Harold Wampler Arlin (December 8, 1895–March 14, 1986) was an American engineer and foreman and was arguably the world's first full-time and salaried announcer in broadcast radio.
Arlin originally worked as an engineer and later foreman for the
Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company
The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was renamed "Westinghouse Electric Corporation" in ...
when he was hired as a part-time announcer by
KDKA, the nation's first commercially licensed radio station, in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
in 1920. On November 2, 1920, Arlin made history as the radio's first announcer when he read over-the-air the returns to the
1920 presidential election between Senator
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...
and Governor
James M. Cox
James Middleton Cox (March 31, 1870 July 15, 1957) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th and 48th governor of Ohio, and a two-term U.S. Representative from Ohio. As the Democratic nominee for President of the United St ...
.
Arlin was soon hired full-time at KDKA. During his tenure at KDKA, Arlin became the first to announce radio broadcasts of a baseball game (August 5, 1921), tennis match (August 6, 1921), football game (October 8, 1921), and a boxing match (September 14, 1923).
Arlin also interviewed many celebrities on the air, including
Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
,
Will Rogers
William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...
,
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema", ...
and
William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. Beginning in 1896, he emerged as a dominant force in the History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, running ...
. He spent five years at KDKA, where he was nicknamed the "Voice of America". Listeners on several continents could hear KDKA and Arlin's broadcasts, and ''
The London Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' called him "the best known American voice in Europe".
Early life and education
Harold Wampler Arlin was born December 8, 1895 in
La Harpe, Illinois
La Harpe is a town in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,235 at the 2010 census, down from 1,385 at the 2000 census.
History
During the 18th century, French explorers headed by Bernard de la Harpe were forced to spend ...
to parents Byron Addison Arlin (1862–1918) and Emma (née Wampler) (1865–1944). His father was a farmer. Arlin also had an older sister named Lora. The Arlins moved to
Carthage, Missouri
Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 15,522 as of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County and is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City."
History
Jasper County was formed in 1841. ...
shortly after Harold's birth. Arlin graduated with a degree in engineering from the
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...
in 1917 and soon after moved to
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
where he obtained a job as an electrical engineer for the
Westinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is an American nuclear power company formed in 1999 from the nuclear power division of the original Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It offers nuclear products and services to utilities internationally, includi ...
.
Radio
KDKA
1920 presidential election returns
KDKA 1020 in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
received its broadcasting license on November 2, 1920, making the station the first commercially licensed radio station in the world. Dr.
Frank Conrad
Frank Conrad (May 4, 1874 – December 10, 1941) was an electrical engineer, best known for radio development, including his work as a pioneer broadcaster. He worked for the Westinghouse Electrical and Manufacturing Company in East Pittsburgh, P ...
, friend and fellow Westinghouse engineer as well as one of the founders of KDKA, invited Arlin and several others engineers from Westinghouse to a tour of the KDKA studios which, at the time, were in a shack on the roof of a Westinghouse plant. Whilst on the roof, another friend invited Arlin to say a few words into a microphone nearby. Arlin did, and because his voice proved clear, crisp, resonant, friendly and appealing, Arlin was hired as a full-time announcer, making him the first radio announcer in the world.
The station's inaugural broadcast was the reading of the returns from the
election held earlier that day. Arlin read the results on a makeshift microphone in a shack on the roof atop the K Building of the Westinghouse Electric Company "East Pittsburgh Works" in
Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania
Turtle Creek is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh. The population was 5,349 at the 2010 census. George Westinghouse constructed a manufacturing plant nearby. Turtle Creek takes its name from a small stream th ...
.
Pirates vs. Phillies game
On August 5, 1921, Arlin became the first person to announce a
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
game and the game itself was the first baseball game ever broadcast on radio. The teams playing that day were the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
and the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
from the historic
Forbes Field
Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to June 28, 1970. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball (MLB) team, and the first home of t ...
in Pittsburgh.
Arlin sat in a converted ground-level box seat at Forbes Field and provided play-by-play analysis of the game using a converted telephone as a microphone and some jerry-rigged equipment set up behind home plate. The game was broadcast over Arlin's KDKA. In the end, the visiting Phillies lost to the homebound Pirates 8-5.
KDKA's broadcast of the Pirates vs. Phillies game provided the inspiration for other radio stations across the country over the next few years to broadcast games like baseball and other professional sports. Soon after, radio baseball began its rapid ascent in American culture. Before radio, fans turned to visual displays or structures that showed the progress of a game. These structures were usually manually operated by someone who was informed about the game through telegraph.
Tennis and the West Virginia vs. Pittsburgh football game
On August 6, the very next day after the baseball game broadcast, Arlin announced the first radio broadcast of a tennis match also over KDKA. Arlin announced the quarterfinals of the match which began on the 4th.
