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Jack Quinlan Was a Consummate Broadcaster and an Unforgettable

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Jack Quinlan Was a Consummate Broadcaster and an Unforgettable he early evening of May 15, 1960, deliv- ered one of Wrigley Field’s signature moments. Don Cardwell, making his Cubs debut against the rival Cardinals Tduring the second game of a Sunday double- header, was on the verge of baseball immortal- ity. The visitors’ row on the center-field score- board was still populated with a string of zeros. As the esteemed Jack Brickhouse fired up Cubs fans on TV, it was his prized protégé who LOUD AND enthralled those tuning in on WGN Radio. Jack Quinlan’s call that afternoon was so vivid, so engrossing, that it transported listeners directly into the midst of the euphoria. “You know what kind of a pitch we’re hoping for? The dark one. Blow it past him, Don.” When Cubs left fielder Moose Moryn snared CLEAR a sinking line drive for the final out, preserv- ing the masterpiece, it was as if Quinlan was among the throngs who stormed the diamond. Jack Quinlan was a consummate “Lined into left field. Here’s Moryn coming. broadcaster and an unforgettable voice He’s got it! He’s got it! A no-hitter for Cardwell!” This high point in Cubs history was an for a generation of Cubs listeners. Sadly, anomaly at the time—packed houses and win- it was a voice stilled far too soon. ning moments were few and far between dur- ing that era. However, the on-air call was very BY SRI RAMAN much the essence of Quinlan, who maintained his signature artistry, astuteness and enthusi- asm regardless of the team’s fortunes. Quinlan was a consummate broadcaster who inspired a staunch devotion in Cubs fans who were lucky enough to hear him. Unfortunately, his legacy was cemented with tragedy, when an automo- bile accident ended his life far too soon. Bob Sirott, a Chicago broadcasting icon who has long graced the local airwaves, is among the Quinlan devotees. “I understand that fervor because I had it,” Sirott said. Sirott’s boyhood trips to Wrigley Field to watch his beloved Cubs weren’t complete with- out a personal ritual. He would yell up from the grandstands to the radio booth, “Jack Quinlan, Jack Quinlan!” The exercise wouldn’t end until his hero waved back. “It wasn’t until later that I realized how great a broadcaster he was,” Sirott said. “His style was a combination of being a fan and profes- sional reporter, and all of it done with a great sense of humor.” Jack Quinlan’s daughter, Susie Quinlan, re- members this same devotion to her father dat- ing back to her childhood. “My sister and I would see fan after fan ask- ing him for an autograph,” Susie said. “I would think to myself, ‘That’s kind of weird. He’s not even a player.’” Susie, one of four children, remembers growing up in a household immersed in base- ball culture. The family’s basement bar had a custom-made front comprised of crisscrossing baseball bats; the legs of the bar stools had a similar motif; and the seat covers resembled— you guessed it—bases. RON BARBER COURTESY CHICAGO CUBS 40 VINE LINE cubs.com/vineline cubs.com/vineline VINE LINE 41 JACK QUINLAN AND JACK QUINLAN AND ERNIE BANKS LEE WALLS RON BARBER JACK QUINLAN AND RON SANTO RON BARBER RON BARBER It wasn’t uncommon to see Ernie Banks paying a “Even then, he had an ability to guished run as a news anchor/re- casual visit to the house or Ron Santo strolling through work for WGN.” porter for KMOX in St. Louis. the front door. For Quinlan, earning a place among Cubs But Brickhouse still felt some “I grew up wanting to be Jack royalty was the realization of his life’s ambition. small-market seasoning would Quinlan,” Barber said. “Jack Quinlan “He told his mother at 4 years old that he wanted to benefit his new apprentice. He was a shining light to not only my- be a Cubs broadcaster,” Susie said. “Most 4-year-olds helped Quinlan land jobs at WDJ in self but to so many kids like me.” would say they wanted to be a fireman or a policeman. Tuscola, Illinois, and later at WMBD Barber still has cherished memo- “My father actually fulfilled his childhood dream. Not in Peoria. By the 1955 season, Quin- ries of sneaking his transistor radio everyone can say that.” lan had joined WIND’s Cubs radio under his pillow at bedtime so he booth, headed by the revered Bert could listen to Quinlan calling the ★ ★ ★ ★ Wilson, and he became the lead ra- Cubs’ West Coast games. dio voice of Cubs baseball in 1956. If Quinlan’s work is a veritable Quinlan’s story was not only one of dreams fulfilled, museum of broadcast treasures, then but also a classic case of “local boy makes good.” John ★ ★ ★ ★ Barber is its dedicated curator. His Charles Quinlan was born in Peoria, Illinois, on Jan. 23, painstaking work has yielded the 1927. In 1936, the family settled in Winnetka. When Quinlan’s legions of admirers definitive Quinlan chronicles, audio- Quinlan went to New Trier High School for two years share their memories of him, a com- books entitled Jack Quinlan: Forgotten before enrolling at Western Military Academy in Alton, mon refrain quickly surfaces. Greatness. Barber’s meticulously pro- Illinois. It was there he “He’s probably the reason I’m in duced CD-set contains the choicest He was so in sync got his first broadcast- broadcasting,” Sirott said. cuts of Quinlan’s game broadcasts, with the Cubs fans that ing gig, announcing the Pat Foley, the Chicago Black- spring training exhibitions and even listened to him. He had school’s football games. hawks’ Hall of Fame broadcaster, memorable on-air advertisements. While attending the met Quinlan in the radio booth Barber recounted how he once the ability to make University of Notre when he was just a child. persuaded a close friend and KMOX everyone feel welcome.” Dame, he often regaled “I was completely enthralled,” colleague to give Quinlan’s work a his friends by doing Foley told the Chicago Tribune. “That’s listen. Weeks went by before Barber — BOB VORWALD, WGN home “broadcasts” of the day the seed was planted.” received a return phone call, but the sporting events. By the end of his collegiate days, Then there are those whose response was emphatic. he had developed quite a flair for the craft. Jack idolatry has been the impetus “Barber, this guy Quinlan is one Brickhouse, who heard one of the young Quinlan’s not only for a career but also for of the 10 best broadcasters who early professional auditions, told the Chicago Tribune: a cause. Ron Barber had a distin- ever lived!” 42 VINE LINE cubs.com/vineline That impassioned statement was JACK QUINLAN AND from none other than Bob Costas. LOU BOUDREAU Barber’s mission is to see that Quinlan is posthumously bestowed the Hall of Fame’s highest broad- casting honor, the Ford C. Frick Award. Though it could be an uphill battle, Barber has received glowing feedback from some exalted voices over the years. Vince Lloyd’s reply regarding Quinlan’s Hall-of-Fame worthiness was emphatic: “Hell, yes. And anybody who ever heard three innings of any game he broadcast would agree.” The late Joe Garagiola left Barber a touching voicemail: “Ron, don’t give up the fight. Not only was [Quinlan] one of the nicest guys but one of the most talented.” In 1960, Quinlan was hired to be a part of both the national All-Star Game and World Series broadcasts. The baseball commissioner who sought Quinlan was, ironically, Ford Frick. Barber, though resolute, is RON BARBER still incredulous that Cooperstown pertise to shine through. In a baseball sense, Quinlan Quinlan eschewed catchphrases has yet to call his broadcasting idol. was the veteran catcher calling a solid game for his and gimmicks, instead opting for “It’s one of baseball’s egregious knowledgeable-but-inexperienced batterymate. descriptive, compelling narrations. omissions,” he said. The two quickly developed a wonderful chemistry “Billy Williams leads off. Curve and a loving friendship. Their cogent baseball analysis swung on, high fly ball, pretty well ★ ★ ★ ★ educated the masses, while their comedic timing often hit, right fielder back, it’s going to left listeners in stitches. Thousands of letters from fans be out of here. It’s a home run in In 1958, WGN’s acquisition of the nationwide poured into the right-field seats. A long, high, Cubs’ baseball rights helped forge a His style was a WGN headquarters im- towering [shot] that dropped about historic partnership. While Lou Bou- combination of being ploring the experiment two-thirds of the way up in the dreau’s credentials as a player were be made permanent. right-field bleachers!” stellar—he was the 1948 American a fan and professional Boudreau went on As a student of the game, Quinlan League MVP and a 1970 Hall of Fame reporter, and all of it to become a celebrated never hesitated to tip his cap to the inductee—he was a broadcasting done with a great sense Cubs broadcaster in his opposition. Following a Cubs loss in neophyte. According to Cubs histo- of humor.” own right until his retire- which they struck out 18 times, he rian Ed Hartig, the first season of the ment in 1987. said: “You can sum this ballgame Quinlan-Boudreau pairing was con- — BOB SIROTT, In baseball parlance, up, Lou, very quickly in two words: sidered an experiment. CHICAGO BROADCASTER a “five-tool player” is an Sandy Koufax.
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