Bill King facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bill King
|
|
|---|---|
King in 1994 prior to an Athletics game at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum.
|
|
| Born | October 6, 1927 Bloomington, Illinois, U.S.
|
| Died | October 18, 2005 (aged 78) San Leandro, California, U.S.
|
| Sports commentary career | |
| Team(s) | San Francisco Giants(1958–62) San Francisco/Golden State Warriors (1962–83) Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders (1966–92) Oakland Athletics (1981–2005) |
| Genre(s) | Play-by-play |
| Sports | Major League Baseball National Basketball Association National Football League |
Wilbur "Bill" King (born October 6, 1927 – died October 18, 2005) was a famous American sports announcer. He was known for his exciting voice and unique style. In 2016, he received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame. This is the top award for baseball announcers in America.
Bill King was the radio voice for the Oakland Athletics baseball team for 25 years. He also announced games for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders football team and the San Francisco/Golden State Warriors basketball team for many years. Earlier in his career, he worked for the San Francisco Giants when they first moved to California in 1958. He also announced games for the University of California college teams. People often recognized him by his cool handlebar moustache and Van Dyke beard. His famous saying was, "Holy Toledo!"
Contents
Starting a Career in Broadcasting
Bill King was born in Bloomington, Illinois. His broadcasting journey began while he was stationed in Guam during World War II. He would get game updates over the wire and pretend he was actually at the games, making it sound very real.
After the war, he started his professional career in Pekin, Illinois. He announced high school football and basketball games. He also called games for Minor League Baseball teams. In the early 1950s, he was the main announcer for WTAD 930 AM in Quincy, Illinois. Later, he announced basketball games for Bradley University and both basketball and football for the University of Nebraska. King moved to the Bay Area in 1958. The San Francisco Giants hired him as an announcer then.
Becoming a Voice for Oakland Sports
Announcing for the Warriors
A big change in King's career happened in 1962. The Philadelphia Warriors basketball team moved to San Francisco. They became the San Francisco Warriors and hired Bill King as their play-by-play announcer. King announced Warrior games from 1962 to 1983. He saw famous players like Wilt Chamberlain, Nate Thurmond, and Rick Barry. He was there when the team won its first NBA Championship on the West Coast in 1975.
King was known for speaking his mind about referee calls. He sometimes disagreed with them during games. In one famous moment, he used a strong word on the air about a referee's call. The Warriors were then given a technical foul because of it. He might be the only sports announcer ever to cause a penalty during a game!
Announcing for the Raiders
In 1966, while still working for the Warriors, King also became the announcer for the Oakland Raiders. They were part of the American Football League at that time. He stayed with the Raiders until 1992. For a while, he traveled to Los Angeles when the Raiders moved there from 1982 to 1994. He announced the Raiders' three Super Bowl victories. He also called many other unforgettable games.
One of King's most famous calls was during the "Holy Roller" game. This was against the San Diego Chargers on September 10, 1978. In the last seconds, Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler threw the ball forward. Tight end Dave Casper then grabbed it in the end zone. It was a very debated, game-winning touchdown. King's description of the play was legendary:
The ball, flipped forward, is loose! A wild scramble, two seconds on the clock...Casper grabbing the ball...it is ruled a fumble...Casper has recovered in the end zone!! The Oakland Raiders have scored on the most zany, unbelievable, absolutely impossible dream of a play! Madden is on the field. He wants to know if it's real. They said yes, get your big butt out of here! He does! There's nothing real in the world anymore! The Raiders have won the football game! The Chargers....they don't believe it. Fifty-two thousand people are stunned. This one will be relived forever!
Another famous call came on November 8, 1970. George Blanda came into the game in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Browns. He threw a touchdown to tie the game with less than two minutes left. Then he kicked the winning field goal as time ran out. King famously said, "George Blanda has just been elected King of the World!"
Announcing for the Athletics
Even with a busy schedule, King was convinced to become the main announcer for the Oakland Athletics in 1981. He continued to call Raider and Warrior games. However, he stopped announcing for the Warriors after 1983. He was later let go by Raiders owner Al Davis after the 1992 season.
For his first 15 years with the A's, King worked with another famous Bay Area announcer, Lon Simmons. King had briefly worked with Simmons for the Giants in 1958. Bill King was there for the "Billyball" era. He also saw the "Bash Brothers" and the "Moneyball" eras of the team.
Greg Papa, a former Athletics announcer, worked with King for 13 years. He said, "Bill is without a doubt the best radio play-by-play announcer I have heard in all of sports. His energy, preparation, his thoroughness, his word choice—he is without peer."
A Man of Many Interests
Bill King was often called a "Renaissance man." This means he had many different interests and talents. He loved to read a lot of books. In his free time, he enjoyed watching ballet and opera. He also studied Russian history. He lived in Sausalito, California. During the baseball off-season, he often went on long sailing trips on his boat, named Varuna.
Famous Calls and Phrases
King's most famous phrase was "Holy Toledo!" He used this when something amazing happened for the team he was announcing. Another well-known call was "Crazy...just plain crazy!" He said this when Scott Hatteberg hit a walk-off home run. That home run helped the Athletics win their 20th straight game, a historic streak. He also once called a smiling John Madden a "slit watermelon" as a compliment. This was after the Raiders won the Super Bowl in 1977 with Madden as their coach.
Bill King's Legacy
Bill King is one of only three people to have both a World Series ring and a Super Bowl ring. The other two are Bob Sheppard and Larry Lucchino.
In 2006, Bill King was part of the first group of people to be put into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame. On December 7, 2016, he was named the 2017 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award. This award is given by the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The NFL Network also ranked King as the #6 greatest NFL announcer of all time.
The Book Holy Toledo
In September 2013, a book about Bill King was released. It was written by Ken Korach and called Holy Toledo – Lessons from Bill King: Renaissance Man of the Mic. Many sports writers praised the book. They said it captured King's personality well and was a great read.
