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Bob Miller (sportscaster)

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This article is about a sports announcer. For other uses of the name, see Bob Miller (disambiguation).

Bob Miller
Bob Miller pictured in 2011
Born
Robert James Miller

(1938-10-12) October 12, 1938 (age 86)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Sports commentary career
TeamLos Angeles Kings (1973–2017)
Genreplay-by-play (television)
SportIce hockey

Robert James Miller (born October 12, 1938) is an American retired sportscaster, best known as the play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Kings team of the National Hockey League on Fox Sports West/Prime Ticket.[1] Miller held that post with the team from 1973 until his retirement in 2017. He was partnered with Jim Fox from 1990 to 2017.[1]

Early life and career

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Miller received his degree in communication studies from the University of Iowa.[1] While there, he began his broadcasting career, covering the school's football and basketball games for campus station KRUI-FM.[1][2]

After his graduation in 1960,[1] Miller began working in television sports journalism in Wisconsin.[1] He later would add announcing duties for the football and hockey teams at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[1][3]

Los Angeles Kings

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Jiggs McDonald was the Kings' original play-by-play announcer, serving from their inception in 1967 to 1972, when he left to join the newly-established then-Atlanta Flames (now the Calgary Flames).[1] It was in 1972 that Miller submitted a tape to Kings founder and owner Jack Kent Cooke, who was also the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team. While Cooke said to him "You're going to be my choice",[4] Cooke instead decided to hire long-time San Francisco Bay Area announcer Roy Storey to fill the void left by McDonald.[1][5] Chick Hearn made the decision to hire Miller.[6]

When Storey left the team after one season, the Kings turned their attention back to Miller, who was then hired in 1973, and served as their play-by-play announcer until his retirement in 2017.[7] Miller's broadcast partners have included Dan Avey, Rich Marotta, Pete Weber, the current radio voice of the Nashville Predators, current Kings radio voice Nick Nickson and former Kings right wing Jim Fox.[8] He called games on both television and radio until 1990, when the Kings stopped simulcasting and Miller went exclusively to television.

Due to the NHL's exclusive national broadcast contract with NBC that prevented local television announcers to call playoff games beyond the first round,[9] Miller and Fox were not allowed to call the Kings' Stanley Cup Finals games on television.[9] But due to their overwhelming popularity among fans, Kings management had Miller and Fox record their call of the potential clinching games for later distribution.[9]

As a result, when the Kings won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history in 2012, Miller told the story of the franchise up to that point when he said:

This is for you, Kings fans, wherever you may be. All the frustration and disappointment of the past is gone. The 45-year drought is over! The Los Angeles Kings are indeed the kings of the National Hockey League. They are the 2012 Stanley Cup champions! The countdown is on–3, 2, 1, it's over!

Miller later recalled that he'd written out his final call in advance, and saved it so he could keep from stumbling over the words out of excitement.[10] With the Kings having locked up the game and the Cup with an outburst of three goals on a five-minute power play in the first period, many fans sitting below the press box exchanged high fives with Miller and Fox during the final minutes.[11]

Two years later, Miller called Alec Martinez' overtime goal, which gave the Kings their second Stanley Cup.

Here on the left side, Martinez over to Clifford. Right side, shot from there. The save, the rebound, SCORE! Kings win the Cup! The Kings, Martinez getting the rebound. The Kings have won the Stanley Cup! The Kings, in the longest game in their history, win it, 3-2!

[12]

As the celebration got underway, Miller added a postscript which began, "Royalty reigns again in the National Hockey League!" He later recalled that he had been saving it for the Cup-clinching game, as he had in 2012.[13]

Miller's first book, Tales From the Los Angeles Kings, was published in October 2006.[1][14]

Miller's second book, Tales From The Los Angeles Kings Locker Room: A Collection Of The Greatest Kings Stories Ever Told, was published in April 2013.[15]

On March 2, 2017, for health reasons, Miller announced his retirement as the team's television play-by-play announcer, a position he held for 44 years, and at the time of the announcement, having called 3,351 Kings games.[16] His retirement became effective after the final two regular season games of the Kings' 2016-17 season, a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 8, 2017, and a road game against the Anaheim Ducks on April 9, 2017.[17] On September 12, 2017, the Kings announced that Bob Miller would remain with the Kings organization as an ambassador and continue to contribute to the team on a part-time basis which includes being the MC for the Kings Legends Nights.[18]

Other appearances

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He has performed voice over and on-camera work for television shows and movies in scenes which included a hockey announcer.[1] Among his credits are an episode of Cheers and the films Rollerball, Miracle on Ice, The Mighty Ducks, and D2: The Mighty Ducks.[1] Nationally, he has worked for ESPN, ABC[19] and FOX. He also called some games for FX during the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.[citation needed]

Honors

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Miller was honored by the Hockey Hall of Fame as the 2000 recipient of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award,[5][20] and was inducted into the Los Angeles Kings Hall of Fame,[1][21] into the Wisconsin Hockey Hall of Fame,[1] and into the Southern California Sports Broadcasters Hall of Fame.[22] The press box at Staples Center, the Kings' home arena, is named in his honor.[1]

Miller received the 2,319th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in television, on October 2, 2006.[1] At the ceremony he noted, "My greatest fear is that I retire and the Kings win a Stanley Cup the next year."[7] Those fears would never come to be as on June 11, 2012, the Kings finally won the Stanley Cup.[23] The team would win another one two years later in 2014.

