Don Pardo, iconic TV announcer, dies at 96

Don Pardo, the durable television and radio announcer whose booming baritone became as much a part of the cultural landscape as the shows and products he touted, has died. He was 96.

Pardo’s death on Monday was confirmed by an NBC spokesman, who had no immediate details.

Few recognised the face of Pardo, who had a strong chin and confident smile. But Pardo’s majestic delivery, with its swoops in pitch and pregnant pauses, graced newscasts, game shows and TV programs for more than 60 years. During the original version of Jeopardy!, his answers to the question, “Tell ‘em what they’ve won, Don Pardo,” became a memorable part of the programme.

And he was an integral part of Saturday Night Live for more than three decades in his role heralding the cast’s names to kick off each show, which led former cast member Jimmy Fallon to comment later, “Nothing is like the moment when Don Pardo says your name.”

During his career, Pardo’s resonant voice-over style was widely imitated and became the standard in the field. His was no ordinary voice and he guarded it closely, with cough drops always at the ready.

“My voice is my Achilles’ heel,” Pardo said in a 1985 interview with The Associated Press. “When I get sick, it’s always my voice.”

Dominick George Pardo was born in Westfield, Massachusetts, on February 22, 1918, and grew up in Norwich, Connecticut.

One of his first jobs was that of ticket-taker at a local movie theater — even then, his voice was commanding.

“I’d go out there with a cape and say: ‘Standing room only in the mezzanine. Immediate seating in the balcony.’”

His father, Dominick, owned a small bakery and had wanted his son to join the business. But Pardo followed his own dream and, after graduating from Boston’s Emerson College in 1942, began his vocal career at radio station WJAR in Providence, Rhode Island.