Rating: 
Summary: Radio Days
Review: The age of radio seems to be past, but for sports fans, the voices of radio announcers such as Jack Buck (St. Louis), Kurt Goudy (40-50's) and Ken Coleman for the Red Sox, Johnny Most (Celtics) and Johnny Holliday (The Maryland Terrapins) are part of the enjoyment of the game.Johnny Holliday wrote a memoir of his life in radio, from his start on an all-black R&B station, to doing a live broadcast of the Beatles, to his stint in sports. The book is laced with famous and not-so-famous names. In fact, if you are a radio buff, this book is for you, because Johnny met nearly everyone and his memory for who's who is sharp and detailed. If you love radio or are a fan of Johnny, you will enjoy this book--a slice of radio as it was in its heyday.
Rating:
Summary: A concise look at one of the legends of broadcasting
Review: You know the name. You know the voice. If you live anywhere near Washington D.C. metropolitan area, you have undoubtedly heard his voice, in one form or another, on the radio. He's Johnny Holliday. Few names resonate with such recognition as Holliday's legendary moniker. In the past 20 years, he has been most notable as the voice of the University of Maryland Terrapins basketball and football teams, and also well known for his voice-over work in radio and television ads. Prior to that, Holliday made many stops around the country as a disc jockey and sports broadcaster. His journeys enabled to be witness to some of the great moments and know some of the great people in music and sports history. "From Rock To Jock" gives the backstory on Johnny Holliday and allows the reader to feel like they are a fly on the wall at all the stops along the way in his remarkable career.
"From Rock to Jock" is a mixture of Holliday's own memories and the memories of those who worked with or knew him. It makes the various stops on Johnny's journey in life more fascinating this way, to see it from multiple perspectives. A moving foreword and afterword by no less broadcast luminaries as Tony Kornheiser and Dick Vitale, respectively, reflect just how well respected Johnny Holliday is. Having met in him in person, I can vouch that he is just as nice and genuine a person as he seems on the radio and in this book.
Some of the more memorable stops in Holliday's journey include his early days at WHK in Cleveland, his high moments in San Francisco, and his eventual settling in his permanent home in Maryland. San Francisco is especially memorable because the reader gets a look at Johnny's legendary charity basketball team, the Oneders (which, at one time counted NBA Hall-of-Famer Rick Barry as a member), and the impact it had on the community. Plus, it reminisces about Johnny emcee-ing the last concert on the last tour ever done by the Beatles. Without a doubt, "From Rock to Jock" is an entertaining read for anyone interested in learning about some of the great moments of the early and later days of radio and sports, and about the man whose career defined and is defined by those events.
Rating:
Summary: A concise look at one of the legends of broadcasting
Review: You know the name. You know the voice. If you live anywhere near Washington D.C. metropolitan area, you have undoubtedly heard his voice, in one form or another, on the radio. He's Johnny Holliday. Few names resonate with such recognition as Holliday's legendary moniker. In the past 20 years, he has been most notable as the voice of the University of Maryland Terrapins basketball and football teams, and also well known for his voice-over work in radio and television ads. Prior to that, Holliday made many stops around the country as a disc jockey and sports broadcaster. His journeys enabled to be witness to some of the great moments and know some of the great people in music and sports history. "From Rock To Jock" gives the backstory on Johnny Holliday and allows the reader to feel like they are a fly on the wall at all the stops along the way in his remarkable career.
"From Rock to Jock" is a mixture of Holliday's own memories and the memories of those who worked with or knew him. It makes the various stops on Johnny's journey in life more fascinating this way, to see it from multiple perspectives. A moving foreword and afterword by no less broadcast luminaries as Tony Kornheiser and Dick Vitale, respectively, reflect just how well respected Johnny Holliday is. Having met in him in person, I can vouch that he is just as nice and genuine a person as he seems on the radio and in this book.
Some of the more memorable stops in Holliday's journey include his early days at WHK in Cleveland, his high moments in San Francisco, and his eventual settling in his permanent home in Maryland. San Francisco is especially memorable because the reader gets a look at Johnny's legendary charity basketball team, the Oneders (which, at one time counted NBA Hall-of-Famer Rick Barry as a member), and the impact it had on the community. Plus, it reminisces about Johnny emcee-ing the last concert on the last tour ever done by the Beatles. Without a doubt, "From Rock to Jock" is an entertaining read for anyone interested in learning about some of the great moments of the early and later days of radio and sports, and about the man whose career defined and is defined by those events.
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