'The Father of Simulcasting' Roberts Dies at 96

Tommy Roberts, an ebullient entrepreneur whose innovations helped move the Thoroughbred industry forward over many decades, died Aug. 14 at his vacation home in North Carolina. He was 96. His longtime friend Joe Raucci confirmed Roberts' death.

Roberts' foresight drove an economic engine that proved critical to the success of horse racing over the past four decades. By renting satellite time from corporations and beaming signals from racetracks into Nevada casinos, Roberts was dubbed "The Father of Simulcasting," and was directly responsible for exponentially increasing handle. He also brought signals from one track to another, moving the sport forward from a model where patrons could only wager on races at the venue they were attending.

Roberts brought horse racing into the television era in 1957 when he produced, hosted, and sold airtime for a 30-minute daily TV show from Atlantic City Race Course, marking the first time racing had an ongoing presence on television. A 21-station radio network along the East Coast carried his "The Race of the Day" for more than two decades. In 1960, Roberts hosted the first color telecast of racing. That NBC program, from Hialeah Park, featured former President Harry Truman as a guest. During his career, he at various times hosted telecasts on CBS, NBC, and ABC, working alongside Jim McKay, Howard Cosell, Al Michaels, and Jim Simpson.

In the late 1960s, Roberts' Independent Television Network beamed a weekly telecast from Hialeah, Gulfstream Park, and Tropical Park that he also produced and hosted. In the early 1970s, he cleared 118 TV stations for coverage of the Washington, D.C. International Stakes from Laurel Park, also serving as the race-caller on the show.

But Roberts' greatest contribution was to the modern consumption of horse racing.

In 1983, he conducted a simulcast experiment, sending a signal between the Meadowlands and Atlantic City Racecourse. A year later, he obtained a license from the Nevada Gaming Control Board and formed a company to sell simulcasts to Nevada casinos as well as international racetracks. Within two months, he was bringing signals into Nevada from 30 North American racetracks from coast to coast.

Roberts thus ushered in the simulcast era that became a crucial model for the horse racing business.

In a 2019 interview with BloodHorse, Roberts admitted that: "I owned a satellite-based horse racing business, yet I still have trouble with light switches. To say those early start-up days were hectic would be an understatement."

By 1984, Caesar's Palace had built a $21 million race and sportsbook, and the Las Vegas Hilton followed close behind. By the late 1980s, casinos quadrupled their annual handle on horse racing. Roberts also began putting deals together for racetracks to send their signals to each other.

Eventually, Roberts' son Todd upgraded the technology and rebranded the operation into Roberts Communications Network, the leading communications services provider to the pari-mutuel industry. The younger Roberts also began the Racetrack Television Network that carries Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Quarter Horse racing.

In his 2022 autobiography "Have I Got a Story for You," Tommy Roberts documents his freewheeling adventures through a variety of media and Thoroughbred industry jobs. He claimed as good friends everyone from Wilt Chamberlain to Eddie Arcaro.

While serving in the military during the Korean War, Roberts produced and hosted a radio show and landed guests such as actors Mickey Rooney and William Holden, singer Eddie Fisher, and heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis.

Around Philadelphia, Roberts was active in every facet of entertainment. He was a radio disc jockey, host of a music-based TV show that prefaced "American Bandstand," and owned radio and television stations. He served as the play-by-play man over those stations for the NBA's Philadelphia Warriors and 76ers, and the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles. He also produced and announced championship boxing matches.

His book details his friendships and exploits with celebrities such as Ed McMahon, Milton Berle, Princess Grace, Arnold Palmer, and Joe DiMaggio.

Roberts held a variety of front-office jobs at racetracks, beginning at Garden Stake Park in 1953. Moving to Florida, he became vice president and general manager of Hialeah in 1976, becoming friends with a who's who of horsemen from Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons to John Nerud. He brought "The Ed Sullivan Show" to tape at Hialeah, featuring a singing performance by the track's jockeys.

In his later years, Roberts maintained a winter home in Florida and was winning club golf tournaments well into his 90s. He is also survived by his wife, Vicky, and son Tommy II. Services will be private. Memorial donations may be made to Tunnel to Towers Foundation or the First Tee Program.