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
took on
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
at the Allegheny County Club in Pittsburgh for the prestigious
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
. Australia beat Great Britain 3-2 and went all the way to the finals only to lose to
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
4-1.
KDKA again made history in the fall of 1921 when they broadcast the first live radio broadcast of a college football game. On October 8, Arlin, from the same box seat at Forbes Field used to broadcast the Pirates vs. Phillies game two months earlier, provided play-by-play to listeners at home of the
Backyard Brawl
The Backyard Brawl is an American college football rivalry between the University of Pittsburgh Panthers and the West Virginia University Mountaineers. The term "Backyard Brawl" has also been used to refer to college basketball games played ann ...
rivalry game between the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
Panthers
Panther may refer to:
Large cats
*Pantherinae, the cat subfamily that contains the genera ''Panthera'' and ''Neofelis''
**''Panthera'', the cat genus that contains tigers, lions, jaguars and leopards.
***Jaguar (''Panthera onca''), found in Sout ...
and the
West Virginia University
West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State College ...
Mountaineers
Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...
.
Pittsburgh won the game 21–13,
after West Virginia's George Hill returned a kick-off for a
touchdown
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...
on the final play of the game.
Dempsey vs. Firpo fight
On September 14, 1923, heavyweights
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. ...
and
Luis Ángel Firpo
Luis Ángel Firpo (October 11, 1894 – August 7, 1960) was an Argentine boxer. Born in Junín, Argentina, he was nicknamed ''The Wild Bull of the Pampas''.
Boxing career
In 1917, Firpo began his professional boxing career by beating Frank Hag ...
fought for the champion heavyweight title in what has been called the boxing match of the century. The fight marked the first time a
Latin American
Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...
fighter would challenge for the world Heavyweight title and was the first boxing match broadcast over the radio. Dempsey had been champion since 1919, and Firpo was one of the top heavyweights of the world, nicknamed "El Toro de las Pampas" ("The Bull of the
Pampa
The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazil ...
s"). 80,000 fans paid to see the fight live. Dempsey won the fight and Arlin did a recreation of the events over the radio from a wire report sent to him from the ringside in New York City. Just as Arlin told listeners, "Firpo threw a terrific right, knocking Dempsey out of the ring", his line to New York broke. Another announcer, standing by for such an emergency, grabbed the nearest piece of copy and began reading "...with hogs up two cents a pound...".
[Rotarian, p. 62]
Other
Arlin goes international
That same year, Arlin announced the first short-wave broadcast to Great Britain. This gave Arlin more range and notoriety and popularity throughout the world. Arlin's voice soon could be heard on the short-wave radio broadcasts to the cities of
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
, South Africa and
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, Australia.
[ His newfound recognition was noted in an article from '']The London Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' that called Arlin "the best known American voice in Europe". In 1924, Arlin was voted most popular radio announcer and in 1925, he helped organized the Radio Announcers of America.
Celebrity interview
Harold Arlin is also believed amongst many historians to be the first to utilize the celebrity interview. There are no immediate available sources to dispute this claim. During his time at KDKA, Arlin interviewed on the air humorist Will Rogers
William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...
, actress Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema", ...
, orator/politician William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. Beginning in 1896, he emerged as a dominant force in the History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, running ...
and baseball legend Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
. Arlin later recalled in an interview conducted in 1952 that Ruth had such a terrible case of "mike fright" that Arlin had to take the script out of his hands and read it himself.
Later years and retirement
Arlin left KDKA and radio altogether in 1925. Arlin also left Pittsburgh taking his wife and children and moving to Mansfield, Ohio
Mansfield is a city in and the county seat of Richland County, Ohio, United States. Located midway between Columbus and Cleveland via Interstate 71, it is part of Northeast Ohio region in the western foothills of the Allegheny Plateau. The city ...
the following year. Arlin also returned to engineering becoming the personnel manager for Westinghouse's Mansfield manufacturing plant.
Arlin also became very active and productive in the city of Mansfield. In his later years, Arlin accepted positions on Mansfield's Chamber of Commerce
A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to ad ...
, Board of Education
A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution.
The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...
, local Boy Scouts
Boy Scouts may refer to:
* Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement.
* Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement.
* An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...
, Community Fund and served as president of the city's Rotary Club
Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...
from 1934 to 1935 and attended the Rotary International
Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...
Convention in Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
in 1937.
Personal life
Marriages, children and family
Arlin was married three times. His first wife was Emily Pace. Pace was born in 1897 to Arthur Pace and Emily (née Riley) in McKeesport, Pennsylvania
McKeesport is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated at the confluence of the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and within the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The population was 17,727 as of the 2020 census. It ...
