Lon Simmons
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Lonnie Alexander "Lon" Simmons (July 19, 1923 – April 5, 2015) was an American sports announcer, best known for his
play-by-play In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...
broadcasts of
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
baseball and
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
football. He was born in
Vancouver, Washington Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Was ...
. Simmons was a star pitcher at Burbank High School and Glendale College before enlisting in the
U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...
. After World War II, he signed with 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 ...
and pitched briefly in their minor league system.


Career

His radio career began in Elko, Nevada, calling Elko High School football and basketball games on KELK. He first announced baseball for a semipro league in
Marysville, California Marysville is a city and the county seat of Yuba County, California, located in the Gold Country region of Northern California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 12,072, reflecting a decrease of 196 from the 12,268 counted ...
. After spending three years broadcasting
Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...
sports on KMJ, Simmons came to
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
in
1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th y ...
as the sports director at KSFO. That year, he was the color commentator for the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
of the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
, teaming with play-by-play announcer Bob Fouts, the father of
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...
quarterback
Dan Fouts Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is an American former football quarterback who played for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL) throughout his 15-season career (1973-87). After a relatively undistinguished fi ...
. In 1958, Simmons took over as play-by-play announcer on 49ers radio broadcasts, paired with former 49er
Gordy Soltau Gordon Leroy Soltau (born January 25, 1925, in Duluth, Minnesota) was a wide receiver who played nine seasons in the National Football League for the San Francisco 49ers. His all around athletic versatility was developed as a youth growing up in D ...
. Years later, he worked with KSFO disc-jockey Gene Nelson and then with former NFL player and
KPIX KPIX-TV (channel 5) is a television station licensed to San Francisco, California, United States, serving as the San Francisco Bay Area's CBS network outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside ...
-TV sports director Wayne Walker. Also in 1958, he became the second announcer for the newly relocated
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
of
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), ...
, teaming with lead announcer
Russ Hodges Russell Pleasant Hodges (June 18, 1910 – April 19, 1971) was an American sportscaster who did play-by-play for several baseball teams, most notably the New York Giants / San Francisco Giants. He is perhaps best remembered for his call of Bobby ...
, who moved with the team from New York. To complement Hodges' "Bye Bye Baby!" home run call, Simmons created his own, "Tell It Goodbye!" When Hodges retired after the 1970 season (he died in April 1971), Simmons was promoted to lead announcer and teamed with Bill Thompson. This pairing lasted through the 1973 season.
Al Michaels Alan Richard Michaels (born November 12, 1944) is an American television sportscaster currently working as the play-by-play announcer for '' Thursday Night Football'' on Prime Video and in an emeritus role for NBC Sports. He has worked on n ...
and Art Eckman became the Giants radio announcers on KSFO in 1974.


Famed "wrong-way" football call

Simmons' most famous call during his first stint with the 49ers came on October 25, 1964, when
Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
defensive end Jim Marshall picked up a fumble by the 49ers'
Billy Kilmer William Orland Kilmer Jr. (born September 5, 1939) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, and Washington Redskins. He w ...
and ran it the wrong way, scoring a safety for the 49ers instead of a touchdown for the Vikings (who won, 27–22). The transcript of his call, including his mid-sentence transition as the moment occurred, reads as:


