Go to War Miss Agnes!

Today would have been former Oriole broadcaster Chuck Thompson's 89th birthday.  The voice of both the Colts and the Orioles, Thompson was as beloved as any Baltimore sports figure has ever been.  If Brooks and Johnny U. and Cal were our heroes, Chuck was our favorite uncle; a favorite uncle whom we couldn't wait to come visit us on some Sunday afternoon or on a warm summer evening.

Chuck brought the game to life and unlike most modern broadcasters, he did not think of himself as the reason that you tuned in to the broadcast.  He could also call a play as it happened, allowing you to see the game unfold.  You didn't have to guess what was going on based on the crowd reaction.  He didn't make the baseball Hall of Fame for nothing.

As with most children, I became aware of my own mortality around the age of 10 or 12 and I can remember thinking most definitely that if I had to die, I wanted to be seated in a rocker on the front porch, listening to Chuck and his long-time broadcast partner Bill O'Donnel recap another Orioles' win and just drift off to Eternity right after Bill said, "It's been a good night, everybody!" I could accept my own death, but it never occurred to me that Chuck Thompson would not go on forever.

No, Chuck has not gone on forever.  He died in March of 2005 and it seems as if a broadcasting era died with him--I couldn't find any youtube videos or any audio clips of Chuck for this post. 

Indeed, Chuck belongs to the era of doubleheaders and complete games and bare hands on the bat.  He belongs to the wonderful world of my past.  Even now with my satellite dish and HD TV, I find myself on the porch on many summer evenings with a portable radio (transistors have come and gone as high tech gadgets) and I tune in the Orioles broadcast, watching the twilight descend, but seeing the ballgame in my mind's eye.  And when something exciting happens, I still want to exclaim Chuck's catch phrases, "Ain't the beer cold, baby!" or "Go to war Miss Agnes!" to the crickets who chirp in response.

Frank Deford, the Baltimore-born sports writer offered this response on NPR upon hearing the news of Thompson's death.  Deford talks about how every town had a voice and that Chuck was his.  It is worth listening to, just for Chuck's calls which appear at the beginning and end of the piece.

To Baltimore's favorite uncle:  Happy Birthday.