I first heard him when the Dodgers arrived in Los Angeles in 1958. I was a little kid. It absolutely changed my life.
This will not be a long tribute because there are tears in my eyes as I write it. And there are hundreds, maybe thousands of other tributes to Vin Scully. I don’t think anyone in the history of Los Angeles was as beloved as this man. I also believe no one will ever call a baseball game as well as Vin Scully. There’s only one Shakespeare, one Mozart.
His highlight reel is extraordinary — from Don Larsen’s perfect game, to Kirk Gibson’s home run, the Bill Buckner Mets World Series win, Hank Aaron's record-breaking home run, and of course Sandy Koufax’s perfect game. But in my view the greatest game he ever called was not recorded. It was a Dodger-Giant game in old Candlestick Park, a Friday night, probably in the early 1960’s. Around the third inning fog rolled in — fog so thick it halted play. For 45 minutes Vin Scully just told Dodger-Giant stories. It was riveting. And all that was on the screen was gray fog. Totally off the top of his head, he told spellbinding tales. No one else could ever do that. And this was just one game in the middle of the season, one of a his 67 seasons.
I am so grateful that on any number of occasions I took the opportunity to thank him for all he meant to me. And Vin being Vin, he was very humble and always downplayed it. But at least I got to say it. And then the ultimate thrill: I got to fill-in and do play-by-play on several Dodger broadcasts. One was with Vin. In his 59 years calling Los Angeles Dodger baseball only five other announcers have called play-by-play on Dodger broadcasts with Vin — Jerry Doggett, Ross Porter, Don Drysdale, Charley Steiner, and me. So you can imagine — from that kid listening to Vin Scully in 1958 to doing a game with him, how completely blown away I was.
Vin Scully was a gift. He of course was a national presence, but for those of us who grew up with him in Los Angeles, he became a part of our lives, a member of our family. I can’t conceive of a world where I can no longer just “pull up a chair.” Thank you, Vin. For EVERYTHING.
55 comments :
Thanks for sharing all that he meant to you. Vin Scully represented all that is good, and it’s nice to see how much that resonated with countless people.
I know how you feel about him, and I'm glad you worked through the tears to write something from so deep in your heart.
I was so glad that MLB network gave us all those games from Vin's last season. No one can match him doing a regular season game in May that didn't matter much to a pennant race. If you listened hard, you could understand the whole beauty of baseball. Dave Niehaus was and always will be my favorite announcer; he could make a hundred loss season interesting. But Vin could make the Pirates in August when both teams were out of the pennant race into the most perfect reason to love baseball. And using fewer words than anyone else to do so. It was a privilege to listen to him.
And for those of us who have met you, we're just one degree of separation from the GOAT. We don't need a vote on that. It's like how Bobby Orr got into the Hockey Hall of Fame. No waiting period, no deliberation. There's one GOAT and it's Vin.
Beautifully done 🙏
There will never be anyone like him. Ever.
This is very sad news.
I know it will be impossible, Ken. Yet, I wish you a pleasant good morning.
I was incredibly fortunate to work with my lifelong announcing idol, and wordsmith, Keith Jackson. A compliment from him was like rocket fuel for me. The day he thought I might be a good somebody to have around was when I referenced a Janes Whitcomb Riley poem. So, too, my love of college football history. And that voice...
IMO, the only other announcer anywhere near the airspace of Vin is Doc Emrick. Goodness, the ice canvas he would paint at warp speeds. By all accounts, a pretty great guy, too. His voice was not as mellifluous (who ever was?!), though.
Thank you, Vin. Thank you, Ken.
There's a YouTube channel that uploads old radio broadcasts from the 1950s and 1960s. There's been a bunch of Vin Scully broadcasts in there. It's one of the reasons why I subscribe to that channel.
https://www.youtube.com/c/ClassicBaseballontheRadio/videos
The only thing that keeps this from being entirely sad is knowing that he spent most of his long life doing what he loved, doing it better than anyone, and doing it for people who loved and appreciated him. He was one of the major reasons that I ever signed up for MLB's audio service - I was so excited to actually get to listen to Vin Scully for the first time since he did the Game of the Week on a regular basis. My condolences to you and everyone whose lives he touched.
As soon as I finished the news report, I came here. I knew you would have a moving tribute. Thank you, Ken
The AP news announcement is very good. There are a couple of anecdotes about Vin that stood out to me. One about his work, and one about his personal life.
