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Bud Collins, U.S. voice of tennis in print and on TV, dies at 86

Published 2:26 pm Friday, March 4, 2016

By Associated Press

In this June 30, 1993, NBC tennis commentator Bud Collins displays a pair of brightly colored trousers as he sits overlooking the courts at Wimbledon, England. Collins, the tennis historian and American voice of the sport in print and on TV for decades, died Friday at his home in Brookline, Mass.

In this June 30, 1993, NBC tennis commentator Bud Collins displays a pair of brightly colored trousers as he sits overlooking the courts at Wimbledon, England. Collins, the tennis historian and American voice of the sport in print and on TV for decades, died Friday at his home in Brookline, Mass.

Bud Collins, the tennis historian and American voice of the sport in print and on TV for decades, has died. He was 86.

His wife, Anita Ruthling Klaussen, said in a telephone interview that Collins died Friday at home in Brookline, Massachusetts, after suffering from Parkinson’s disease and dementia.

Inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1994, Collins was well-known for creative player nicknames and turns of phrase that were as colorful as his trademark bow ties and one-of-a-kind pants created from cloth he collected around the world.

He also paved the way for newspaper reporters moving into broadcasting, becoming a familiar face to U.S. television audiences waking up for “Breakfast at Wimbledon” on NBC.

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