Logo

NBC Olympics: Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony

May 17, 2009  •  Post A Comment

On Aug. 8, 2008, an estimated 2 billion people worldwide watched the televised spectacle of the Opening Ceremony for the Beijing Summer Olympics at the Chinese stadium known as the Bird’s Nest. The kickoff of the Summer Games of the XXIX Olympiad was designed by creative director Zhang Yimou, an acclaimed filmmaker. Bucky Gunts directed the event for TV, anchored by NBC Sports and Olympics host Bob Costas and “Today” co-host Matt Lauer.
The critically acclaimed event, which featured a cast of 15,000 celebrating the rich history of centuries of Chinese culture, has added a Peabody Award to its many accolades. It incorporated a theatrical synchronized drum piece and other stunning performances, fireworks, lights, colors, music and the Parade of Nations, and climaxed with the dramatic lighting of the Olympic cauldron.
“Unquestionably, the Beijing Opening Ceremony was on so many levels the most incredible—the richest in terms of texture, color and imagination that really resonated on American television,” said executive producer Dick Ebersol. His vast experience includes having worked on the 1968 and 1972 Games while at ABC Sports, and executive producing every Olympics since Barcelona in 1992 in for NBC Sports.
“Zhang Yimou decided more than a year before to let the principals of TV inside the tent, and met with Bucky Gunts and producer David Neal 16 months before,” Mr. Ebersol said. “They had models, and did walk-throughs. He was very open about it and did the same for several international broadcasters. But that night when it was over, he saw the [television] production mounted in China, and he was heartsick. The feed in Europe he saw many hours later, and that was equally disappointing.
“But on Sunday morning he saw ours and wrote us a beautiful note saying how great it had been to watch and see his vision so totally captured,” Mr. Ebersol added. “Word got out on the street in China that everyone wanted to see the American version. It’s great to know our vision was what they wanted.”
NBC attracted a record audience for the Opening Ceremony. In the nearly 50 years of televised Olympics, the network’s coverage in Beijing was the most viewed ever for a non-U.S. Summer Olympics, with nearly 70 million total viewers.

62 Comments

  1. I ordered TWO copies of the Olympic opening and closing in Beijing as soon as they were advertised.
    The order included my credit card number.
    I have never received them.
    I still would like to have them.
    What is my next steps?

  2. Thanks for your visiting this http://www.watchau.com online store.

  3. Thanks for your visiting this http://www.glamoursell.com online store.

  4. This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.

  5. Thanks for your visiting this http://www.hello-free.com/freebies online store.

  6. Hands down, Apple’s app store wins by a mile. It’s a huge selection of all sorts of apps vs a rather sad selection of a handful for Zune. Microsoft has plans, especially in the realm of games, but I’m not sure I’d want to bet on the future if this aspect is important to you. The iPod is a much better choice in that case.

  7. Wow this is great information thanks guys

  8. thanks for posting. Great article.

  9. link please :(((

  10. You did the logo. I want to do something like that.

  11. I come and read constantly. very nice blog

  12. When reading a blog you never know what your going to fine – but I liked this one – thanks

  13. Excellent work always good to come across a really thoughtful post – I’ve bookmarked it.

  14. Wow, amazing blog layout! How long have you been blogging for? you make blogging look easy.

  15. I added Google Reader to your site when I have spare time try to follow.

  16. I added Google Reader to your site when I have spare time try to follow.Thank you.

  17. I found your site via google thanks for the post. I will bookmark it for future reference. Thanks

  18. Many thanks for the great posting. I am glad I have taken the time to see this.

  19. Great wordpress blog here.. It’s hard to find quality writing like yours these days. I really appreciate people like you! take care and see you soon

  20. I really like the colors here on your blog. did you design this yourself or did you outsource it to a professional?

  21. Nice!! Great Ifo. Great People. Great Blog. Thank you for all the great sharing that is being done here.

  22. While the opening was great for the summer Olympics, I must preferred the opening and closing ceremonies for the latest winter Olympics.

