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Classic Network Voiceovers

OP, you might be thinking of Brad Crandall, who did booth announcing and promos for CBS during the 70s and 80s. He was also heard during this period as the voice of the "Mister Macho" wig commercial on "WKRP in Cincinnati." Before that he was a talk show host evenings on 66 WNBC, New York (and the best call-in host I ever heard).

Another famous network voice was Fred Foy, who did booth work for the ABC Television Network and for WABC-TV, New York. He is possibly best remembered as the narrator of "The Lone Ranger" from WXYZ, Detroit from 1948 to 1954 and IMHO was the best "golden age" radio announcer ever.
 
CrankyYankee said:
I can tell you the late Bob Cruz who was a jock on WABC radio did "20/20"'s announcing for a while.
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I remember Cruz doing the end announces for ABC Sports events in the 1980s-mostly on "Wide World of Sports"- "Now stay tuned for your local news and World News (Saturday/Sunday) over most of these ABC stations." On MNF, i can remember Al Michaels or Frank Gifford doing that plug instead.
 
How about William Schallert ?? Besides appearing on so many classic shows he was the voice over guy at ABC in the late 60s and early 70s. He also has a very dirty mouth as Stu Shostak would point out when he had him on his "Stu's Show" podcast some years back.
 
hamster said:
How about William Schallert ?? Besides appearing on so many classic shows he was the voice over guy at ABC in the late 60s and early 70s. He also has a very dirty mouth as Stu Shostak would point out when he had him on his "Stu's Show" podcast some years back.
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Had a dirty mouth, since he passed away last year--roughly six weeks after his TV daughter, Patty Duke. Speaking of Patty, in her autobiography, "Call Me Anna," she spoke about how Jean Byron (her TV mother) had quite a blue streak in her vocabulary while on the set.
 
I think I would have to go with Ernie Anderson, as he was the "voice of NBC and ABC" in the 80s, and he also did VOs for local newscasts, such as WPLG in Miami in the late 80s.
 
This may have been said before in this old thread but:

Casey Kasem in the 80s (IIRC) for NBC

And the prize for most employed in this capacity has to be Don La Fontaine ("In a world where...")

I don't believe he was ever the voice of any particular network, but in the 90s and 00s, his trailers could be heard on CBS and FOX at least, maybe the others...not to mention practically all film trailers.
 
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rwells2265 said:
This who's-who must include the unsung BILL WOLFF, who announced for Another World from its debut in 1964 until (I believe) some time in the '80s. His was a voice of "gentle authority."

AW was one of my mother's favorite soaps, and Wolff's "We'llrrrreturn to our storyyy in just a moment!" commercial bumper was just so ... elegant. Even better was hearing a 1964 AW audio clip on the WOST.org site (back when it was free), when Wolff read a live promo for "The Virginian" over the credits. It reminds me of just what we've lost with all the split-screen nonsense at the end of shows today. And, with Bill Wolff saying it, who wouldn't have wanted to "stay tuned for YOU DON'T SAY, next, in color"......

I'm not sure if he's alive today, but what I wouldn't give to hear that voice on TV again.

--Russell
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I have to agree with your assessment about Bill Wolff, but there is another announcer in daytime that was as legendary as him, and that was Johnny Olsen on "The Price is Right." The way Johnny O said "Come on Down!" or "A New Car!" added even more excitement to TPIR. Dan McCullough on "As The World Turns" would be another one. I'd also add Alan Berns on "Guiding Light" as well.
 
ixnay said:
[quote ]
Actually come to think of it many of the old KHJ announcers ( from the Boss Radio era ) sooner/later ended up to TV voice over work too and not just in LA either.
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Charlie Van D y k e, certainly, and not just on TV. I've heard CVD on

TV:
WBAL-11 Baltimore
WGAL-8 Lancaster, PA
WJLA-7 Washington, DC
WPVI-6 Philadelphia

Radio:
AT 40 (filling in for Casey several times)
WOGL-98.1 Philadelphia
WPHT-1210 Philadelphia (when it was WGMP The Game in the mid-90s ["Get into The Game!"])

ixnay[/QUOTE]


Wow I remember Charlie Van Dyke at KRTH Los Angeles and now he move to TV voice overs at KABC Los Angeles and WABC Mew York.
 
RadioPatrol said:
Charlie Van D y k e, certainly, and not just on TV. I've heard CVD on

TV:
WBAL-11 Baltimore
WGAL-8 Lancaster, PA
WJLA-7 Washington, DC
WPVI-6 Philadelphia

Radio:
AT 40 (filling in for Casey several times)
WOGL-98.1 Philadelphia
WPHT-1210 Philadelphia (when it was WGMP The Game in the mid-90s ["Get into The Game!"])

ixnay
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Wow I remember Charlie Van Dyke at KRTH Los Angeles and now he move to TV voice overs at KABC Los Angeles and WABC New York.
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Yeah, he also does voiceover work for one other ABC O&O--WPVI in Philadelphia. I'm not sure that he announces for the other ABC O&Os, but definitely the bi-coastal ABC7s and 6abc.

In Los Angeles, he was also the voiceover guy at KCBS-TV in the late 80s/early-to-mid 90s, during their "Action News" phase. He also did voiceovers for KDFW-TV in Dallas in the 1980s, and believe some of the then-Times Mirror stations like KTVI St. Louis and KTBC in Austin.

Another KCBS Action News intro from 1988:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgpApcokgCU

...and a few years earlier at KDFW:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaZAjOThClE
 
KML-224 said:
I'm pretty certain you still hear Charlie Van Dyke on WABC-TV (ABC) channel 7 as well.
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I'll always remember CVD from his time as a DJ at KFRC San Francisco, and of course, his dulcet tones announcing, "K-Earth 101."

On a related note, does anybody else remember that when this website was new, you'd type in his name, and it would publish as "Charlie Van ----"? Same with Dick Van ----. Apparently, the word was in the verboten category, and couldn't get past the virtual censor.
 
In watching classic Another World and Price is Right, i'd go with Bill Wolff and Don Pardo.

Anytime i watch the AW eps i've had (plus the audio snippets from the late 60s/early 70s) Wolff's work on AW is so ... elegant. Same thing with Don Pardo... Pardo's detailed prize descriptions, sponsor I.D.'s and instructions on mailing sweepstakes postcards to NBC were pretty elegant too. Like for example, his plugs for Speidel, Lux dishwashing liquid, Imperial Margarine or Newport Cigarettes. Wolff's annoucements for Ivory Soap or lets say Cheer detergent were elegant too.
 
Jay Stewart, while not a network guy, was really good on LMAD. His "Would YOU make a deal to trade up to $XXXX in cash for one of those three doors, knowing that behind one of them is $XXXX worth of valuable merchandise? Several people have to make that decision during the next half-hour, as we bring you the marketplace of America, Let's! Make! A Deal!"

Dwight Weist, who did Search For Tomorrow was great too. "Now for the next 30 minutes...Search...For... Tomorrow. Brought to you by Crest."
 
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