Last Week We Lost a Legend, a Bonafide One

When someone passes away, we sometimes throw around the word “legend” loosely — the same way we throw lots of words around loosely.

But I can say without a doubt we lost a legend last week.

If you’re reading this in the Cleveland paper, you already know who I’m talking about. If you’re in another market, indulge me just this once.

The last time I saw Corky Whitlock was a little more than 4 years ago. He was not in good health then, having suffered a stroke.

He told me since his condition caused him difficulty reading, his wife Annette would read my column to him every week. 

That flattered me, of course. He laughed when I told him he needed to find something better to read.

Corky passed away on Saturday, June 12. He lived a long and full life.

And he probably impacted more people in a variety of ways more than anyone I have ever known.

First and foremost, he was basically the father of radio broadcasting in Bradley County, Tenn.

People woke up and turned on Corky before they made a pot of coffee.

He had a booming voice like lots of AM radio announcers. But Corky knew how to use words and inflections to draw pictures in your mind.

He did the news and the weather. He did the sports, lost dogs, obituaries and anything else he thought we needed to know.

He would sign on at some gosh-awful hour like 5 a.m., do his show, then leave for a while. Then he would come back for his mid-day shift. After that he would prep for the next day.

And he kept up that grueling routine for nearly 60 years.

He was the voice of Bradley Central High School sports. He broadcast more than 12,000 sporting events, most of which were for BCHS.

I interviewed him back in 2013 for a magazine article.

He told me his drive to be a broadcaster — and especially calling ballgames — all came down to the fact that he could impact sports in Bradley County.

He coached youth baseball for more than 30 years. One of the sports complexes here in town bears his name.

Kim‘s first career move out of college was going to work for the radio station where Corky worked. She was in her early 20s with no experience, but Corky respected her nonetheless. That goes along way with me, so I’ve always held him in the highest of esteem.

One day she came home from work telling me that when a battery goes dead, it can be brought back to life for a little while by rubbing the terminals on your pants leg.

That was one of Corky’s tricks.

Lots of the equipment used for remote broadcasts back then was battery powered. And when it’s fourth-and-one, and your thingamajig goes kaput, you need a backup plan. That’s why Corky kept a box of batteries of various voltages that could be rejuvenated at a moment’s notice.

It works. I do it all the time, and it always reminds me of Corky.

I could say something perfunctory right now like, Corky if you’re reading this I hope you enjoy it. 

But I have no doubt he now has better things to read.