Tony Reali

Tony Reali

Reali in May 2013
Born Anthony Joseph Paul Reali
(1978-07-04) July 4, 1978
Staten Island, New York, U.S.
Education Fordham University
Occupation Sports talk show host
Years active 1997–present
Employer ESPN
Website Official website

Anthony Joseph Paul "Tony" Reali (born July 4, 1978) is an American sports personality and television host of Around the Horn on ESPN. In April 2014 it was announced he would be a contributor on social media for Good Morning America, which he began on October 8, 2014 but has not appeared in 2015, other than a couple sports related segments introduced as "ESPN's Tony Reali". He was "Stat Boy" on Pardon the Interruption from the show's debut in 2001 until late 2014.[1]

Pre-ESPN career

Born on Staten Island, New York, Reali spent most of his childhood living in New Jersey and graduated from Christian Brothers Academy in 1996. Reali was a sportscaster for WFUV at Fordham University from 1997-2000 as the voice of football and men's basketball. He also was a beat reporter covering the Yankees, Mets, Giants, and Jets. In May 2000, he wrote for WPIX-TV of New York.

Career at ESPN

Reali joined ESPN in 2000 as a researcher/writer for ESPN's quiz show 2 Minute Drill. He later joined Pardon the Interruption in October 2001 as "Stat Boy", where his role was to correct and fact-check hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon at the end of every episode. Reali became so popular that he started appearing daily on Tony Kornheiser's radio show for a daily segment called "Preview the Interruption", in which he discussed what was going to happen on PTI later on that afternoon. After Reali became the host of Around the Horn and his popularity continued to rise, Kornheiser and Wilbon eventually started introducing him by his actual name instead of simply calling him "Stat Boy." On occasion, Kornheiser will add several ridiculous middle names when introducing him to poke fun at his long name (such as Anthony Joseph Lisa Lipps Reali). In addition to conducting his usual fact-checks, Reali also judged Kornheiser and Wilbon when they played the games "Oddsmakers" and "Report Card" on the show and introduced the topics for segments such as "Over/Under" and "What's the Word." On September 5, 2014 Reali did his last show of Pardon the Interruption as part of moving to New York City to be a social media correspondent on Good Morning America,[2] a job he only held for a couple months.

Around the Horn

In February 2004, Reali replaced Max Kellerman as the host of Around the Horn, the show that precedes PTI in the ESPN weekday schedule (he was guest host on Around the Horn six times, and was a panelist six other times before becoming host). As host of Around The Horn, Reali awards points at his own discretion based upon the quality of the guests' comments. Reali is known for his in depth knowledge of sports statistics and corrections of panelists on Around the Horn. He will deduct points or mute the guest when a nonsensical comment is provided, awarding points when a panelist makes a convincing argument, bold prediction, or amusing pop culture reference.[3][4]

Voice roles

Reali appeared as a special guest star on Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil; he provided the voice for "The Dark One" in "Rocked". The episode aired on September 22, 2012.

Personal life

Reali is of Italian-American descent.[5] He grew up in Marlboro Township, New Jersey and graduated from Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft, New Jersey.[6] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Communications and History from Fordham University.[7]

Reali is a Catholic. "My faith is very important to me. So is my spirituality. It has made me who I am, and it has got me to where I am. And it's where I am going."[5] He is known for wearing ashes on his forehead on-air on ESPN every Ash Wednesday.[5]

In the early hours of October 1, 2007, Reali's apartment was destroyed by a fire,[8][9] a fact acknowledged by Tony Kornheiser on Pardon the Interruption on October 1 and by Reali himself, along with the various correspondents, on Around the Horn on October 2. Jay Mariotti verified that no one had been injured. The fire took place a few days after he proposed to his longtime girlfriend,[10] and now wife Samiya Edwards, an Africa policy consultant.[11]

References

  1. ↑ Tucker, Ken (2005), Kissing Bill O'Reilly, Roasting Miss Piggy: 100 Things to Love and Hate about TV, St. Martin's Press, p. 208, ISBN 0-312-33057-X
  2. ↑ Chase, Chris (September 5, 2014). "Tony Reali's emotional goodbye to 'PTI'". USA Today. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  3. ↑ Cowlishaw, Tim, Cowlishaw chat: Analyzing football failures, retrieved 2007-10-15
  4. ↑ Walters, John (2005-10-24), "My favorite Brunette", CNN, retrieved 2007-10-15
  5. 1 2 3 It’s our faith that makes us who we are, February 26, 2010; accessed October 18, 2014.
  6. ↑ Concha, Joe. "RealHoboken Celebrity Series: An Interview with ESPN’s Tony Reali", RealHoboken.com. Accessed October 23, 2007. "One of the aforementioned shows, Around the Horn is hosted by 28-year-old Tony Reali, a Marlboro, New Jersey native and graduate of Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft in 1996."
  7. ↑ Tony Reali ESPN Bio, retrieved 2007-10-15
  8. ↑ Mathis, Sommer, Almost Eight Hours Fighting Fire on Adams Mill Rd., retrieved 2007-10-02
  9. ↑ Moreno, Sylvia (2007-10-02), "Fire Chief Says Electrical Event Cause of Adams Morgan Fire", The Washington Post, retrieved 2007-10-02
  10. ↑ http://bijog.com/biography/tony-reali
  11. ↑ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/11/AR2008071100004.html
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