RIP Ernie Johnson Sr.

[Matt1735]

Former Milwaukee Brave, Atlanta Braves broadcaster and father of current TNT broadcaster... I remember listening to him on the radio growing up...

Just reported on the Brewers' broadcast tonight. Apparently he was in Hospice care for a while.

RIP, Ernie.

 

[Blitz]

Yes, RIP Ernie.
It was great as an adolescent to listen to him and Skip and Pete Van Weiren in the Braves broadcast booth.

 

[Steak Snabler]

Mark Bradley:

http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/2011/08/12/ernie-johnson-a-peach-of-an-announcer-a-peach-of-a-man/?cxntfid=blogs_mark_bradley_blog

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

 

[Liut]

Yes, RIP Ernie.
It was great as an adolescent to listen to him and Skip and Pete Van Weiren in the Braves broadcast booth.

Agreed.

 

[jackfinarelli]

Yes, RIP Ernie.
It was great as an adolescent to listen to him and Skip and Pete Van Weiren in the Braves broadcast booth.

It certainly was.

Prayers for his family...

RIP.

 

[westcoastvol]

Listening to Ernie was like having a third grandpa tell you about a baseball game. Sorely missed.

 

[playthrough]

Just now hearing about this...damn. I too grew up in Atlanta and Ernie, Skip and Pete (and John Sterling, when he was just a young gasbag) were the voices of summer -- and a whole lot of bad Braves baseball.

RIP Ernie.

 

[Blitz]

CBS and its PGA golf telecast had a nice Nantz-read tribute as it went to a break today.

 

[bigbadeagle]

I recall fondly the times Ernie would get the net and try to snare foul balls hit back toward the booth.
It was having Ernie, Skip and Pete call Braves games that made that team so much fun to follow, even when the product on the field was wretched.
RIP EJ Sr.

 

[BitterYoungMatador2]

I think the product on the field is what made that team so much fun. they knew damn well these games had no business being broadcast in Atlanta, let alone nationwide on a cable superstation, so they reserved the right to have a little fun with it. I lost count of how many times Skip Carey made me laugh out loud during my childhood.

 

[playthrough]

And the "Superstation" itself was such a joke back in the day. The best was Skip reading promos for the after-game movies. He knew some of them were even bigger clunkers than the game, which was saying something.

 

[Chef2]

And the "Superstation" itself was such a joke back in the day. The best was Skip reading promos for the after-game movies. He knew some of them were even bigger clunkers than the game, which was saying something.

I will never in my life forget the following sequence.

Braves were ter-ih-bul......but on this occasion, they were actually winning a game.

Braves were playing the Giants; Winning like 9-2 or something like that.....runner on 1st, 1 out........Jeffrey Leonard at the plate for SF. Skip says "Don't forget (and I can't remember the name of the movie for some reason) with John Wayne coming up, just as soon as Leonard hits into a 6-4-3"......Next pitch.....6-4-3;

I grew up listening to Pete, Skip, and Ernie. A sad sad passing indeed.

 

[Liut]

The whole "superstation" deal was fascinating, and rewarding, at the time.

Hell, in my neck of the woods, we had five channels.

Anyone remember the early-morning newscasts with Bill Tush and Tina Seldon?

As a kid, wrote a letter to WTCG-Atlanta asking why the Flames' games were not rebroadcast in the middle of the night, as the Hawks were. Actually got a response back, complete with an ATL Chiefs NASL schedule. Don't ask me why. If you ever run into Bob Neal, ask him about the standup in Rochester prior to Chiefs/Lancers, Shep Messing in net.

WTCG, WWOR, WGN, KTVU (briefly), it was hog heaven.