Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Summer Ramblings - Announcing

I am sorry to announce that another icon from my childhood has passed away.
 
Don Pardo.  Famous announcer extraordinaire, dead at the age of 96, and working almost to the end of his life.  If you don't live in the United States, you may not know his voice, but here, he has been the announcer for the long lived show Saturday Night Live.

He was its announcer from its start in 1975 to earlier this year.

Prior to that, he did announcing for game shows such as The Price is Right and Jeopardy.  Which leads into a little memory.

As many of you know, I grew up in New York City.  I attended a local college in the Bronx.

In 1971, during my college's summer break, I went with a couple of my friends to NBC Studios at what we now call "30 Rock", to see the taping of Jeopardy.  This isn't the Jeopardy most of us know, but an earlier version, hosted by Art Fleming. Who was the announcer? Yes- Don Pardo.

Whether or not you remember the original Jeopardy, you will love this parody song and video by Weird Al.  If you are sharp, you will catch several cameos, including one by none other than....

Don Pardo.  (his voice is prominently featured in the video, too.)

Can you imagine working until you are 96 years old?

Rest in peace, Don.  Those of many generations mourn your death.

5 comments:

  1. I can't and can imagine working until I'm 96, because hopefully, I'm alive then, and I think I'd get bored with not doing anything. Although, maybe not. It might be super nice to retire. I sing the Jeopardy song all the time. I know. Weird.

    ReplyDelete
  2. He must have remained very active in his advancing years. In the UK, we have another live-wire who still conducts a dance competition well into his 80s. Bruce Forsythe. (I had a senior moment there--couldn't think of his name.)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Weird Al is such a hoot! It would be awesome to be that healthy and strong, to still be working at age 96!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I really wasn't all that up with Don but your notes and thoughts are very sweet.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love me some Weird Al! I don't recall Don though. It's always sad when an icon passes.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting! Your comments mean a lot to me, and I appreciate each one. These comments are moderated, so they may not post for several hours. If you are spam, you will find your comments in my compost heap, where they will finally serve a good purpose.