Johnny Holliday facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Johnny Holliday
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Johnny Holliday, left, and Ray Knight hosting Nats Xtra on June 23, 2007.
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| Born | October 15, 1937 Miami, Florida, U.S.
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| Occupation | Sportscaster |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Clare |
| Children | Kellie, Tracie, and Moira |
Johnny Holliday (born October 15, 1937) is a famous American sportscaster for radio and television. He was also a popular radio host, known as a "disc jockey." Johnny Holliday is well-known for his long work with the University of Maryland's football and basketball teams. From 2007 to 2018, he also hosted TV shows for the Washington Nationals baseball team.
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Early Life and Education
Johnny Holliday grew up in Miami, Florida. He was part of the first group of students to graduate from North Miami High School.
Broadcasting Career: A Voice for Many Years
Johnny Holliday has had a very long and successful career in broadcasting. He has worked in both music radio and sports.
Starting in Radio: A Top 40 DJ
Johnny Holliday began his radio journey in Perry, Georgia, at station WBBN. He then worked at other stations in Florida, New York, and Cleveland. He even worked with another famous DJ, Murray the K, in New York City. In 1965, he hosted the very last music show for station WINS.
After that, he moved to San Francisco and worked at the big Top 40 radio station KYA. In 1965, a report called the "Gavin Report" named him America's number one disc jockey! His work in radio is even featured in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. While at KYA, he hosted many record hops and concerts. He even co-hosted the last concert ever played by The Beatles at Candlestick Park in 1966.
In 1969, Johnny Holliday moved to Washington, D.C.. He hosted the morning radio show for WWDC until 1978. Then, from 1978 to 1991, he worked in sports for WMAL radio.
Becoming a Sports Announcer
Johnny Holliday has been involved with many sports teams and events. He has worked with the University of Maryland, the Washington Wizards, and the Washington Redskins. He also covered teams like the Cleveland Browns and the Oakland Raiders.
He has announced games for the San Francisco Giants and the old Washington Senators. He even covered the Olympics, championship boxing matches, and The Masters golf tournament for ABC Radio.
A Special Moment in Cleveland
In November 1963, just two days after the Assassination of John F. Kennedy, Johnny Holliday was the announcer for a Cleveland Browns game. They were playing against the Dallas Cowboys. The Browns' owner told Holliday to only call the opposing team the "Cowboys," without mentioning the city of Dallas. This was out of respect for the sad events that had just happened.
Working with Many Teams
While he was at KYA from 1965 to 1969, Johnny Holliday showed how talented he was. He broadcast college sports on both radio and TV. He was also the public address announcer for the Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco Warriors.
After moving to Washington, D.C., he hosted pre-game shows for the Washington Senators with baseball legend Ted Williams. He also covered the Washington Bullets and Wizards on radio and TV. He hosted Redskins shows on TV with famous players like Dexter Manley. He even broadcast games for the Washington Federals, a football team that played in the United States Football League in 1983 and 1984.
The Voice of the Maryland Terrapins
Since 1979, Johnny Holliday has been the main "voice" for the Maryland Terrapins football and men's basketball teams. He has broadcast over 1,200 University of Maryland games! This includes twelve bowl games for football. For basketball, he has covered ten "Sweet Sixteen" appearances and two "Final Four" appearances. He even announced Maryland's big NCAA Championship basketball win in 2002.
From 2007 to 2018, Johnny Holliday hosted the pre- and post-game shows for the Washington Nationals baseball team. These shows, called Nats Xtra, were on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN). He worked with analyst Ray Knight. Sometimes, he even filled in as a play-by-play announcer for Nationals games.
Johnny Holliday also provides sports reports for the ABC Radio Network.
Announcer for TV Shows
Beyond sports, Johnny Holliday has also been an announcer for TV shows. In 1966, he was the announcer for the NBC music shows Hullabaloo and The Roger Miller Show. He also announced for ABC's This Week, a news program. He was featured on the CBS show Good Morning World from 1967 to 1968.
Acting on Stage
Johnny Holliday has also been an actor! He has appeared in more than thirty plays. He was even nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for best actor in a musical in Washington, D.C. This was for his role in the play Me and My Girl.
Awards and Recognitions
Johnny Holliday has received many awards for his amazing career.
- In 2006, the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame gave him the Chris Schenkel award. This was for his long and excellent work broadcasting college football for the University of Maryland.
- In 2010, The Maryland Daily Record newspaper named him one of its "60 Influential Marylanders."
- A writer for The Washington Post newspaper, Leonard Shapiro, said Johnny Holliday was the best Washington sports radio broadcaster since 1970.
- In 2014, Johnny Holliday was added to the Washington, D.C., Sports Hall of Fame.
Author of Books
Johnny Holliday has also written books!
- In 2002, he published his autobiography (a book about his own life) called Johnny Holliday: From Rock to Jock. He wrote it with Stephen Moore.
- In 2006, he wrote Hoop Tales, which is about the University of Maryland men's basketball team.
