USA Today, July 7th 1987

 ASTORIA, N.Y. - Stubborness and the clash of personalities between ABC Sports President Dennis Swanson and Jim Lampley led to Lampley's abrupt resignation and the network's loss of a home-grown talent.

Lampley said he quit without a TV job, and with roughly 17 months to go on his lucrative ABC contract, in large measure over the ``iffiness'' of his role at the 1988 Winter Olympics.

``That uncertainty, of itself, was discouraging,'' he said. ``After working five Olympics and playing an important part as an anchor in the studio at the 1984 Games.''

Lampley's agent Art Kaminsky said: ``the chemistry didn't work'' with Swanson. ``They were never on the same wavelength.'' Lampley wanted to do college basketball and the new Monday Sportsnite show, said Kaminsky, and ``was blocked'' by Swanson.

Dennis Lewin, ABC Sports senior vice president of programming, said: ``There were areas Jimmy wanted to grow, and he felt he was not growing.'' Lewin called the resignation ``a mutual divorce.''

Lampley, 38, joined ABC in 1974. He can rely on a regular paycheck - he's in his first full week as a talk-show anchor at New York's WFAN-AM, which switched to all-sports programming last Wednesday.

But Lampley also said he's a ``free man'' who expects ``to be busy'' soon, possibly on NBC:

-Kaminsky: ``Part of the reason we took this step, hopefully a good step, is we did get encouragement from NBC. But nothing's locked up.''

-Lampley: ``NBC, for the obvious reason of the Olympics (next year in South Korea) and also because it seems to have a fun and mutually supportive environment. As an outsider, I don't see any internal jealousy or overwrought competition from the announcers there. Bob Costas tells me that's an accurate view.''

NBC officials - also posturing - said the interest is there, but no hiring is in the offing.

``I'm a fan of Jim's, and we went to Chapel Hill (University of North Carolina) together and we've known each other for 20 years,'' said Michael Weisman, NBC Sports executive producer. ``And I respect his work very much. He's highly professional. His departure from ABC is a big loss. However, at this moment, we're set with our announcers. We don't have any openings.''

But Lampley, a versatile player who handled boxing and motor sports along with his starring role in the studio on college football, could be insurance if Marv Albert decides to leave NBC next year for CBS. And vice versa at CBS, where Dick Stockton could head to NBC.

EAR CUTLINE: JIM LAMPLEY: Mutual divorce at ABC.