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This happened way back on August 19th, and somehow I missed hearing about it until now. Don Pardo, arguably television's most legendary announcer and one of the most memorable voices of my childhood, died that day at the impressive age of 96, peacefully in his sleep of undisclosed causes. The New York Times, newspaper of record in the city where he did most of his work, has an obit here.
Most people these days remember him as the voice of NBC's Saturday Night Live, on which he served until the end of its 39th season last year. Some of us are old enough to remember hearing him in his earlier best-known gig, as announcer on the original Jeopardy! with Art Fleming for 11 years on the same network. ("Weird Al" Yankovic is another one of us who remembers, as he proved some while back by inviting Pardo to do a cameo in his now-classic song parody and video, "I Lost On Jeopardy!" back in the 1980s.) But his career goes all the way back to the late 1930s and radio as well as early TV, almost all of it with the Peacock.
He was the voice of NBC in much the same way the late Ernie Anderson was for ABC ("The Luuuuuve Boat!") They both had distinctive voices and styles, and both introduced me to a great deal of the entertainment I had on the tube growing up. Belated sympathies to his five children, five grandkids and three great-grandkids, and thanks.
Most people these days remember him as the voice of NBC's Saturday Night Live, on which he served until the end of its 39th season last year. Some of us are old enough to remember hearing him in his earlier best-known gig, as announcer on the original Jeopardy! with Art Fleming for 11 years on the same network. ("Weird Al" Yankovic is another one of us who remembers, as he proved some while back by inviting Pardo to do a cameo in his now-classic song parody and video, "I Lost On Jeopardy!" back in the 1980s.) But his career goes all the way back to the late 1930s and radio as well as early TV, almost all of it with the Peacock.
He was the voice of NBC in much the same way the late Ernie Anderson was for ABC ("The Luuuuuve Boat!") They both had distinctive voices and styles, and both introduced me to a great deal of the entertainment I had on the tube growing up. Belated sympathies to his five children, five grandkids and three great-grandkids, and thanks.
