He had us at "How we lookin'?"
Marty Brennaman may be five years removed from his final Opening Day as a Hall of Fame radio broadcaster for the Cincinnati Reds, but when the voice of summer stepped on the Fitton Center stage March 23 with his signature question, it was like he'd never been gone.
A sold-out audience hung on his every word during An Evening With Marty Brennaman.
Marty took the crowd on a thoughtful journey from a boyhood in Virginia where he dreamed of being an actor - even taking eight years of drama lessons - to the start of his broadcasting career, to how he landed in Cincinnati. And why he stayed.
The emotional crux of the show came just before intermission as Marty recounted his final Reds broadcast with Hamilton's own Joe Nuxhall. The two were partners for 31 years and - at the time of Joe's 2007 retirement - no broadcast duo had ever lasted as long.
After the break, Marty returned with his wife Amanda, who read questions submitted by the audience and ignited the playful banter that typifies their TV commercials together.
(Guests also had a chance to interact with Fitton Center partners from The Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame Presented by Dinsmore and the Joe Nuxhall Miracle League before the show and at intermission.)
Many of the audience questions - of course - related to Joe. Marty moved the audience from belly laughs to tears with his answers, particularly Joe's encounter with George Clooney. Typically, Marty pulled no punches when offering thoughts on wide range of other topics ranging from Joey Votto to Dick Cheney, from the Banana Phone to Bart Giamatti.
TvHamilton recorded the event and will begin broadcasting it Tuesday, March 27.
Annie Brown of Local 12 WKRC-TV was out earlier that day - very early, in fact, arriving at 5 a.m. - to do live spots previewing the show for Good Morning Cincinnati; Joe's son Kim Nuxhall appeared in one of the segments to discuss the Miracle League.
