Jim McKay, announcer for Wide World of Sports, died on Saturday at the age of 86. He was buried on Tuesday from the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore, where my sister, niece and I graduated from High School.
In 1972, Jim McKay was on the air during the Olympics when Palestinian terrorists broke into the Olympic Village and took eleven Israeli athletes hostage. All 11 hostages were killed when a Palestinian threw a grenade into the helicopter that was carrying the hostages.
With the clear hindsight that occurs with time, many now look back to that tragedy as the first time that global terrorism came onto the radar screens of most Americans.
Jim McKay had the sad job of announcing this news to the world. May he rest in peace.
Rest in Peace, Jim McKay.
Hat tip to Cygnus for reminding me of the story.
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