It's a sad day in sports folks, Harry the K passed away today at 73

Jstas

I'm a bit upset about it. I was just listening to him yesterday as the Phillies pulled a win in the clinch at the top of the 8th for the go ahead and held off the Rockies in the 9 for the 7-5 win. He was happy and vibrant as ever on the radio.

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20090413_Phils_announcer_Harry_Kalas_rushed_to_the_hospital.html

Phils announcer Harry Kalas dies

BY THE INQUIRER STAFF

Harry Kalas, the Phillies' Hall of Fame announcer, died at 1:20 p.m. today, the Phillies announced.

Mr. Kalas was 73.

He collapsed in the press box at Nationals Stadium in Washington at about 12:30 p.m. and was rushed to George Washington University Medial Center.

The cause of the death was not announced. Today's game against the Nationals will be played, but the team will not visit the White House tomorrow.

"We lost Harry today," David Montgomery, the team president, said. "We lost our voice."

Mr. Kalas, who was found unconsious, missed most of spring training after undergoing undisclosed surgery in Feburary. That surgery was unrelated to the detached retina that sidelined him for part of last season.

Mayor Nutter said the death of Mr. Kalas marks "a very sad day for Philadelphia and the region."

Having met him a few times, Nutter recalled him as "hard-working and hard-driving," with "a great sense of humor and a smile."

While players and managers came and went, Nutter said, "The absolute one constant with the Phillies was Harry Kalas."

Mr. Kalas' had a voice that Nutter grew up with, like so many other Philadelphians. And his was a voice that was "often imitated, but never really duplicated," Mayor Nutter said.

Preliminary discussions are taking place about how best to honor Kalas. But it is too soon, the mayor said, to know if that might come in the form of a building or street named after the beloved announcer.

"He was a living sports legend and through his voice has fallen silent, we'll always hear him, when an opponent swings and misses, when a Phillie hits a homerun and when the team wins its next World Series," Mayor Nutter said.

Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) praised Mr. Kalas in a statement.

"As the voice of the Philadelphia Phillies, Harry Kalas was everyone's friend in this region. His incisive commentaries will be sorely missed."

Susan Buehler, president of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of NATAS, today issued this statement upon hearing the news.

"The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences sends our heartfelt condolences to Harry's family, his friends, his colleagues and many generations of fans. In 2002, NATAS bestowed our Chapter's most prestigious honor - the Governor's Award honoring his lifetime achievements. He was a beloved and respected broadcaster in the TV industry with a distinguishing voice that will resonate for years to come."

Mr. Kalas, who turned 73 on March 26, has broadcast Phillies games since 1971. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002 as the recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award. He is entering the final season of a 3-year contract that he signed in December 2006.

"Comcast SportsNet and the Philadelphia sports community lost a great man today," Brian Monihan, Comcast SportsNet senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement. "Harry Kalas was the voice of the Phillies, and many of us grew up listening to his legendary calls. It was a pleasure to have him as part of our SportsNet family. We will miss him dearly. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Kalas family and the Phillies organization."

Jon Litner, Comcast Sports group president, issued this statement: "The passing of Harry Kalas leaves the Phillies, their fans, our viewers and sports fans everywhere without a treasured voice and unique personality. Harry set the tone for the Phillies' successes, hopes and triumphs for 38 seasons and fittingly he died where he lived so large - in the broadcast booth at the ballpark. The sports broadcasting business has lost a legend and on behalf of our employees, our thoughts go out to his family."

He was the voice of the Phillies since 1971. I used to sit on the porch with my grandfather and a little black and white TV with the sound turned down listening to Harry the K announce the Phillies away games on the radio. Hell, I have an old transistor radio that I took to Phillies games with me so I could listen to Kalas on the radio instead of the in park announcer.

Now God gets to listen to Harry call a Phils game. I'm kinda jealous!

Godspeed Harry, I miss ya already!

cnh

I remember Harry as well, grew up about an hour or so north of Phillie. Good guy....

cnh

hearingimpared

Listening to a Phillies game will never be the same. RIP Harry.

pearsall001

Couldn't have said it better myself Joe. Harry really put some sizzly into the press box. RIP Harry!!

A lot of guys might not know this but Harry was the also voice for NFL Films. All those great moments just won't be the same.

CaligulaPolk

wife's sad.. shes phillies fan.. seem lot philly people love harry. RIP Harry

capecodder

Damn, glad I don't live in Philly anymore because listening to a Phils game will never sound "correct" again.

Jstas

Man, this sucks.

I know people are probably thinking "What's the big deal?" But the thing is Harry the K wasn't just an announcer to several generations of Philly fans. He was a fan of Philly. He loved the Phillies and he loved the fans even more. When they opened Citizens Bank Park, every game, before the game, he could be found wandering through the restaurant with his name "Harry the K's" shaking hands, saying "Hi, thanks for coming" and signing autographs. He was a real person here. For decades The Voice of the Phillies has been a fixture in my grandparents house and my house. It's like we lost a member of the family.

He was there foe everything. World series appearances, NL pennants, Mike Schmidt's 500th hit, all the commercials, the announcing, the radio work...you heard Harry everywhere and he was unmistakable. He was at charity events, local businesses, walking down the street. It didn't matter if he knew you from spit or not, Harry the K was everybody's friend and he made you feel that way. He was a living legend that thought he was just one of the guys.

Sunny, Sunday afternoons might be "a gorgeous day at the ball park" but they'll never be quite the same again.

A local radio personality here said that we are lucky to get one guy like Harry in a lifetime. Philly was truly lucky to have Harry for almost 4 decades. The rest of you who missed out, sucks to be you.

hearingimpared

Very well said John.