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Russ Hodges

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Sportscaster

The Resume

    (June 18, 1910-April 19, 1971)
    Born in Dayton, Tennessee
    Play-by-play announcer for the Washington Senators (1938-45), New York Yankees (1946-48), and New York/San Francisco Giants (1948-70)
    Hosted 'Russ Hodges' Scoreboard' on Dumont (1948-49)
    Announcer for 'Pabst Blue Ribbon Bouts' on CBS (1948-55)
    Received the Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in broadcasting from the Baseball Hall of Fame (1980)
    Best known for his shouts of 'The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!' after Bobby Thomson's 'shot heard 'round the world' (October 3, 1951)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was a chain smoker who advertised Chesterfield cigarettes.
    His famed call was almost lost because broadcasts of games were not regularly recorded at the time.
    He frequently claimed that the game had been taped by a Dodgers fan who wanted to preserve Hodges crying when the Giants lost.
    In reality, the tape was made by Lawrence Goldberg, a lifelong Giants fan, who asked his mother to record the game since he couldn't listen to the game live and ' I knew something was going to happen. It was the third game of the playoffs. That kind of game had to be climactic.'
    Ironically, he claimed, 'I'm rather dull, not imaginative. I don't believe in keeping the listeners on the edge of their seats.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He played halfback at the University of Kentucky before breaking his ankle in his sophomore year.
    His signature call for a Giants home run was 'Bye-bye baby!'
    His 'The Giants win the pennant!' call has been copied by other sportscasters announcing championship victories.
    He was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame (1975)

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying