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Bill Schonely: Profile of a Portland Broadcasting Legend

09/04/12

  1. Written by: trailblazers

    (This article first ran in an edition of PDX Magazine)

    If you head out to a Portland Trail Blazers game these days, chances are you won't see a lot of familiar faces. The rebuilding franchise has cleaned house and started anew, hoping for better things in the future. But you can still find one very recognizable figure present at the Rose Garden on game nights, greeting fans with a contagious smile and genuine hello. His golden voice instantaneously brings back good feelings and even better memories of past Blazer teams, and somehow gives the listener a glimmer of hope for the future. For those of us who have followed the Trail Blazers for any part of the last four decades, this man needs no introduction. He's known simply as "The Schonz."

    Bill Schonely was the original play-by-play voice of the Blazers from their inception in 1970 through 1998, staying on with the team as a broadcaster until 2000. Over the years he has zealously described for listeners across the state some of the greatest moments in franchise history, including the team's lone championship during the 1976-77 season. You can still hear the excitement in his voice as he recalls the phenomenon known as Blazermania that took over the city of Portland.

    "When the Blazers won the championship, there were block parties all over the place, you couldn't get anywhere," recalls a beaming Schonely. "I don't care where you went in this state or in this area, it was Blazermania time, Rip City time all over." He recalls the championship parade down Broadway as, "Nothing but people. It was incredible. The grandest thing I've ever been involved in."

    But the broadcasting legend who coined such memorable phrases as "Rip City," "bingo-bango-bongo" and "you have GOT to make your free throws," has also felt first hand some of the low points in recent team history, when the Blazers were known more for their inflated egos and off court incidents rather then their excellence on the hardwood. After a parting of ways with the franchise and then-president Bob Whitsitt in 2000, Schonely got back to his baseball roots, broadcasting Portland Beavers games. He was asked to rejoin the Blazers in 2003 when new president Steve Patterson took over. "I was disappointed in what happened prior to that," says The Schonz of his separation from the team. "And when Steve Patterson came on board, one of the first things he did was give me a call… He said 'we'd love to have you come back and help us in any capacity that you can.'" "I told him at the time, 'Steve, that's great, and I really appreciate that. Because this has been my life, I love the Trail Blazers, and I want to do whatever I can for them. But I've got to have a story to tell.'"

    That "story" turned out to be one that Schonely could get behind and feel good about presenting to the fans; honesty about the present and optimism for the future. "I love the direction that the Blazers are going in," he says. "It's going to take time, there's no question about that… That's where they are. What has happened in the past is done, and we're climbing up the ladder. But this particular year it's going to be tough."

    Schonely is especially happy with the job new head coach Nate McMillan is doing. "Nate McMillan is the right guy at the right time for this job," he says with conviction. "I'm thrilled and just love what Nate is doing. I love some of his quotes. He lays it on the line. That's just the way it is. These kids are going to have to abide by that, and I think they are."

    Although he's known primarily for his long tenure with the Blazers, Schonely experienced a varied and colorful broadcasting career prior to joining the team in 1970, calling the action for everything from baseball, football and hockey to roller derby and wrestling. "As a sports broadcaster, you like to do all sports. And I've been fortunate to do them all," he says. "I love to get behind that microphone and try and describe whatever that event might be in front of me to the best of my ability. I try to think that there's one person out there that wants to know what the heck is going on."

    But sometimes the ever-exuberant Schonely has had a hard time staying on the sidelines. One such occasion came when the Schonz was working as the TV commentator for local wrestling in Tacoma. "We had a gentleman at the time called The Outlaw, who was THE bad guy," recalls Schonely. "In previous weeks, he would give me a bad time (during the telecast). So that night he was giving me a bad time, and I gave it back to him. He came out of the ring, picked me up and body slammed me!" That led to Schonely donning tights and teaming up with two of the "good guys" in a three-on-three match the next week against The Outlaw and two of his goons. Although it would be his only foray into the ring as a wrestler, The Schonz got his redemption. "The good guys won," he adds with a smirk.

    Schonely keeps busy these days in his new position as Broadcasting Founder and Ambassador for the Blazers. His duties include hosting regular TV and radio segments that highlight memorable moments in franchise history, in addition to representing the team at a variety of community and charity events. "The community has been so good to me," he says. "I just want to give back whatever I can."

    And while the future prospects of this Trail Blazers team are still in question, one thing is certain. As long Bill Schonely is around, Rip City is alive and well.
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