RIP legendary Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell

[WOLF]

One of the great voices of baseball passed away yesterday. This deserves it's own thread. RIP Mr. Harwell.


DETROIT -- Longtime Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell, beloved by generations of fans who grew up listening to his rich voice, Southern cadence and quirky phrases on the radio, has died after a months-long battle with cancer. He was 92.

Harwell died about 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday in his apartment at Fox Run Village and Retirement Center in the Detroit suburb of Novi, said his lawyer and longtime friend, S. Gary Spicer.

His wife of 68 years, Lulu, and his two sons and two daughters were at his side, Spicer said.

"We'll miss you, Ernie Harwell. You'll forever be the voice of summer," Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm tweeted.

A Hall of Fame announcer who called Tigers games for four-plus decades and was acquired by the Brooklyn Dodgers for a catcher in 1948, Harwell revealed in September that he had been diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the bile duct. He took the news with characteristic poise, saying he planned to continue working on a book and other projects.

"Whatever happens, I'm ready to face it," Harwell told The Associated Press on Sept. 4, 2009. "I have a great faith in God and Jesus."

Harwell's body will lie in repose at Comerica Park on Thursday beginning at 7 a.m. and "until the last person who wishes to pay their respects" has done so, Spicer said.

"It might be an all-night vigil," he said.

There will be no public memorial service, and the family will hold a private funeral service at a location Spicer declined to disclose.

The Tigers were in Minnesota on Tuesday night. During the seventh-inning stretch, the Twins announced Harwell had died, and fans honoured him with a standing ovation.

"All of Major League Baseball is in mourning tonight upon learning of the loss of a giant of our game," commissioner Bud Selig said. "This son of Georgia was the voice of the Detroit Tigers and one of the game's iconic announcers to fans across America, always representing the best of our national pastime to his generations of listeners.

"Without question, Ernie was one of the finest and most distinguished gentlemen I have ever met."

Shortly after Harwell announced that he was ill, the Tigers honoured him during a game against Kansas City, showing a video tribute and giving him a chance to address the crowd at Comerica Park.

"In my almost 92 years on this Earth, the good Lord has blessed me with a great journey," Harwell said at a microphone behind home plate. "The blessed part of that journey is that it's going to end here in the great state of Michigan."

Harwell spent 42 of his 55 years in broadcasting with the Tigers. He was their play-by-play radio voice from 1960-1991 and 1993-2002, joining Mel Allen, Jack Buck, Harry Caray and others among the game's most famous voices.

Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully began broadcasting Brooklyn Dodgers games in 1950, the season after Harwell left.

"Probably the best word, he was gentle. And it came across. He just cared for people and he loved baseball," Scully said. "You can understand how the people in Detroit just loved him. I followed him into Brooklyn, and then I followed him into the Hall. He was such a lovely man. However that word is defined, that was Ernie."

Harwell's passing came one season after the death of another cherished baseball announcer, Philadelphia's Harry Kalas.

The Tigers and their flagship radio station, WJR, allowed Harwell's contract to expire after the 1991 season in what became a public relations nightmare. Then-Tigers president Bo Schembechler, the former Michigan football coach, took the blame. WJR general manager Jim Long later took responsibility for the unpopular move.

When Mike Ilitch bought the franchise from Tom Monaghan, he put Harwell back in the booth in 1993. Harwell chose to retire after the 2002 season.

"Ernie Harwell was the most popular sports figure in the state of Michigan," said Ilitch, who also owns the Detroit Red Wings.

Harwell's big break came in unorthodox fashion.

Brooklyn Dodgers radio broadcaster Red Barber fell ill in 1948, and general manager Branch Rickey needed a replacement. After learning that the minor league Atlanta Crackers needed a catcher, Rickey sent catcher Cliff Dapper to Atlanta and Harwell joined the Dodgers.

Harwell said his most memorable game was the 1951 playoff between the Dodgers and New York Giants for the NL pennant, which Bobby Thomson won with a walk-off home run, but few if any people remember his recount of the "Shot Heard 'Round The World?" at the Polo Grounds that day.

Russ Hodges' exclamation on radio of "The Giants win the pennant!" became one of the most famous moments in sports broadcasting history. Harwell, meanwhile, was calling the first major sporting event televised coast-to-coast in the United States. His work that day has been largely forgotten.

"I just said, 'It's gone!' and then the pictures took over," he recalled.

By his own count, Harwell called more than 8,300 major league games, starting with the Dodgers and continuing with the Giants and Baltimore Orioles before joining the Tigers. He missed two games outside of the '92 season: one for his brother's funeral in 1968, the other when he was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame in 1989.

His easygoing manner and love of baseball endeared him to generations of Tigers fans, enhancing the club's finest moments and making its struggles more bearable.

Even casual fans could tick off Harwell catch phrases: "Looooooong gone!" for a home run; "He stood there like the house by the side of the road and watched that one go by" for a batter taking a called third strike; and "Two for the price of one!" for a double play.

