When Kenny Mayne explains how he finally landed a job offer from ESPN, he makes sure he notes the stops along the way.
A gig at the KSTW TV station in Seattle. A stint as a prepaid legal insurance salesman. Time spent working for the communications company MCI. And yes, even a job as a garbage can builder.
But persistence finally won ESPN over. Mayne, who’d been a freelance producer for the Bristol, Conn., based sports giant for four years, sent executive John Walsh a letter one day – a letter that asked him to check the appropriate box.
The options?
“One said ‘stand by the mailbox, a contract’s on the way’, another said ‘keep freelancing’ and the last one said ‘we’ll hire you when ESPN 5 is on the air’,” Mayne said by phone from Connecticut. “I was hired a month later.”
Mayne, a Kent native who attended Jefferson High School, has done a bit of everything since joining ESPN full-time in May 1994. But its his latest work on his Internet show “Mayne Street” that has him feeling like he’s right at home.
“I’ve done a little bit of everything at ESPN and eventually my position has evolved by me pitching it,” Mayne said, “and now, it’s everything I like.”
Mayne Street depicts a fictionalized version of Mayne and his life at the center of sports television – from interviewing the Minnesota Vikings on their insistence on wearing Wrangler jeans like their quarterback Brett Favre to documenting the journey of Olympic cameraman Bruce Reynolds, the video cowboy, a role played by John Blazer. The show has featured celebrities as well – Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Carolla and Ben Stiller, among others, have all made appearances.
“Every week we just get to dream up something new,” Mayne said. “It’s been a blast. I think it’s the next extension to what I was already doing.”
Each episode features Mayne at his best – delivering entertainment with his distinctly dry style, a personality all his own and one that has made him uniquely identifiable.
“I don’t think about it that much in terms of deconstructing it,” Mayne said. “I think I do whatever comes to me, just following my instincts. What I convey from my reporting or my fake reporting as it is, I think I would say the same thing if there was a camera on or not.”
Mayne has truly dabbled everywhere at ESPN. He’s hosted auto racing news and highlights programs, anchored SportsCenter and has continued to serve as host of ESPN’s horse racing coverage, a lifelong passion that started as a young boy living not far from the old Longacres Racetrack in Renton. The track, which was closed in 1992, became a source of great pleasure for Mayne and his family.
“It became a place that felt good,” Mayne said. “When I hear people talk about their great childhood memories, I think of the race track that way.”
Mayne’s passion for the sport was honored when he was presented in 2006 with the Old Hilltop Award for excellence in covering thoroughbred racing from the Maryland Horse Breeders Association.
If not for a college injury, Mayne may never have ended up at ESPN. An honorable mention junior college All-American quarterback at Wenatchee Valley Community College, Mayne moved on to play for two seasons at UNLV before graduating in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts in broadcasting. He signed a free agent contract with the Seattle Seahawks that same year, but failed the physical thanks to an ankle injury suffered at UNLV.
Mayne joined KSTW not long after the injury and began the road that now has him living with his family in Bristol, at the epicenter of sports broadcasting. Though the road was filled with a few unpredictable bumps – what his wife called his “bloop period” – Mayne managed to parlay his persistence into a now 16-year career with the Worldwide Leader in Sports, as ESPN is commonly known.
“They called me on April Fool’s day,” Mayne said, laughing. “I had to call someone else to see if it was a mean joke.”
Quick hitters from Kenny Mayne
Bellevue Reporter: How often do you get back out to the Pacific Northwest?
Kenny Mayne: As often as I can. I always try to do one or two Seahawks stories a year. We were out there at Christmas.
Bellevue Reporter: Have your dancing skills improved since your 2006 appearance on Dancing with the Stars?
Kenny Mayne: As bad as they were in that 90 seconds that I danced, I’m afraid they’ve declined.
Bellevue Reporter: Being an area native, what are your thoughts on Pete Carroll coaching the Seahawks?
Kenny Mayne: I’m OK with it. I was surprised that they gave up on [Jim] Mora as quickly as they did, but it’s a tough business. After they fire a coach, you get behind the new guy. I like Carroll’s energy. I think I’d dismiss what he did in the NFL the first time around. None of that matters. I love his energy for one. He seems like a guy people want to play for. But the Seahawks definitely have got a ways to go.
Bellevue Reporter: Will we see another NBA team in Seattle?
Kenny Mayne: I’d still like to figure out a way to get the old one back. I went through that thing just reading like a regular fan. I kept thinking that something was going to happen to stop it, then it was like ‘that’s it, they’re gone?'”. The Starbucks guy sold it to the wrong people, like with Longacres selling the track to Boeing. The Sonics were kind of doomed when they sold it to outsiders. I’m not like a superfan for any sport anymore, but on the Sonics, you still just shake your head.
Bellevue Reporter: Is Brett Favre ever going to retire?
Kenny Mayne: I’m a huge fan so I hope he retires when he’s ready for it. I can identify with him. Heck, I still miss football and I’m 50 years old. It never leaves your blood. Other than that last half, he had a great year. There is no reason for him to stop.
Bellevue Reporter: Bigger acheivement for you – 1978 honorable mention junior college All-American QB at Wenatchee Valley Junior College or 2006 Old Hilltop Award for excellence in covering thoroughbred racing from the Maryland Horse Breeders Association?
Kenny Mayne: I’ll go with football. The Hilltop did mean a lot to me though. They actually awarded me as being somewhat notable in media for doing something to help the sport. But since I always wanted to play football growing up, some acknowledgment for being halfway good was nice. Although it wasn’t as exclusive as it sounds – the list was quite long.