. Arlin and Pace were married in 1920 and had three children together; Ralph Wampler Arlin (October 13, 1921–June 25, 2006), Edward Arlin and Dorothy Hershey. The two remained married for 34 years until Pace's death at age 56 on September 14, 1954. His second marriage was to Neva Ray Brown who died in 1982. His third marriage was to Ida Lee Dean. They were married sometime in the early 1980s and remained so until Arlin's death.
Edward S. "Ed" Arlin was born on July 8, 1924 in Pittsburgh. He graduated from Mansfield Senior High School
Mansfield Senior High School is located in Mansfield, Ohio, United States. The school serves grades 9-12 and is part of the Mansfield City School District. The school enrolls 1,389 students as of the 2006–2007 academic year. Their nickname is t ...
in 1942, served as an Ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
in the United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
during World War II before returning home and graduating from the University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...
. Ed Arlin was also a member of the 1946 University of Georgia
, mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things."
, establ ...
National Football Championship team. Ed retired from Portage Electric Products of North Canton, Ohio
North Canton is a city in central Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 17,842 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Canton–Massillon metropolitan area.
History
In 1831, the Community of North Canton first began as the Villag ...
and was a former partner and co-founder of Norwalk Thermostat in Norwalk, Ohio
Norwalk is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Huron County, Ohio, Huron County. The population was 17,012 at the United States Census 2010, 2010 census. The city is the center of the Norwalk, OH μSA, Norwalk Micropolitan Stat ...
where he moved to in 1958. Arlin was married for 60 years to E. Joan Beard and the two had six children. Ed Arlin died on November 12, 2011 age 87 at the Fisher-Titus Medical Center in Norwalk.
Dorothy Hershey was born Dorothy Arlin on April 7, 1926 in Mansfield. Like her brothers, Hershey graduated from Mansfield Senior High School. She later attended and graduated from Miami University
Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...
. She was employed by Norwalk City Schools as a substitute teacher in the late 1950s and was head of the drapery department at Hills Interiors in Norwalk from 1960 to 1980. Hershey was a member of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America
Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), commonly referred to as simply Girl Scouts, is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. Founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912, it was organized a ...
(GSUSA) for 80 years, serving as the Norwalk Girl Scout neighborhood chairman from 1956 to 1968. She was also a member of the Norwalk First United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...
. Hershey was married for 55 years to Howard A. Hershey, the athletic director at Norwalk High School, who preceded her in death. The Hersheys had two children together; Lura Magi and David Hershey. Hershey died on October 13, 2013, at Stein Hospice Care Center in Sandusky, Ohio
Sandusky ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Erie County, Ohio, Erie County, Ohio, United States. Situated along the shores of Lake Erie in the northern part of the state, Sandusky is located roughly midway between Toledo, Ohio, Toledo ( wes ...
.
Arlin's grandson Steven Ralph Arlin, more commonly known as Steve Arlin
Steven Ralph Arlin (September 25, 1945 – August 17, 2016) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians for six seasons.
College star
Born in Seattle, Arlin was a collegiate star at ...
, is a former professional baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
player, a major league pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
with the San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...
and Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
for six seasons from 1969 to 1974.
1952 presidential election
On November 4, 1952, Arlin temporarily returned to radio, announcing his first radio broadcast in twenty-seven years. The broadcast was sponsored by Westinghouse, Arlin's former employer, and was the results from the presidential election held that day between former General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
and former Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Governor Adlai Stevenson. Like the Harding-Cox election returns 32 years before, Arlin read the results over the air to an entire nation of listeners.[ Republican Eisenhower won the election and was ]President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
until 1961.
Pirates vs. Padres baseball game
In 1972, Arlin announced his first professional baseball game in more than 50 years. The game was between the Pirates and the Padres. Arlin's grandson Steve was pitcher for the Padres at this time. Announcer Bob Prince
Robert Ferris Prince (July 1, 1916 – June 10, 1985) was an American radio and television sportscaster and commentator, best known for his 28-year stint as the voice of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball club, with whom he earned the ...
invited Arlin to come back to the broadcasting booth. Prince and Arlin announced the game together as the Padres won. For announcing the game, Arlin received a certificate and a pair of shoes which, according to his grandson Steve, "...he wore hem
A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the ga ...
all the time."
Death
Arlin and his third wife Ida Lee split their time between Norwalk, where they lived during the warm months and Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
, where they lived during the winter months. Arlin was in Bakersfield when he suffered a major heart attack on March 2, 1986. He spent ten days in a Bakersfield hospital until he was discharged on March 12. Arlin returned to his winter home where he died of complications on March 14. Arlin was 90 years old.
Arlin was buried next to first wife Emily on March 19 in Mansfield Cemetery, Mansfield, Ohio.
Arlin Field in Mansfield is named in his honor.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arlin, Harold
1895 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American engineers
American radio sports announcers
Engineers from Illinois
People from Hancock County, Illinois
Radio and television announcers
University of Kansas alumni