Who Was Signed to the First Million Dollar Celebrity Endorsement Deal?
- Thread starter MyTeamIsOnTheFloor
- Start date
Oh, I was so close. ROFL
But I suspect the correct answer is not someone that Budweiser paid (if my own research is correct). On the other hand, the answer I found is the first athlete to sign a $1M endorsement deal. Your question asks for the first celebrity.
There is confusion.
According to “America in Color,” made by Arrow International Media for the Smithsonian Channel, it was bowler Don Carter, who had a team sponsored by Budweiser and was personally sponsored by Ebonite.
Bonus fact - pin setters allegedly took bribes, then got replaced by machines.
PS - I would have guessed Arnold Palmer. But apparently bowling was HUGE in the 50’s.
I should have known that. For years the bowling hall of fame was here and I think it was attached to Busch stadium. Or at least shared with the cardinals. In my mind's eye I see it across the street from the old stadium
My parents bowled when I was a little kid, so I was stuck going to the alleys every weekend. The sport was huge. In the late 60s (from what I recall), Don Carter and Dick Weber were among the most popular athletes in America. It was a really big deal when the PBA came to town, and Toledo was one of the biggest stops on the tour.
According to the story below, the deal was with Ebonite (but I suppose Budweiser could have been in on it).
First million dollar endorsement deal for an athlete went to a bowler
One can learn some interesting facts from random moments in sports talk radio: the first athlete to earn a $1 million endorsement deal was a bowler in 1964. In 1964, bowling legend Don Carter manag…
legallysociable.com
It was with the Cardinals Hall of Fame. It's now in Arlington, Texas. Don Carter and Dick Weber were both from St. Louis.
My dad worked as a pinsetter, and then as a manger of a bowling alley while in college in the 50's. He also played jazz coronet. Quite the rebel. His parents were devout Southern Baptists. His best friend (who became a Presbyterian minister) told me that they would drive to the bar where he played and sit outside to listen, and that my grandmother was "just certain" he was in there converting the drinkers to Christ!My parents bowled when I was a little kid, so I was stuck going to the alleys every weekend. The sport was huge. In the late 60s (from what I recall), Don Carter and Dick Weber were among the most popular athletes in America. It was a really big deal when the PBA came to town, and Toledo was one of the biggest stops on the tour.
According to the story below, the deal was with Ebonite (but I suppose Budweiser could have been in on it).
First million dollar endorsement deal for an athlete went to a bowler
One can learn some interesting facts from random moments in sports talk radio: the first athlete to earn a $1 million endorsement deal was a bowler in 1964. In 1964, bowling legend Don Carter manag…
A Baptist believes what he wants to believe and disregards the rest.
Methodists are Baptists who can read. Presbyterians are Methodists who drink.
