Turn Out The Lights...

Tweet For those not old enough to remember Dandy Don calling MNF with Howard and Frank, you surely missed some true entertainment. You know you're getting old when the guys you watched growing up are starting to pass away. Dandy Don Meredith died yesterday at age 72 of a brain hemorrhage.

I always enjoyed these three and if you see some old clips you know they were smoking cigars and probably nipping at the bottle during the weekly broadcast. It usually made for high comedy television and even when the game was a blowout, you would keep watching to see what Dandy Don might do to keep the audience's attention.

Meredith's trademark song when a game was decided was Willie Nelson's Turn Out The Lights the Party's Over....here's a sound clip from a game where he serenaded the audience.....




From the booth to the racetrack..we're about to Turn Out The Lights on the 2010 Racing Season......

- Zenyatta's retirement turns out the lights on a great racing career. She is the Horse of the Decade regardless if she wins a little statue in January.

- Eskendereya, a promising 3-year old colt turned out the lights too early for us in 2010....oh would could have been....

- They're trying to turn out the lights on the NYC OTB, but they're like a bad penny and they keep turning them back on...

- They turned out the lights at Saratoga in September after a record 40 days of racing...

- They turned out the lights after a unforgettable Breeders' Cup, which ran under the lights for the first time over the two day championship meet.

- A fan favorite, Odysseus, turned out the lights way too soon while on the Derby trail, after a tremendous effort in the Tampa Bay Derby in an unbelievable photo finish.

- The Belmont winner, Drosselmeyer, turned out the lights right after his Triple Crown victory for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

- Turn out the lights on the Santa Anita Pro-Ride....the party's over.

- Jess Jackson turned out the lights on the amazing Rachel Alexandra after a disappointing 4-year old campaign after being upset in the Personal Ensign at the Graveyard of Favorites.

- Someone tell those folks in the Preakness infield - the party's over!

Any others you can think of?

Here's a clip of one of the MNF openings back in the 70s...classic stuff....enjoy.