Bob Miller's new star search
Last Friday night, Bob Miller said he took his brother- and sister-in-law, who were in town visiting from Wisconsin, down to Hollywood Blvd., to check out the space they had planned to lay in a terrazzo-and-bronze star with his name on it.
When the Kings' Hall of Fame broadcaster found the spot in front of the Hollywood Wax Museum near the corner of Hollywood and Highland, it was covered in plastic, with a barricade around it.
Nevertheless, Miller's sister-in-law wanted to take a picture of it.
Right about then, a woman with her grown daughter came up to the site.
"I wonder who's star this is going to be?" the mother said aloud.
Miller didn't want to give away that it was going to be his.
"I wonder if we know who the star is that's going to be here," said the daughter.
Miller finally said, "Actually, it's mine."
The woman said, "Yeah, right."
The Miller group stayed and took more pictures, and the woman and daughter walked away but made their way back again. Miller told them that if they came by at 11:30 on Monday, they could see his ceremony.
"Yeah, sure, we'll be there," the woman said in an unbelieving tone.
"Some of the best stories are the ones that are real," Miller said, retelling that one at Monday's Walk of Fame ceremony. "I don't know if they're here or if they're watching on TV, but if so, they're probably getting the shock of their lives if they are."
A few hundred Kings fans, four of Miller's former broadcast partners, and honorary Hollywood mayor Johnny Grant were on hand Monday for the unveiling of the 2,319th star on the Walk of Fame, honoring Miller for his 33 seasons doing Kings games in Los Angeles.
One of the curious surprises for Miller was that there was a TV logo in the star instead of the radio microphone that had been scheduled to be included. Miller said later he had no idea why that had happened -- Chick Hearn and Vin Scully had radio microphones on their star, and that's what he was told he'd get, too.
Ponder that while you take a look at a few more snapshots of the day's ceremony:
The crowed took up the right lane of Hollywood Blvd. near the Highland Ave. interesection to get the best viewing for the ceremony ...
One Kings fan (right) gave his wife a boost on his shoulders to see over all the heads.
As a crowd that included former longtime L.A. sportscasters such as Stu Nahan (who'll get his star next year) and Gil Stratton looked on, it was Tim Leiweke, the president of AEG, the Kings' ownership group, who was the first speaker, followed by former Kings star Luc Robitaille and then Jim Fox, the former Kings forward and current broadcasting partner for Miller for the last 17 seasons.
Robitaille's appearance got the fans chanting "Luuuuuuuc," which Grant misunderstood for booing and asked that the crowd please now cheer for Robitaille's arrival. Luc had to inform him what was really going on there.
Fox said that Miller's more endearing trait is that he's "not just there for you, he's there with you. . . . No one describes the action with the right amount of energy and urgency. He doesn't have a special catch phrase or any gimmicks, because he's just that good. . . . Thanks for giving me the best seat in the house."
When it was Miller's turn to speak, he thanked everyone and said this was an honor he never thought he'd receive. "Working six years for Jack Kent Cooke, I really never thought this would happen," joked Miller about the former Kings owner.
Miller poses with Susie and Jim Fox ...
Kings fans line up against the barricade for a better angle ... When Grant read the list of film credits that Miller had been involved in, the Kings fans actually started booing when he mentioned the two Mighty Ducks movies that used Miller's voice on the hockey action... Grant didn't seem too sure why they'd done that...
Miller gets together with four (of the five) broadcast partners he's had over the years. From left: Pete Weber, Nick Nickson, Miller, Rich Marotta and Jim Fox. Dan Avey was unable to attend the ceremony because of his working committment to KABC-AM radio.
Miller holds up his wall plaque for the photographers at the star site ...
Miller then takes the star plaque over to the crowd of Kings fans for more pictures and handshaking ...
By Miller's request, his star was as close to Chick Hearn's as possible -- just four spaces away. Hearn, the Lakers' Hall of Fame broadcaster, recommended Miller to Cooke for hiring, once in 1972, then again a year later when he finally got the job.
Not long after the ceremony ended the crowd dispersed, the foot traffic was back to normal on Hollywood Blvd., with strollers and pedestrians walking all over Miller's new star ...
And this guy selling star maps was already trying to find out where Miller lives. ...
Comments
Congratulations to Bob Miller. Nice guy, great teller of jokes and a superb announcer. He should be doing announcing during the postseason for Versus or NBC (even if the Kings don't make it!).
Posted by: Ryan | October 3, 2006 10:37 AM
I wish I could have been there for Bob Miller's ceremony. The 3 best hockey announcers I've ever heard are: former Blues and NHL national announcer Dan Kelly (deceased), ex-Montreal Canadiens announcer Danny Gallivan (deceased) and Bob Miller (thankfully still on the air).
Al Michaels is not on that list, although he called the hockey game of a lifetime.
Miller is a legend among those who grew up listening to Kings' games. No ego. No shtick. He always makes time for fans after games and is a wonderful ambassador for the game. A great announcer in the regular season, Miller's an even better announcer in the playoffs. He just has a way of building the drama. I hope LA fans realize how lucky we are to have one of hockey's top announcers in our backyard for all these years. Congrats Bob! And, thanks to Tom for bringing us the nice tribute and photos.
Posted by: Daniel | October 3, 2006 05:58 PM
Nick Nickson ought to get one too. Just cause the top of his head can't be seen from outer space is no reason to discriminate against him. He and Miller made it as a team and it's as a team they ought to be remembered.
Posted by: Lou Filliger | October 4, 2006 11:08 AM