"He often said it was best to describe a big play quickly and then be quiet so fans could listen to the pandemonium. After Koufax’s perfect game in 1965, Scully went silent for 38 seconds before talking again. He was similarly silent for a time after Kirk Gibson’s pinch-hit home run to win Game 1 of the 1988 World Series."
"In the early 1960s, Scully quit smoking with the help of his family. In the shirt pocket where he kept a pack of cigarettes, Scully stuck a family photo. Whenever he felt like he needed a smoke, he pulled out the photo to remind him why he quit. Eight months later, Scully never smoked again."
When he retired, I played some excerpts of his greatest calls for my two young daughters. They said, "Dad, why are we listening to this?" I said, "Listen to his voice."
RIP
Is it weird that when I heard of his death, the first person I thought of was you?
RIP to a true national treasure.
What a beautiful, heart-filled tribute Ken. What a loss for you personally. You are a fortunate man indeed to have known such a man. You really expressed our loss of him too. I suspect we'll see no better admiration that your piece. Peace to Mr. Scully.
As a lifelong Giants fan, I loathe the Dodgers. But I could happily listen to Vin Scully describe paint drying. He was one of a kind and will be missed by baseball fans everywhere. May he rest in baseball heaven.
Ken played a long clip of Vin Scully on his podcast some time ago. I was listening while running on a treadmill. When Scully compared the guy wire on the foul pole to the vein in the neck of some coach (was it Don Zimmer?), I just about fell off the treadmill! What a crazy thing to say, but yet perfect.
I was very saddened to read this in the Seattle Times this morning. Scully personifies everything that is great in baseball.
May his memory be a blessing.
Thanks Ken.
https://www.espn.com/video/clip/_/id/15225521
Good night, Vin Scully, and a very pleasant good evening to you, wherever you may be.
The thing about Vin was that not only did he always know just what to say, but he knew just what *not* to say. Or, to be more precise, when to just shut up and let the pictures tell the story.
You mentioned "Gibson's home run". People tend to forget that, while the one in '88 is the "famous" one, in Game 5 of the '84 Series playing for the Tigers, Gibson crushed a ball in the bottom of the 8th inning off of Goose Gossage.
Runners on second and third, first is open, the call goes out to Gossage to walk Gibson. Padres manager Dick Williams comes out of the dugout and there's a meeting on the mound where it becomes clear Gossage wants to pitch to Gibson. As the meeting breaks up, Vin tells the story that on Gibson's first at-bat in the major leagues, he faced Gossage and struck out on three straight pitches.
Two pitches later, Gibson absolutely demolishes one to the upper deck at Tiger Stadium. As the ball leaves the bat, Vin calls "And there it goes!"
And then he stops talking.
For 95 seconds.
A minute and a half.
Nothing but the crowd cheering and what nat sound they can pick up from the Tigers' dugout.
Lance Parrish comes up and strikes out on three straight pitches. And Vin doesn't say a thing. An entire at-bat without a spoken word. Just the sound of the crowd cheering.
And then, finally, Vin just says "I have a distinct feeling that Goose Gossage talked Dick Williams out of the intentional walk."
This is absolute perfection. There are a lot of copies floating around on YouTube, though they've been edited and annotated and recut and "fixed". But if you can find the original broadcast (I picked up a set of Detroit Tigers DVD's several years ago just for this game), watching it in real time is just jawdroppingly magnificent.
There simply won't ever be anyone even in the same league as Vin.
Went and watched and listened to a bunch of Vin Scully clips on You Tube this morning after hearing the news of his passing. A master of his craft. An artist.
Thank you for such a moving tribute, Ken. Living in the St. Louis area, we know how a good announcer paints a picture for their listeners. From Harry Carey to Jack and Joe Buck, we’ve been spoiled. But no matter who is tossed into the broadcast booth, Vin Scully was the best. While not the greatest movie by any standards, Kevin Costner’s For The Love Of The Game show why Vin was the best. He took a sappy script and did what he did best…made it an amazing baseball experience.
RIP, Vin. Thank you.
Pam, St. Louis.
The networks, quite rightly, run clips of Vin describing big moments ... the Gibson home run, Aaron's 715th, the 1986 World Series ... but his greatness was making an otherwise meaningless mid-season game a wonderful three-hour mosey through baseball history, musings on life and even plugs for Farmer John's. So pull up a chair ...
