Addison Pierce Penfield (1918–2010), a pioneer in North Carolina sports radio, was the original radio "Voice of the Blue Devils".
A native of
Meriden, Connecticut
Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located halfway between the regional cities of New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 2020, the population of the city was 60,850.[Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...]
student in 1938. At the behest of famed Duke football coach
Wallace Wade
William Wallace Wade (June 15, 1892 – October 7, 1986) was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Alabama fro ...
, the Atlantic Radio Network gave Penfield the opportunity to broadcast games while he was still a student. It was the beginning of a career in radio that spanned eight decades.
Penfield graduated from
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
in 1940. After a two-year duty with Army radio, he served in a number of diverse radio markets before receiving the call to return to Duke in 1952.
He was the "Voice of the Duke Blue Devils" from 1952 to 1976.
Bob Harris served as his color commentator and the two broadcast both Duke
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
and
Duke basketball men's basketball games. Facing health problems, Penfield retired in 1976 and was succeeded by Harris, who became the new "Voice of the
Blue Devils". Now on his 35th year, Harris has become synonymous with the moniker. Still, Harris credits Penfield for leading the way: “He has been a beacon for all of us in the broadcast industry.”
In 1954, Penfield was named North Carolina's most outstanding sportscaster. Penfield was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.
References
External links
Add Penfield's Obituary Duke tribute: "Former Voice of the Blue Devils Add Penfield Passes Away"North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame Entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penfield, Add
1918 births
2010 deaths
American sports announcers
Radio personalities from North Carolina
People from Meriden, Connecticut
Duke University alumni
Duke Blue Devils football announcers
College football announcers
College basketball announcers in the United States