Remembering Bill Giles
Bill Giles, Longtime Philadelphia Phillies Executive and Innovator, Dies at 92
Anonymous
Bill Giles, longtime Philadelphia Phillies executive and former part-owner, died Friday at his home in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, at 92. Hired in 1969, he helped prepare the team for its move to Veterans Stadium and transformed its business and fan experience with inventive promotions, including helping create the Phillie Phanatic. He also brought broadcaster Harry Kalas to Philadelphia and helped persuade Pete Rose to join the club. Giles organized the group that bought the Phillies in 1981 and served as team president through 1997; the franchise won the 1980 World Series and National League pennants in 1983 and 1993. Phillies leaders and former players remembered him as a central figure in the franchise’s history who helped make the team more than a traditional baseball club.
Key Points
1
To draw fans to Veterans Stadium, Giles staged unusual promotions: tightrope walker Karl Wallenda crossed the stadium between games of a doubleheader, a performer known as Benny the Human Bomb exploded, and “Kite Man” tried to deliver the first ball before crashing into empty seats.
2
Giles hired Dave Raymond to be the first person inside the Phillie Phanatic costume, telling him: “Have fun — G-rated fun.” Giles recalled wanting a mascot that was “undefinable, fat, green, with a big nose, with his tongue hangin’ out.”
3
Before joining the Phillies, Giles spent three years in the Air Force as a navigator in Strategic Air Command and later became general manager of the Nashville Vols, before moving on to Houston’s Colt .45s.
4
Giles also played a key role in opening Citizens Bank Park, and his civic service included boards and leadership roles with organizations such as the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Salvation Army and the Boy Scouts of America.
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