Later career

Simmons returned to the Giants in
1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...
as second announcer behind Michaels, then was the lead announcer again in 1977 and 1978, teaming with San Francisco native
Joe Angel Joseph Angel (born May 5, 1948) is a retired American sportscaster best known for calling play-by-play for several Major League Baseball teams, including 19 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles Radio Network. A native of Bogotá, Colombia, Angel i ...
. When KSFO lost the Giants radio rights to rival
KNBR KNBR may refer to: * KNBR (AM), a radio station (680 AM) licensed to serve San Francisco, California, United States * KNBR-FM KNBR-FM (104.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California, serving the greater San ...
in 1979, Simmons and Angel were replaced by
Lindsey Nelson Lindsey Nelson (May 25, 1919 – June 10, 1995) was an American sportscaster best known for his long career calling play-by-play of college football and New York Mets baseball. Nelson spent 17 years with the Mets and three years with the San F ...
and Hank Greenwald. Three years later in 1981, KSFO acquired the
Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
' radio rights. Simmons then became an A's announcer, along with longtime
Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
and San Francisco/Golden State Warriors voice
Bill King Wilbur "Bill" King (October 6, 1927 – October 18, 2005) was an American sports announcer. In 2016, the National Baseball Hall of Fame named King recipient of the 2017 Ford C. Frick Award, the highest honor for American baseball broadcasters. ...
and youngster
Wayne Hagin Wayne Hagin (born February 17, 1956) is an American sportscaster, best known as a radio play-by-play announcer for various Major League Baseball teams during his career. Born in Denver, Colorado, Hagin moved with his family to San Jose, California ...
. Simmons remained part of the A's radio team through the 1995 season. From
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
to
2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
, he called Giants games part-time on KNBR. With the 49ers, he remained as play-by-play announcer through the 1980 season. In 1981, KSFO lost the 49ers radio rights to KCBS, who replaced him with its own sports director, longtime
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
play-by-play announcer Don Klein. Simmons also served as the Warriors TV announcer on
KTVU KTVU (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Oakland, California, United States, serving as the San Francisco Bay Area's Fox network outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside San Jose ...
during the 1973–74 NBA season. During the final two games of the
1989 World Series The 1989 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1989 season. The 86th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the Nat ...
, Athletics lead announcer Bill King came down with laryngitis. Simmons was thus able to announce to his radio audience that the A's had won the World Series over Simmons' former team, the Giants. During Simmons' first tenure as 49ers play-by-play announcer, the team never won an NFL championship. One year after his departure, San Francisco began a run of
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
victories. When KGO acquired the 49ers radio rights in 1987, Simmons returned as the play-by-play announcer and was reunited with long-time colleague, Wayne Walker. During the 1988 regular season, Simmons' call of Steve Young's breathtaking game-winning 49-yard scramble against the Minnesota Vikings became as memorable as the play itself. The following January, San Francisco won
Super Bowl XXIII Super Bowl XXIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Cincinnati Bengals and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...
over the
Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
, 20–16. Simmons' call of the 49ers' Super Bowl game-winning drive (punctuated by a Joe Montana-to-John Taylor TD pass) can be heard on the
NFL Films NFL Productions, LLC, doing business as NFL Films, is the film and television production company of the National Football League. It produces commercials, television programs, feature films, and documentaries for and about the NFL, as well as ot ...
highlights package of the game. Simmons again departed from the 49ers — this time for good — during the 1989 preseason following a dispute with the KGO management. He was replaced in the play-by-play spot by
Joe Starkey Joseph K. Starkey (born 1941) is an American sportscaster who has served as the radio play-by-play announcer of California Golden Bears football from 1975 to 2022. He previously worked as the sports director of KGO radio in San Francisco, Califor ...
, the long-time announcer for the University of
California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...
and sideline reporter on 49ers games in 1987 and 1988; Starkey had taken over play-by-play on several October games during the 1988 season. Starkey retired from the position following the
2008 NFL season The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan "Believe in Now." Super Bowl XLIII, the league's championship game, was at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on February 1, 2009, w ...
.


Coast Guard service

Simmons served in the U.S. Coast Guard for years during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. He initially served on a cutter in Hawaii mostly conducting submarine patrols. During the
Battle of Saipan The Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June to 9 July 1944 as part of Operation Forager. It has been referred to as the "Pacific D-Day" with th ...
, he served on a
landing ship, tank Landing Ship, Tank (LST), or tank landing ship, is the naval designation for ships first developed during World War II (1939–1945) to support amphibious operations by carrying tanks, vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto shore with ...
(LST-205) that landed troops and supplies as part of the invasion. Afterwards, he served in the
Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a cha ...
until the end of the war.


Death

Simmons died on April 5, 2015, at his home in
Daly City, California Daly City () is the second most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States, with population of 104,901 according to the 2020 census. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, and immediately south of San Francisco (sharing its ...
. Baseball Hall of Famer
Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (born May 6, 1931), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid" and "Buck", is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Regarded as one of the greatest players ever, Mays ranks second behind only Babe Ruth on most all-tim ...
said at the time, "Lon was like my big brother. Anybody who knew him knew he was very genuine. He'd always tell you the truth. When I went into a slump, he was one of the guys I'd listen to. Just a nice man. He was always there for me in all kinds of situations. I'm really going to miss him."


Honors

Simmons received the
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
Ford C. Frick Award The Ford C. Frick Award is presented annually by the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the United States to a broadcaster for "major contributions to baseball". It is named for Ford C. Frick, former Commissioner of Major League Baseball. Before h ...
, given annually by the
Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...
to a broadcaster. He was elected to the
Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame The California Historical Radio Society ("CHRS') is a non-profit organization centered on the history of radio and radio broadcasting, including related technologies such as vintage TV, amateur radio and HiFi. The focus is on the history of early ...
in 2006 as a member of the first class to be inducted. Also in 2006, he was inducted into the Glendale Community College Athletic Hall of Fame, along with his teammate, friend and broadcast partner, Bill Thompson. Simmons' trademark call for
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
s, ''"Tell it goodbye!,"'' is quoted by
John Fogerty John Cameron Fogerty (born May 28, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Together with Doug Clifford, Stu Cook, and his brother Tom Fogerty Thomas Richard Fogerty (November 9, 1941 – September 6, 1990) was an American mu ...
in his song, '' Centerfield.'' In May 2006, Simmons rejoined the San Francisco Giants as a fill-in broadcaster. He was hired back to be in the booth during four in-season trips to San Francisco from his home in
Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...
for the
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
baseball season. The Giants radio booth at Oracle Park is named after him and Hodges. Both are honored at the ball park with displays depicting a microphone and their names, alongside those of the Giants National Baseball Hall of Fame player inductees. After Simmon's death in April 2015 the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
wore a "LON" patch for the 2015 Season on their jerseys to honor their longtime broadcaster.


Other media

Simmons provided voice samples for
Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...
's ''Sports Talk'' video game series, including '' Sports Talk Baseball'', '' Joe Montana II: Sports Talk Football'', ''
NFL Sports Talk Football '93 ''NFL Sports Talk Football '93'' is an American football video game featuring Joe Montana, released in 1992. It is the third in the series, and the first to be licensed by the National Football League. Overview * Being officially licensed by bot ...
'', and ''
NFL Football '94 Starring Joe Montana ''NFL Football '94 Starring Joe Montana'', released as simply ''NFL Football '94'' in Japan, is a 1993 Sega Mega Drive/Genesis game. It features realistic running commentary while the player engages in exhibition, regular season, or playoff actio ...
''. ''Joe Montana II: Sports Talk Football'' was the first video game ever to feature a full play-by-play running commentary.


References


External links


Lon Simmons
Ford C. Frick Award biography at the National Baseball Hall of Fame
Tell It Goodbye! - The Bay Area Radio Museum Presents a Tribute to Hall of Fame Broadcaster Lon Simmons
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Simmons, Lon 1923 births 2015 deaths American sports announcers College football announcers College basketball announcers in the United States El Centro Imperials players Ford C. Frick Award recipients Glendale Vaqueros baseball players Golden State Warriors announcers Major League Baseball broadcasters National Basketball Association broadcasters National Football League announcers Oakland Athletics announcers San Francisco 49ers announcers San Francisco Giants announcers Sportspeople from Vancouver, Washington Terre Haute Phillies players Baseball pitchers Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in California United States Coast Guard enlisted United States Coast Guard personnel of World War II