The Giants' TV announcers, Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper, broke the news during last night's Giants-Dodgers game, and shared many warm and respectful memories of Vin, including the fact that the visiting announcers' booth has a plaque commemorating his last game there. Then at the end of the game, the field announcer gave a nice tribute to Vin, which the crowd applauded loudly. As much as the Giants hate the Dodgers, they and their fans loved Vin Scully.
I, too, first heard him when I was eight, and I dreamed of being his successor or his partner. I met him when I was nine, and he was everything I wanted him to be. I lost him when I was 57, and my childhood is over.
About 10 years ago I was at the DMV in Thousand Oaks Ca. I was in line when Vin walked past me leaving the building. I said something to the guy behind me, who said he had no idea who he was. I said he is the most beloved human being in Los Angeles. He must have been 84 or so at the time. I watched him walk out to the parking lot, and get into a modest late model American sedan, and leave the DMV. My car was near his with my dog in waiting for me. I have mixed feelings about not leaving the line just to shake his hand, and maybe get a photo of him in front of my car with my dog. Not one person even acknowledged him, which is either a great thing, as in giving him his privacy in public, or kinda sad that locals didn't even know who he was. (PS Lifelong Padre fan starting at age 7 when they started in 1969, but proud owner of 2 Vin bobbleheads and 2 Vin microphones)
Lovely, Ken. So sorry for your loss,
1950 baseball announcing teams in New York:
Giants - Russ Hodges, Ernie Harwell
Dodgers - Red Barber, Connie Desmond, Vin Scully
Yankees - Mel Allen, Curt Gowdy, Dizzy Dean
WOW!
Two men out at the plate!
https://twitter.com/uniformcritic/status/1554862575019442177
I met Mr. Scully in the Press Box at Anaheim Stadium when I worked there, and he was the most
kind, down to earth superstar I have ever met. He is the G.O.A.T. of baseball broadcasting.
As others have noted, he knew when to shut up. I can still hear his call at the end of Game Six of the 1986 Series: "Little roller up along first...behind the bag...it gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight and the Mets win it!" Then just about five minutes of rusty old Shea Stadium, and the city, going mad.
People booed the NBC cameras at that series because for some reason they thought Vin was rooting for Boston, the sentimental favorites. If he was, he was too professional to let it show.
Baseball is no fun anymore.
Nope. Not weird.
You weren't the only one.
I am so sorry for your loss. I am not a huge fan of baseball, yet even I can hear the voice of Vin Scully in my head, in particular that one night in 1986 when I DIDN'T see the ball go between Buckner's legs, but Scully's voice (and my family's reaction) caused me to turn around.
A true giant.
I'm 68, soon to be 69 and Vin Scully was such a good person. He always gave credit to the nuns that taught him and all other people who assisted him along the line. I remember too how sick he was when the national anthem or the flag was dishonored at a broadcast in Chicago. He spoke out against it.
Phil Kirk, Long Island
Wonderful tribute to Vin Scully. When I was a mailman in Fountain Valley, California in the 1980's, I would listen to Vin calling Dodger games on my transistor radio while walking my route. Amazing man, amazing voice.
I do need to point out that in your tribute you accidentally misspelled Jerry Doggett's name. While he and Ross Porter were nowhere near as good as Vin Scully, I actually enjoyed the three innings that they announced each game.
A beautiful, heartfelt tribute.
Mr. Scully and Elizabeth Montgomery broadcast the Tournament of Roses parade for ABC on Monday, Jan. 2, 1967. There's a promo featuring both of them on the set of "Bewitched" available on YouTube.
I can't think of anyone else in modern culture who could legitimately be mentioned in the same sentence as Shakespeare and Mozart. Maybe Tom Hanks?
My favorite Scully fact: He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982. Then he kept going for 34 more years. THIRTY-FOUR MORE YEARS!
@Elf
Paul McCartney, Bill Russell
Great remembrances Ken…he over defines a term we hear a lot these days. He is sports broadcasting’s G O A T!
How fitting that he died during a Dodgers/Giants series. Dodgers, let's get the sweep for Vin.
I've been in Los Angeles for 22 years. I barely follow baseball, and even to me, this loss hurts like losing a beloved uncle.
