As a young kid my father wasin radio. so I learned to recognize voices on the radio at an early age. Next to Paul Harvey and Walter Cronkite. There was one voice that always stood out among the many. I would recognize Don Pardo's voice on game shows, commercials and the nightly news. His was the voice that first announced that President John F Kennedy had been shot. Many would recognize the phrase "Live from New York it's Saturday Night."  Few would recognize his face, but most would know his voice: that booming baritone that for nearly four decades would introduce the lineups on "Saturday Night Live." Don Pardo, the durable television and radio announcer whose resonant voice-over style was widely imitated and became the standard in the field, died Monday in Arizona at the age of 96."In 1975, NBC launched "Saturday Night Live" with Pardo as its announcer, introducing him to a new generation of viewers with a voice as magnificent as ever — although, on opening night, he botched one of the credits. Instead of saying "The Not Ready for Prime Time Players," Pardo introduced the show's new comedy troupe as "The Not for Ready Prime Time Players." But with a voice like his, any name sounded impressive." Pardo retired from NBC in 2004. But the show Saturday Night Live kept calling. "Lorne Michaels called me soon after and asked if I would continue for three more weeks, so I did," Pardo told the AP in 2010. "Then he called and asked if I would do five more, and so on. I never really left." http://nr.news-republic.com/Web/ArticleWeb.aspx?regionid=1&articleid=27574201&m=d

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