Scully, Vin (1927—)
Scully, Vin (1927—)
One of sports broadcasting's most recognizable voices, Vin Scully is known primarily as the long-time play-by-play announcer for baseball's Dodgers. But his work on national telecasts, including NBC's Game of the Week from 1983 to 1989, exposed his mellifluous vocal stylings to viewers from coast to coast. Scully joined the Brooklyn Dodgers' broadcast team in 1950, just a year after graduating from Fordham University. Under the tutelage of Red Barber, he developed a warm, personable on-air style that perfectly suited the national pastime's slow, wheeling pace. His vivid descriptions of such events as Sandy Koufax's perfect game and Kirk Gibson's dramatic home run in the 1988 World Series remain iconic moments in baseball play-by-play. After the 1997 season, Scully retired from national broadcasting to concentrate solely on his local responsibilities with the Dodgers. All told, he called 25 World Series and 12 All-Star Games over the course of his career.
—Robert E. Schnakenberg
Further Reading:
Smith, Curt. The Storytellers: From Mel Allen to Bob Costas: Sixty Years of Baseball Tales from the Broadcast Booth. New York, Macmillan, 1995.