His voice is so woven into the fabric of this city. How wonderful that you got to work with such a legend.
A great loss for America.
Jay Jaffe mentioned on Twitter that Scully logged more years in broadcasting *AFTER* receiving the Frick Award from the Baseball HOF than BEFORE. Generations were able to listen to his broadcasts -- internet tech only expanded his scope. And working solo in the booth for hours with but a throat lozenge or three... There are a few five-star MLB broadcasters still around but there will never be one nearly beloved and recognized as Scully was.
And yanno, amazing that he knew you on a first-name basis. Dreams come true.
One of the few times I actually wrote a letter to the editor of a local newspaper is when a sportswriter actually criticized Vin Scully. He more or less said he was dull. Such an ass. I have not felt tbis much sadness since David Bowie passed away.
I so recall the fog night...We only scored NINE live TV games each season and colud not get the game of the week...So it was always a big deal to see the Dodgers on KTTV...Vin and Jerry were always our radio baseball pals...Being a sub teen I so enjoyed Vin showing how to keep score, tell some past baseball stories and have us up to date as to what was happening that night in the majors...I know he is up there now calling the all time greats and letting us know when they were rounding third and heading home...Vin, carry on in that heavenly diamond in the skies...You meant so much to me...Thanks...
Lovely tribute. I knew as soon as I heard the news that I had to check out your blog- I didn't know the man's work but the way you always talked about him made him seem like a deity.
Almost all of the pieces I've read about people talking about Vin describe him in a parental connection. Either they learned about Vin from their father (Mark Evanier did that), or Vin felt like their uncle, their grandfather.
There's a great remembrance by his nephew here:
https://www.nationalreview.com/2022/08/vin-scully-a-personal-remembrance
If you grew up listening to Vin Scully, that explains why your time behind the mic up here in Seattle was so enjoyable to me. There is no voice that is more baseball than Vin Scully's.
Sorry for your loss, Ken.
I had the "honor" of working as an in-studio sports producer for KFI radio from 1974-1975 and spent hours taking in the MAGIC of Vin Scully.
I would have all the announcers from all the teams we carried (USC, Lakers, Kings, etc.) record promos for upcoming broadcasts. (Chick Hearn, Mike Walden, Roy Story.....)
Our "moniker" was TOTAL SPECTRUM RADIO.
Early on, I gave Vin the copy for the promo, and Vin, being Vin, replied: "Gimme that gimmick line again!" He didn't need that radio nonsense!
He will be missed.
The Absolute BEST compliment I ever got was while doing the P.A. for the AAA Tacoma Tigers/Tacoma Rainers in Washington State - there was a newspaper article about What a great experience it was at a minor league park and the writer said I "sounded like a young Vin Scully" - How can you top that??? He was and will always be the GOAT of Broadcasters!
BTW - I grew up in LA listening to Vin and going to Dodger games with my transistor radio!
My dad was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan and he told me how during a rain delay Vin Scully took the viewers on a tour of the broadcast booth. He showed the control panel and the button broadcasters press when they want to be muted, etc. and said be made it so interesting. Who else but Vin Scully could do that? Miss him already.
My tribute to Vin (I really was there...)
https://rleeprocter.wordpress.com/2022/08/05/a-perfect-night-with-vin-scully/
As for no one acknowledging Scully at the DMV - I call that a "great thing".
Had I been there, the most I would have tried would be to make eye contact - and if I got it, smile and wave.
Ken...a beautiful tribute to a great man. I had an "interaction" with Vinnie back in the 70s. I was spoiled as my dad's company had tickets on field aisle 2 about 10 rows back from the field. I always looked up at the booth, even during the anthem to see Vin and Jerry plus the great voices like Lon Simmons, Jerry Coleman, Jack Buck etc. Yes I was a broadcaster nerd and still am. One night after the game ended, we waited as we always did for the crowd to thin. I looked up at the booth and there he was...Vinnie. He was leaning out of the booth looking out over the stadium. I was looking up and yelled out "HEY VINNIE!!". He heard me and stared me down like a high school history teacher. My first thought was I am going to be hauled off by security. Within a few seconds, he broke out the biggest smile and gave me a big wave. Then he put his headset on to finish the post game. What a magical moment. Thanks for letting me tell my story. Vinnie was the voice of my childhood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyQL1IuQiHA Vin Scully reads grocery list
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