Merle Harmon facts for kids

Merle Reid Harmon (June 21, 1926 – April 15, 2009) was a famous American sports announcer. He was known for describing games as they happened, called "play-by-play." He worked for five Major League Baseball teams and two American Football League teams. He also announced for the World Football League on TV across the country. Merle Harmon even owned stores that sold sports clothing!

On July 1, 1987, Merle Harmon's voice was the first ever heard on WFAN Sports Radio 1050 in New York. They played a recording of him announcing the New York Jets winning Super Bowl III.

Early Life and First Jobs

Merle Harmon was born and grew up in Salem, Illinois. He served in the United States Navy during World War II in the Pacific Ocean. After the war, he went to Graceland College using a program that helped soldiers go to college. He earned a degree in 1947. Then, he graduated from the University of Denver in 1949, studying radio, TV, and marketing.

He started his career that same year. His first job was announcing for the Topeka Owls, a minor league baseball team.

His Amazing Announcing Career

Working in the 1950s

From 1953, Merle Harmon announced University of Kansas football and basketball games. He was the very first voice for the KU Radio Network. In 1954, he called baseball games for the Kansas City Blues. The next year, he moved to the major league Kansas City Athletics after that team moved from Philadelphia. He announced games for them on radio and TV until 1961.

He was fired in 1961 by the team owner, Charlie Finley. This happened because Merle refused to help the owner in a disagreement with a sports writer.

Working in the 1960s

Merle Harmon first appeared on national television in 1961. He was hired by ABC Sports to host different studio shows and announce college football games. In 1965, he was one of the main announcers for ABC's baseball Game of the Week. He worked alongside baseball legend Jackie Robinson.

In 1964, he became the main announcer for the Milwaukee Braves. After two years, the Braves moved to Atlanta, and Merle was not kept on.

From 1967 to 1969, Harmon announced games for the Minnesota Twins. He replaced Ray Scott, who became the main announcer for the National Football League on CBS.

Merle Harmon also announced professional football games. He called Kansas City Chiefs games in 1963. Then, he became the voice of the New York Jets for nine years, from 1964 to 1972. The most exciting part of his time with the Jets was their journey to win the Super Bowl Championship in 1968. This included the famous Heidi Game and big wins over the Oakland Raiders and Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III.

Working in the 1970s

In 1970, Merle Harmon became the main announcer for the Milwaukee Brewers. He stayed in this role for the rest of the decade, working with other announcers like Bob Uecker. During this time, he also started a business called Merle Harmon's Fan Fair. This was a chain of stores that sold official sports team merchandise. It grew to 140 stores across the country before he sold it in 1996.

Harmon also announced the World Football League's Thursday night "Game of the Week" on TV in 1974. This was the league's only full season.

Working in the 1980s and Beyond

From 1980 to 1982, Merle Harmon worked for NBC Sports. He announced regional NFL, MLB, and college basketball games. He also helped with the weekly Sportsworld TV show. He was supposed to work on the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, but the U.S. did not send athletes to those Games. In 1988, Harmon returned to announce some NFL games for NBC.

Before he retired from announcing, Harmon worked on Texas Rangers TV broadcasts from 1982 to 1989.

Merle Harmon also announced Southwest Conference college football games for Raycom Sports in the early 1980s. He often worked with former Oklahoma football coach Bud Wilkinson.

He even appeared in a movie! He played one of the announcers in the 2006 film Glory Road, which was about the 1966 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Before he passed away, he was an active member of the National Speakers Association. He also wrote his own book called Stories. It was a collection of funny adventures from his time as an announcer. He was a successful main speaker at many events.

Merle Harmon died from pneumonia in a hospital in Arlington, Texas, on April 15, 2009.