A Three Ring Birthday Salute

New York-area Baby boomers born roughly between 1952 and '56 remember Mel Allen as our first voice of baseball. Too young to recall the Giants and Dodgers as local teams, and just old enough to recall the time before the Mets came along, this native of Alabama become one of New York's most beloved adopted sons. His warm and energetic baritone symbolized the Yankees as much as the "M&M Boys," Whitey and Yogi.

Much as Harry Caray was the Bud Man, Mel was the voice of Ballantine, the longtime sponsor of Yankee broadcasts. And more than anyone, he was the Voice of October. The Yankees won 14 pennants between 1947 and '63 -- and Mel was on the radio or TV crew for all of them. He was even chosen by Mutual to do the 1948 series on radio -- even though the Yankees finished behind the Indians!

Mel's enthusiasm for the game, his vibrant sound help sell baseball to kids like me. Of course, having larger-than-life players and a team that won five straight pennants to kick off the 1960s had something to do with it.

That never-quite explained firing after the 1964 season (when, Phil Rizzuto, represented the Yankees on NBC's World Series crew), came as a shock. Mel and Yogi Berra (then the manager) let go within weeks of each other apparently brought on bad karma -- 12 pennant-less seasons.

Was it a surprise that when Mel returned the Yankees booth in 1976 doing their first games on cable -- in one of George Steinbrenner's wisest moves -- and Yogi, recently fired by the Mets became one of Billy Martin's coaches, the team won its first division title and returned to the World Series?

There's so much else on Mel Allen's resume: narrating movie reels, contributing to NBC's iconic weekend radio series Monitor and hosting the syndicated This Week in Baseball. 

 But as we mark his birthday on Valentine's Day, let's raise an imaginary Ballantine -- the brew many of us still recall him pouring into a tall thin glass on live TV -- in honor of the Voice who still resonates in the memories of Yankee fans.
Mel's ad for Ballantine came from the 1956 Yankees Yearbook.

Comments

Alan Reiman said…
Although I was born in 52 in Brooklyn, I remember seeing Them Bums play in Ebbetts Field in 57, Yankee Stadium in 73 and 08, Polo Grounds in 63 and Shea Stadium in 08. Of course, many other games between those dates.
February 15, 2019 at 2:24 AM
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