BUTTON, DICK

born July 18, 1929, Englewood, N.J., U.S. byname of Richard Totten Button figure skater who dominated American and international amateur competition for several years until 1952, when he became a professional. He was the only man to hold the Olympic, world, European, North American, and United States championships, and in 1948 he held all those titles simultaneously. At the age of 16 Button became the youngest holder of the U.S. Senior Men's figure-skating championship, which he won seven consecutive years (194652), tying a record established by Roger Turner (192834). He also captured the North American title in 1947, 1949, and 1951 and the European championship in 1948, the last year in which American skaters were permitted to compete. Button won the world championship five consecutive years (194852). In 1948 and in 1952 he won the gold medal for men's figure skating at the Olympic Winter Games in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and Oslo, Norway, respectively. During much of that period he was a student at Harvard University. He skated professionally with the Ice Capades and Holiday on Ice skating shows. From 1959, starting his own production company, he was a television producer of sports programs and a commentator for skating telecasts.