  23. En güzel erotik filmler burada.

  24. keep

  25. The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.

  26. High quality info here! Keep up the great work. I love the feelings being expressed.

  27. Thank you for the infomation

  28. Kvepalai

  29. This is good info! Where else can if ind out more?? Who runs this joint too? Keep up the good work 🙂

  30. Amazing freakin blog here. I almost cried while reading it!

  31. Neat blog layout! Very easy on the eyes.. i like the colors you picked out

  32. Amazing freakin blog here. I almost cried while reading it!

  33. Nice!! Great Ifo. Great People. Great Blog. Thank you for all the great sharing that is being done here.

  34. Thats some nice informationI Like your style.

  35. Interesting blog, pls contiune your work and keep us update with new entries

  36. Yo. First of all – nice blog! Secondly this information was also good and interesting to read, but I don’t think everything you have said is real truth. I will need to google about few things you have mentioned in your artcile to make sure. But anyway thanks for the great effort and good luck on writing other articles. P.S sorry for bad English, I aren’t English native speaker.

  37. I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you create this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you? Plz reply back as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to know wheere u got this from. thanks

  38. Fantastic story. Will need some time to think about your site.

  39. Kudos for the great article. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.

  40. I love the way you write and also the theme on your blog. Did you code this yourself or was it done by a professional? I’m very very impressed.

  41. You make blogging look like a walk in the park! I’ve been trying to blog daily but I just cant find writing material.. you’re an inspiration to me and i’m sure many others!

  42. I would like to start my own blog one day. This was a really nice blog that you made here. Keep up the success 😛

  43. Very usefull post do you mind if i translate into French for our blogs subscribers? If so what dort of acknowledgement would you prefer?

  44. Interesting layout on your blog. I really enjoyed reading it and also I will be back to read more in the future.

  45. I love the way you write and also the theme on your blog. Did you code this yourself or was it done by a professional? I’m very very impressed.

  46. I agree with your thoughts here and I really love your blog! I’ve bookmarked it so that I can come back & read more in the future.

  47. Hi, I got your blog in a new directory of blogs. I dont know how your blog came up, must have been a typo, Your blog seems good. Have a nice day.

  48. Wow! what an idea ! What a concept ! Beautiful .. Impressive

  49. Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.

  50. I would like to start my own blog one day. This was a really nice blog that you made here. Keep up the success 😛

  51. Nice!! Great Ifo. Great People. Great Blog. Thank you for all the great sharing that is being done here.

  52. Nice!! Great Ifo. Great People. Great Blog. Thank you for all the great sharing that is being done here.

  53. Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.

  54. High quality info here! Keep up the great work. I love the feelings being expressed.

  55. Hey, really enjoyed this post! Shed light on a few things I didn’t understand. Thank you.

  56. Hey, really enjoyed this post! Shed light on a few things I didn’t understand. Thank you.

  57. Zune and iPod: Most people compare the Zune to the Touch, but after seeing how slim and surprisingly small and light it is, I consider it to be a rather unique hybrid that combines qualities of both the Touch and the Nano. It’s very colorful and lovely OLED screen is slightly smaller than the touch screen, but the player itself feels quite a bit smaller and lighter. It weighs about 2/3 as much, and is noticeably smaller in width and height, while being just a hair thicker.

  58. Thank you for the informational post. I will be taking advantage of the amazing information on your blog. I will be returning!

  59. Thanks for the informational content. I will be taking advantage of the amazing information on the blog. I will be coming back!

  60. l wanted to say this blog is kinda awsome .I always like to read something new because I have the similar blog in my Country on this so this helps me a lot. I did search on the issue and found good number of blogs but nothing like this. Thanks for writing so much in your blog.. Greets., My Mier

  61. Wow, amazing blog layout! How long have you been blogging for? you make blogging look easy.

  62. in last day i was read a article on your website and i was added a commet and ask a question but you didnt approval my commet. i didnt get my questions answer.

Leave a Reply to Printable Coupons Cancel Reply

Email (will not be published)