The coldest beer is in Heaven

Baltimore lost a truly legendary baseball and football broadcaster this weekend. Chuck Thompson, the voice of the Orioles for virtually their entire existence (his last broadcast was in 2000) died of a massive stroke Sunday morning. I only really got into baseball and listening to games on the radio in 1989 or so, the last 11 years of Chuck's career, but it was long enough to realize he was a real treasure. His might not be as well-known a name as the likes of Harry Caray or Vin Scully, but his place in the Baseball Hall of Fame is every bit as deserved. He would have continued to broadcast games after 2000 if he hadn't been losing a battle with macular degeneration, which robbed him of a significant amount of his vision.

I think that perhaps one of the best pairs of broadcasting partners was Chuck and Jon Miller before Miller was forced to move on to San Francisco, a move on the Orioles part that I'll never understand. Every ballgame that they called was simply a treat. I'm glad I was able to understand that while they were together.

I met Chuck Thompson once while I was an intern at a television station. The building also housed the radio station that carried the Orioles. It was only a passing "Pleasure to meet you" exchange, but it stuck with me because he said it in his voice, that voice. There was also a time I was walking into a restaurant, and as we made our way to our table, I happened to hear that voice ordering crab soup. I turned around and sure enough it was him. I was about to say hello, but thought better of it. He was there with his wife just trying to have dinner. He noticed that I recognized him, gave me a quick nod and a smile, which I returned and left it at that. Hm, the things you remember when it comes to brushes with famous people...

If you click on the link at the end of this post, you might understand better the subject line of this entry. One of his signature lines after an Orioles win was, "Ain't the beer cold!" I also thought about "Go to Heaven, Ms. Agnes" because his other signature line was "Go to war, Ms. Agnes!" I should also note that he was the voice of the Baltimore Colts for a very long time, though I didn't live in Baltimore until shortly after the Colts moved to Indianapolis. The highlights I have heard convince me that he was equally adept at calling football as he was baseball.

Listen to the one about his induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame, then you would understand why everyone that paid any attention to Baltimore Baseball, knew and considered Chuck a friend, including me. Chuck Thompson Radio Highlights

RIP Chuck Thompson, 1921-2005,

Dave