Welcome to Bob Uecker Mania!The "Mr. Baseball" Tribute Page. |
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March 13, 2003 |
"Congratulations Bob !"
[ Bob in Wikipedia.org] - [ Bob in IMDB.com] - [ Bob's Stats]
Mini Biography
Entering his 37th year behind the mic as a Major League Baseball broadcaster for his hometown team calling play-by-play on WTMJ-Radio and the Brewers Radio Network, Bob Uecker will celebrate his 52nd year in professional baseball in 2007.
Uecker earned the 2003 Ford C. Frick Award and will forever be recognized in Baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. On July 27, 2003, he made one of the most memorable speeches in Hall of Fame induction history as he left his audience, including former President George H. Bush, in tears from laughter.
In 2003, Uecker also joined former Brewers general manager, Harry Dalton, as a member of the Brewers Walk of Fame, located near home plate outside of Miller Park. He and Dalton joined Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Hank Aaron, Rollie Fingers, Allan H. (Bud) Selig, Jim Gantner, Gorman Thomas and Cecil Cooper in receiving this special honor.
Affectionately known across the country as "Mr. Baseball," Uecker has completed 26 seasons as the club's number one announcer. Uecker is highly respected in the industry, having been inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2001, where he joined such baseball broadcasting luminaries as Vince Scully, Mel Allen, Red Barber, Ernie Harwell and Jack Brickhouse as well as other American icons such as Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Edward R. Murrow and Orson Welles.
Uecker has been named Wisconsin Sportscaster of the Year five times during his career and was inducted into the Wisconsin Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.
His big break can be traced to a 1969 visit with Al Hirt, a renowned jazz trumpeter from New Orleans, which would alter Uecker's life forever. Hirt opened a small nightclub in Atlanta and asked Uecker to come on stage. Hirt was so impressed, he arranged an appearance for Uecker on the "Tonight Show," starring Johnny Carson. Uecker became one of Carson's favorite guests, making some 100 appearances before Carson retired in 1992. He also made appearances on the Mike Douglas and Merv Griffin shows, Late Night with David Letterman and as a guest host on Saturday Night Live.
Uecker became a national celebrity and the ABC Network took advantage of his popularity. He made appearances on "The Superstars" and "The Midnight Special," which opened the door for more high-profile appearances.
A versatile talent, Uecker’s credits go far beyond guest appearances and play-by-play. In 1985, Uecker launched a television acting career as one of the stars of ABC's sitcom "Mr. Belvedere," which put 122 episodes into syndication. He also hosted two syndicated television shows, "Bob Uecker's Wacky World of Sports" and "Bob Uecker's War of the Stars." He was one of the Miller Lite All-Stars in popular commercials for Lite Beer from Miller. Uecker was cast as a radio announcer in the film "Major League," which was filmed at County Stadium, and the sequel, "Major League II."
His experience broadcasting Brewers games both on radio and television gained Uecker national recognition as he went on to serve as play-by-play announcer for ABC Sports coverage of Monday Night Baseball, the League Championship Series and the World Series.
Uecker's accomplishments are not limited to the electronic medium. A former catcher who spent six seasons in the Major Leagues, Bob authored a book entitled "Catcher In the Wry," a humorous look back on the years he spent with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies. One of his career highlights as a player came in 1964, when he was a member of the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals.
Despite his national attention and success, Bob never forgot his roots. His philanthropic efforts benefit several local organizations, including the United Performing Arts Fund, the Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer Fund, the Milwaukee Symphony, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee and Big Brothers/Big Sisters. In addition, Uecker is an advocate for organizations that battle cystic fibrosis and heart disease and is involved with the Wisconsin Department of Tourism. He also chairs the popular Bob Uecker Celebrity Fishing Tournament for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
For his efforts, Uecker was inducted into the Wisconsin Performing Artists Hall of Fame in 1993. The Hall of Fame was established in 1983 to honor nationally and internationally known performing artists with Wisconsin ties. In 1994, he was elected to the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame. In January 1995, he earned the "Big B.A.T." Award from the Baseball Assistance Team at a dinner in New York City for his continuing support of former Major League stars who are in need of assistance.
(Bio courtesy of BrewersRadioNetwork.com)
For more than 30 years he has been the voice of the Milwaukee Brewers.
On November 3, 2001, in his 31st season calling Milwaukee Brewers games, Bob became only the 9th Baseball Announcer in history to be elected to the
National Radio Hall of Fame."
Larry Phillips: Hoosiers, Bull Durham rank as my top sports movies Mansfield News Journal, OH Incredibly, Sports Illustrated's Steve Wulf reviewed, and panned this movie, without so much as mentioning Bob Uecker's name. That's simply unforgivable. Uecker steals scene after scene as the Indians over the top radio play-by-play man, putting even ... |
Uecker still speaks volumes Superior Telegram, MN Bob Uecker, at 74, is as entertaining, relevant and insightful now as he was when he was the only sane reason to invest in Brewers games. You remember those days, don't you? Consecutive losing seasons from 1993 to 2006. I have friends and acquaintances ... |
Lee in the zone ESPN Bob Uecker is scheduled to sing on Friday afternoon, maybe he'll throw out a few Miller Lites. Line of the night: Dempster took a shot off his ankle near the end of his outing and was asked how he was feeling after the game: "Just auditioning," joked ... |
TWIB takes inside look at Crew clubhouse MLB.com The second part of the show will focus on Hall of Fame broadcaster Bob Uecker, who is in the midst of his 39th season calling Brewers games. "This is a fun team, and he's definitely a fun broadcaster to listen to," Anderton said of Uecker. ... |
Hunter crashes into outfield wall, injures ribs USA Today The Indians honored the 20-year anniversary of the movie when Brewers Hall of Fame announcer Bob Uecker threw out the first pitch and handed out bobblehead dolls of Ricky Vaughn, who was the erratic reliever in the film. Uecker played the Indians ... |
 Bleacher Report | Brewers 10 Mets 6: Game One of Three Bleacher Report, CA For Brewers fans, listening to Bob Uecker on the radio is a great way to catch baseball if you don't have chance to see it on the tube. For some people it is the only way they follow the Brewers. Last night was a particularly great night to be ... |
Kalas elected to Radio Hall of Fame MLB.com Kalas, who died suddenly on April 13 at age 73, will become the 14th sportscaster enshrined in the Chicago-based museum, joining the likes of Mel Allen, Red Barber, Jack Brickhouse, Harry Caray, Vin Scully and Bob Uecker. ... |
Take me out to the ballgame McKinney Courier Gazette, TX The Rangers had all of one hit, which made me want to quote Bob Uecker from Major League, but this is still a family publication (yes, even in blog format) so I will not. The consensus from my friends afterward was that the game got a thumbs down, ... |
Bill Conlin: Conlin's All-Time Phillies Call-Stars Philadelphia Inquirer, PA Catcher Bob Uecker is a member of both the radio and baseball halls of fame. The former TV sitcom star made 64 Johnny Carson guest appearances. As "Major League's" Harry Doyle, Uecker made "Juuuust a bit outside" part of the sports lexicon. ... |
 The Associated Press | An on-the-ground account of Rick Vaughn bobblehead night Yahoo! Sports That they'd be heading back with a cool souvenir made the trip all the better, though they said they'd only seen the movie a combined five times or so — even with their own broadcaster, Bob Uecker, appearing in the film (and throwing out Monday's first ... Indians offer "Wild Thing" bobbleheads Juuuuust a bit outside |