In 2014, Miller was honored by the Big Ten Club as their Person of the Year. In 2015, Miller received the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California's Lifetime Achievement Award at the 65th annual Golden Mike Awards.[24]

On January 13, 2018, Miller became the third person from the Los Angeles Kings to be honored with a statue outside of Staples Center, joining Luc Robitaille and Wayne Gretzky.[25] Miller also became the first non-player to be honored with a banner hanging from the Staples Center's rafters.[26]

Personal

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Miller is married. He and his wife Judy have two children.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Los Angeles Kings 2011-12 Media Guide. Los Angeles Kings. p. 27.
  2. ^ Gase, Thomas (July 19, 2007). "King of the booth". The Acorn. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  3. ^ a b Stewart, Larry (January 31, 1998). "From Cooke to the "Mainstay" of the Kings (page 1)". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  4. ^ "Bob Miller's retirement from the Kings means the end of a royal era in Los Angeles broadcasting - Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. April 9, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Elliott, Helene (November 14, 2000). "Voice of the Kings Gets Royal Treatment at Last; Hockey: Bob Miller receives media honor in Hall of Fame after years of being overshadowed in L.A." Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  6. ^ Bob Miller, Chick Hearn and Vin Scully in epic roundtable from 2000, September 22, 2016
  7. ^ a b Stewart, Larry (October 3, 2006). "Miller Is Star of This Show". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  8. ^ Elliott, Helene (November 14, 2000). "Voice of the Kings Gets Royal Treatment at Last". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  9. ^ a b c Elliott, Helene (June 5, 2012). "Bob Miller, Jim Fox to record Stanley Cup call". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
  10. ^ "The Play-by-Play Calls: 2012 Stanley Cup Moments, Episode 20". Los Angeles Kings. April 29, 2013. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  11. ^ "The Final Minutes: 2012 Stanley Cup Moments, Episode 12". Los Angeles Kings. April 8, 2013. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021.
  12. ^ "Kings Clinch Stanley Cup - Bob Miller's Call". Los Angeles Kings. June 17, 2014. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
  13. ^ "The Voices: 2014 Stanley Cup Moments, Episode 11". Los Angeles Kings. January 16, 2015. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
  14. ^ Matsuda, Gann (September 9, 2009). "Bob Miller: The Los Angeles Kings' Greatest Ambassador". FrozenRoyalty.net/Gann Matsuda. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  15. ^ Matsuda, Gann (May 8, 2013). "Hall of Fame Announcer Bob Miller Publishes New Book About LA Kings 2012 Stanley Cup Run". FrozenRoyalty.net/Gann Matsuda. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  16. ^ Matsuda, Gann (March 3, 2017). "Bob Miller's Retirement Press Conference Was Really About All of Us Instead". Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  17. ^ Rosen, Jon (March 2, 2017). "Bob Miller To Retire; Will Broadcast Final Two Regular Season Games". Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  18. ^ "Bob Miller to Serve as "Team Ambassador" for LA Kings". September 12, 2017.
  19. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Pavel Bure scores hat trick against Gretzky's Kings (1994)". YouTube.
  20. ^ "Foster Hewitt Memorial Award Winners". Hockey Hall Of Fame. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  21. ^ Stewart, Larry (January 31, 1998). "From Cooke to the "Mainstay" of the Kings (page 2)". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  22. ^ Stewart, Larry (February 5, 2002). "Scully Receives Two Awards". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  23. ^ Matsuda, Gann (September 6, 2012). "Stanley Cup Win Allays LA Kings' Hall of Fame Announcer Bob Miller's Greatest Fear". FrozenRoyalty.net/Gann Matsuda. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  24. ^ "Lifetime Achievement Award: Past Honorees". Radio and Television News Association of Southern California. Archived from the original on April 26, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  25. ^ Zupke, Curtis (October 11, 2017). "Kings will honor former broadcaster Bob Miller with a statue outside Staples Center". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  26. ^ "LA Kings Honor Bob Miller With Statue Unveiling, Banner Raising". January 13, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2019.

See also

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Preceded by Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winner
2000 		Succeeded by
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