TheMightyGringoChannel 0 Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 ARTICLE FROM THIS MORNING'S DAILY NEWS: Longtime sportscaster Jerry Girard dead at 75 BY BILL HUTCHINSON DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Veteran New York sportscaster Jerry Girard, who always added a witty twist to his nightly jock reports, died yesterday after a long battle with cancer. He was 75. Girard's longtime TV home, WPIX-TV Channel 11, announced his death on last night's newscast. Girard was born and reared in the Bronx and worked for 20 years at WPIX, reporting on the local sports scene with a deadpan delivery oozing with caustic humor. "I made a pledge to myself when I first went on the air that I was going to be myself, sink or swim," Girard said in a 1984 interview. Girard, who lived in Bronxville, Westchester County, was 41 years old when he first went on the air, working his way up from a news writer. He once told the Daily News that WPIX News Director John Corporon asked him to audition, but he almost didn't show up. "I was really not that interested, and I sort of forgot about it until he [Corporon] came by one day and said, 'Don't forget the audition tomorrow,'" Girard recalled. "I hadn't prepared a script, so I went with brief notes and ad-libbed the rest. Much to my shock, they liked it." Girard's run as WPIX's sports anchor lasted 20 years before he resigned in 1995 rather than take a demotion. Unlike most sportscasters, Girard didn't like showing highlights from games. Instead, he would choose key plays to show and dissect. He'd punctuate his broadcasts with memorable lines that sports fans would retell around the water cooler the next day. During the Giants' lean years, Girard quipped: "The Giants really have to tighten their defense. I saw a linebacker with binoculars. You have to get closer to the ball than that." Funeral arrangements are pending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colortini 76 Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 That's too bad. RIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYNews 54 Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 http://cw11.trb.com/news/local/eveningnews/wpix-girard-03262007,0,1867335.graffitiboard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
civic110 10 Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 On the topic of WPIX sportscasters, let us not forget poor Sean Kimerling who passed way too young. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vlad 276 Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 He was an iconic sportscaster for WPIX, oh well.... Life goes on, hopefully he is RIP. :-\ Are they doing a special recap and a tribute to him this week and if they did... Did anybody capture it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceManNYR 222 Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 You can find WPIX's mention of his passing at the link posted above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colortini 76 Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 On the topic of WPIX sportscasters, let us not forget poor Sean Kimerling who passed way too young. Sean was great...gone way too soon. he had so much potential, I don't keep track of the sports but I tuned in occasionally when he was on because his delivery was superb. Definitely would've been in a bigger role if he were still alive today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceManNYR 222 Posted March 28, 2007 Share Posted March 28, 2007 Tony Paige just mentioned that during his next overnight show, Thursday on WFAN, he will be talking to one of Jerry Girard's producers at WPIX, how now works for ESPN. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.