Gridiron America Radio is where football is celebrated through game replays, old radio shows, and documentaries in the public domain that cover the history, remembrances, culture, lore, and legends of pro football in Canada, America and around the world. Additionally, you can also find replays of the "From the 55 Yard Line" podcast on The Sports History Network, as well as simulcasts of Gridiron Japan Radio, and replays of USFL America Radio, and Gridiron America FM Radio public domain game broadcasts.
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episode 6: The Voice of God
In 1965, Ed Sabol discovered John Facenda in a bar where when he overheard him describe some football footage playing on the screen. Facenda was then a popular local television news anchor. Impressed, Ed Sabol approached him with an offer to narrate NFL Films footage and so began an inextricable vocal-film partnership. Sabol himself described Facenda as a stentorian baritone. Facenda and Jack Whitaker, a CBS Sports television legend, worked together on Philly TV in the 1950s and 60s. Facenda’s sepulchral Voice of God articulated in somber narrative, battle ridden NFL marathons. His recordings were orchestrated symphonically, against the musical soundtrack of composer Sam Spence. How many NFL fans love to attempt an imitation of Facenda’s “On the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field?” Every letter is articulated diligently and enunciated perfectly. Sadly, he passed away in 1983, with his final voice-over work being the highlight film covering Super Bowl XVIII.