Foul balls into the stands were "Caught by a man from (whatever town in the area that came to his mind)."

"I started that after I got to Detroit in 1961 or '62, and it just happened by accident," Harwell explained. "I said, 'A guy from Grosse Pointe caught that foul ball,' then the next ones were caught by a guy from Saginaw or a lady from Lansing."

The Baseball Hall of Fame honoured Harwell in 1981 with the Ford C. Frick Award, given annually to a broadcaster for major contributions to baseball.

A life-sized statue of Harwell stands at the entrance to Comerica Park and its press box is called "The Ernie Harwell Media Center."

He took pride in making rare visits to the ballpark and for not doing much play-by-play work as a retiree. But he did make a guest appearance for ESPN Radio during the fourth inning of the 2005 All-Star game in Detroit. He also presented the ceremonial first ball to Tigers greats Al Kaline and Willie Horton before Game 1 of the 2006 World Series when Detroit hosted the St. Louis Cardinals.

Harwell was born Jan. 25, 1918, in Washington, Ga., with a speech defect that left him tongue-tied. Through therapy and forcing himself to participate in debates and classroom discussions, he had overcome the handicap by the time he graduated from Emory University.

Harwell's survivors also include seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

[Heenan Snuka]

RIP

the only old-timer left now is Vin Scully...enjoy him while you can

[Rageman]

RIP kind sir. You were indeed one of the greats.

I love hearing the old timers call the games . . . a lot less hype and fluff. Brent Musberger annoyed the hell out of me on TV but he's actually quite amazing on the radio. Dave Niehaus does the Seattle Mariner games which are local up here in Alaska and he's a fabulous play by play announcer whose love for the game just explodes through the speakers.

[WhiteHouseSubsAC]

Hancock, Richard Loran 1958 - 2010 Rick passed away May 6, 2010 following a very courageous battle with cancer. Rick was born in Garland, TX and graduated from the Marine Military Academy. Rick is lovingly survived by his mother, Vicki Blakely, family members - Penny& Rex Blakely, Linda & Jack Parker, Patti & Raleigh Blakely, Bruce Blakely, daughter Michele Hancock, several nieces and nephews, girlfriend Jody Dixon. Memorial service will be at 3 PM, Saturday, May 8, St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 5801 W. Plano Parkway, Plano, TX. Neptune Society 817-838-5100

If you don't know who Ernie Harwell is, you have no business posting in the sports forum.

[JakeYonkel]

I loved the interview he did with Bob Costas on MLB Network back in November.

They just replayed it the other night. He was totally brave and accepting of his fate. I never had the pleasure of hearing him doing a game, but I respect what these guy meant to generations of fans.

Fortunately with technology today I've gotten to listen to Vin Scully a few times. It's a treat.

[WOLF]

I loved the interview he did with Bob Costas on MLB Network back in November.

They just replayed it the other night. He was totally brave and accepting of his fate. I never had the pleasure of hearing him doing a game, but I respect what these guy meant to generations of fans.

Fortunately with technology today I've gotten to listen to Vin Scully a few times. It's a treat.

For whatever reason, depending which way the wind was blowing, I was able to pick up Tigers games, as well as Mets, Yankees, Bosox, Phillies, and Jays while growing up in Montreal. I was one of those kids that my parents would put to bed and then I'd turn on the tiny clock radio and see what it could pick up through the static. I'll never forget Ernie Harwell's calm, soothing voice. The old timers had a way of sounding like your grandfather sitting on a park bench, describing what they were seeing. Nowadays it's all Chris Berman-like "back, back, back, back"; one boorish lout after the next, the guys like Mr. Harwell were storytellers.

His goodbye to the Detroit/Michigan fans, last year, was the epitome of class. Again, RIP.

[Redman77]

Some of my fondest memories of my grandpa were of him watching the Tigers with the volume off & Ernie on the radio calling the game. RIP Mr. Harwell.

[johnk5150]

Hancock, Richard Loran 1958 - 2010 Rick passed away May 6, 2010 following a very courageous battle with cancer. Rick was born in Garland, TX and graduated from the Marine Military Academy. Rick is lovingly survived by his mother, Vicki Blakely, family members - Penny& Rex Blakely, Linda & Jack Parker, Patti & Raleigh Blakely, Bruce Blakely, daughter Michele Hancock, several nieces and nephews, girlfriend Jody Dixon. Memorial service will be at 3 PM, Saturday, May 8, St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 5801 W. Plano Parkway, Plano, TX. Neptune Society 817-838-5100

If you don't know who Ernie Harwell is, you have no business posting in the sports forum.

I love that the only thing he wanted from old Tiger stadium when they razed it was a mens room urinal. Harwell, Carey and Uecker my big 3 amigos of making baseball funner for fans.

[Heenan Snuka]

I love that the only thing he wanted from old Tiger stadium when they razed it was a mens room urinal.