Jim Gardner remembers Harry Kalas, the voice of the Phillies for decades (video)
For many who grew up with the Phillies, Harry Kalas is synonymous with baseball. During his 39 years as the voice of the Phillies, Kalas earned the love and respect of players and fans well beyond the region.
Jack Williams, the founder of Comcast SportsNet, said Kalas was, “my idol when it comes to sportscasters.”
Billy Penn caught up recently with Williams, Action News Anchor Jim Gardner and retired VP/GM of Comcast Spotlight Jim Gallagher to get their thoughts on the man who was the voice of the Phillies for so long (see video below).
Gardner, Gallagher and Williams were at the Loews Hotel in Center City for the Philly Ad Club’s Movers and Shakers Pinnacle Award Honorees Luncheon, where they were recognized for their outstanding achievement in the Philadelphia Communications Industry.
But there was a special recognition for Kalas, whose baritone voice and signature calls like his “outta here” home run were Phillies game staples. He also did the narration and voiceover for NFL Films programs from 1975 through 2008. He died (fittingly) in a broadcast booth in Washington, D.C. prior to a Phillies game in 2009. He was 73 years old.
Gardner remembered Kalas as more than just the voice of the Phillies: “He was our guy… he was the guy who took us all by the hands and said, ‘let’s have this experience [of Phillies baseball] together.'”
Photo courtesy of ChickPhilA via Flickr
Should Philly mandate an annual cash infusion to the Housing Trust Fund? (Ballot question)
Should Philly have more flexibility when hiring city employees? (Ballot question)
Should the city charter call for marijuana legalization in Pa.? (Ballot question)
Procrastinator’s Guide to the 2021 November election in Philadelphia
Should Philly create a new department dedicated to managing city-owned vehicles? (Ballot question)
Ya Fav Trashman is writing a children’s book about sanitation workers and the power of clean streets
Weavers Way eyes Germantown for a big new grocery store, the co-op’s fourth
Philadelphians seek help with bullet damage to cars as shootings continue
Lard bread comes to Philly, thanks to the city’s top pizza-makers
How racial profiling drove away Philly’s first heavyweight boxing champion
Latino life in Philly is underrepresented — so what should we report on?
La vida latina en Filadelfia es subrepresentada, entonces, ¿sobre qué debemos reportar?
Where to find late-night sweets: 10 dessert cafes in Philadelphia
Take the Philly trivia quiz and test your local knowledge
The Philadelphia ties of the Soviet refusenik once called a ‘modern-day Moses’
Maybe Ben Simmons *was* injured, says a lifelong Sixers fan (Opinion)
Philly’s new Pride Collective is fundraising for big things, but won’t pull off OutFest
Historical marker honoring LGBTQ activist Gloria Casarez is Pennsylvania’s first for person of Latino descent
What to expect at LMNO, Stephen Starr’s new restaurant under the El
