ESPN published its 30 for 30 short on the Pacers Telethon Tuesday morning. The story was pitched to ESPN by Indianapolis filmmaker Michael Husain, who then directed the film lasting 14 minutes and 35 seconds.
[Podcast with director Michael Husain]
In short – see what I did there? – the ABA Pacers were out of money in 1977 and needed income in order to continue. General manager Nancy Leonard, Slick’s wife, was out of town when she got the call. It was then when she tossed out the idea of holding a telethon.
In about a week, they organized a telethon that originated on Ch. 4 and was then picked up by other local stations. They had all kinds of acts perform to entertain the crowd and so many people helped out by answering the phones.
There was a brief scare when they realized their overall total was off. Ultimately, they got the money necessary to continue. Without it, who knows how different the sports landscape in Indianapolis would be.
This 30 for 30 will air on ESPN Friday during the 6 p.m. (ET) edition of SportsCenter.
Watch the 30 for 30 short in the media player below: