Curt Gowdy dies...

[AMC]

FORT MYERS, Fla. - Curt Gowdy, one of the signature voices of sports for a generation and the longtime broadcaster for the Boston Red Sox, died Monday at 86.

He died in Palm Beach after a long battle with leukemia, Red Sox spokeswoman Pam Ganley said.

Gowdy made his broadcasting debut in 1944 and went on to call 13

World Series and 16 All-Star games.

In 1951 Gowdy became main play-by-play voice on the Red Sox broadcast team. He left the Red Sox in 1966 for a 10-year stint as "Game of the Week" announcer for NBC. He was also the longtime host of the "American Sportsman" series.

"He's certainly the greatest play-by-play person up to this point that NBC sports has ever had," NBC Universal Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said Monday. "He literally carried the sports division at NBC for so many year on his back. ... He was a remarkable talent and he was an even more remarkable human being."

[BengalszoneBilly]

That sucks. I always liked him. There wasn't many sporting events he couldn't hold his own announcing at. Via Con Dios Kurt.

[semiotter]

Growing up watching Baseball on Saturday afternoons(before cable) it was the only game for many of us to catch all week. And there was Curt and Tony calling the games, Man it was great...Watching those great "ORIOLE" teams and oh yeah the rest of Baseball to. Man all the great players it got to see. Plus he was great at calling football to. He had the voice you knew in a minute and knew you were gonna get it done right with no sign of being a "HOMER" even when he called the Red Sox..He was one of my FAVS for sure!!