSN: Government Security News”, November 29, 2011.
  22. ↑ Randee Dawn “Charlie Ebersol seizes 'The Moment,' offers people a second chance at dreams”, "TODAY.com", April 12, 2013.
  23. ↑ “"NFL Characters Unite" film to air Friday on USA Network”, "NFL.com", February 6, 2013
  24. ↑ Deadline Team “Dolph Lundgren To Host ReelzChannel Competition Series 'Race To The Scene'”, "Deadline", July 25, 2012
  25. ↑ AJ Marechal “THE Co. Co-Founder Justin Hochberg Exits Shingle (Exclusive)”, "Variety", November 10, 2013
  26. ↑ Brian Steinberg “Charlie Ebersol, Israel’s Dori Media Set Production Venture”, "Variety", March 5, 2014
  27. ↑ Daniel Holloway “The Company Partners With Israel’s Dori Media on International Venture”, "Broadcasting & Cable", March 5, 2014
  28. ↑ Nellie Andreeva “Rob Reiner & Andrew Lenchewski Sell Spy Drama Set In Yale's Skull & Bones Society To USA”, "Deadline", August 13, 2014.
  29. ↑ Busch, Anita (February 22, 2014). "Ebersols Aboard To Produce And Script Warner Bros' 'Space Jam 2' As A Starring Vehicle For LeBron James". Deadline. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  30. ↑ Bixenspan, David (March 21, 2018). "Why Is Charlie Ebersol Launching A Direct Rival To His Buddy Vince McMahon's XFL?". Deadspin. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  31. ↑ Fowler, Jeremy. "A new football league is here: The AAF has big plans". ESPN. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  32. ↑ Roettgers, Janko (February 8, 2019). "New Pro-Football League Wants to Build a Data Business, Starting With Its Own App". Variety. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  33. ↑ "Alliance of American Football is surprise ratings hit on first night". Yahoo Finance. February 11, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  34. ↑ Spangler, Todd (March 20, 2018). "New Pro Football League Sets 2019 Debut With CBS Sports Pact". Variety. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  35. ↑ Perez, A.J. (March 21, 2018). "New AAF pro football league, set for 2019 debut, described as 'complementary' to NFL". USA Today. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  36. ↑ Rovell, Darren. "Former NFLers involved in league to rival XFL". ESPN. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  37. ↑ Moore, Greg (May 21, 2018). "Alliance of American Football might work by appealing to fans, gamblers in post-NFL window". USA Today. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  38. ↑ Kaplan, Daniel. "NHL owner Tom Dundon sued for at least $184 million over Alliance for American Football demise". The Athletic. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  39. ↑ Goldberg, Rob. "AAF Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Owes over $9.6M to Creditors". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  40. ↑ Fernandez, Gabe (April 10, 2019). "Lawsuit Claims The AAF Intentionally Misled And Defrauded Its Players". Deadspin . Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  41. ↑ Kaplan, Daniel. "Trustee seeks court's permission to sue Tom Dundon in bankruptcy case of failed football league". The Athletic. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  42. ↑ Danner, Patrick (May 3, 2022). "San Antonio judge dismisses ex-football players' lawsuit". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  43. ↑ "Inside Tempus Ex Machina as the company reveals its technology and significant impact on the NFL". www.sportsbusinessjournal.com. February 9, 2023. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  44. ↑ "Pac-12, Tempus Ex Machina to Develop Video-Sharing Tool for Student-Athletes to Monetize Game Highlights". www.sportsbusinessjournal.com. August 4, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  45. ↑ Bucholtz, Andrew (April 10, 2023). "Charlie Ebersol on Tempus Ex Machina-Chelsea partnership: 'Our technology ultimately is infrastructure.'". Awful Announcing. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  46. ↑ McCaskill, Steve (August 7, 2023). "Tempus Ex rebrands as Infinite Athlete, acquires Biocore to create 'OS for sport'". SportsPro. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  47. ↑ "Melody McCloskey, Charles Ebersol". The New York Times. July 30, 2017. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.