Jack Brickhouse
From SoSH
John Beasley Brickhouse (January 24, 1916 – August 6, 1998) spent nearly forty years broadcasting games for the Chicago Cubs.
Broadcasting Biography
Brickhouse was born in Peoria and started broadcasting with Peoria station WMBD when he was eighteen years old. Chicago station WGN hired him in 1940, based primarily on the recommendation of Bob Elson. He remained with WGN until his retirement in 1981. Due to serving in World War II, he missed the 1945 season, the only year the Cubs won a pennant; he did broadcast the 1959 World Series when the Chicago White Sox faced the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also broadcast the 1954 World Series with Giants broadcaster Russ Hodges; Brickhouse's voice is the one heard on the broadcast during the Willie Mays play known as "The Catch."
Like fellow Cubs announcer Harry Caray, Brickhouse was an exuberant homer who did his best to call games from the point of view of the fan; unlike Caray, he did his best to let the pictures tell the story, preferring to simply comment on a televised play rather than describe it for the viewer who, in fact, saw it with his or her own eyes. Brickhouse liked to use short phrases like "whew, boy!" when a close play went the Cubs' way, or "oh, brother!" if it did not. He also used "Wheeee!" for particularly exciting plays, including Ernie Banks's 500th home run.
In addition to his baseball work, Brickhouse called games for the Chicago Bears and Chicago Bulls, as well as professional wrestling and various non-sporting events. Brickhouse died five months after brain surgery, in the middle of the Mark McGwire/Sammy Sosa home run race, just six months after Caray passed away from a heart attack, casting a dark cloud over the fans' excitement that season.
Brickhouse received the Ford C. Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983. He was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1996.
Further Reading
- Jack Brickhouse's biography at the Baseball Hall of Fame website
- Jack Brickhouse - Courtesy of Wikipedia
