Robert "Bob" Dale Spangler --Obituary
Replies: 2
Robert "Bob" Dale Spangler --Obituary
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Posted: 29 Aug 2008 11:30PM GMT |
Classification: Obituary
Surnames: Spangler, Baber, Bussard, Johnson, Kitt, Strombeck, Inman, Ceswick, Drushella, Karen,
Robert Dale Spangler
Robert Dale “Bob” “Spang” Spangler, 84, of Newport, Ore. died Aug. 25, 2008 at his home.
He was born June 1, 1924 to Ralph Orin and Elizabeth Baber Spangler in Gordon, Neb. His family later moved to Chamberlain, S.D., where he was an outstanding athlete in baseball and basketball at Chamberlain High School. After graduating from Chamberlain High School in 1942, he moved with his family to Oregon, where he worked in the Portland shipyards.
In 1943, he entered the U.S. Army. After training at Fort Knox, Ky., he was deployed to France in June 1944 with the 43rd Cavalry under the command of General George S. Patton. As a sergeant in charge of a reconnaissance unit, he served in Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhineland and Central Europe, and earned a Bronze Star for valor.
Upon his return from World War II, he signed a professional baseball contract as a pitcher with the San Diego Padres. After pitching two seasons for the Padres, he decided to give up professional baseball to pursue a career in broadcasting. He returned to Oregon, where he attended Oregon State University for two years. During his time at OSU, he starred as a pitcher for the Albany Alcos semi-professional baseball team. He later graduated from the Northwest School of Broadcasting in Portland.
In 1947, he married Barbara Bussard of Albany. The couple later had two sons, Mark and Matthew.
After completing broadcasting school in 1952, he came to Newport to go to work for Tom Becker's new radio station, KNPT. He started as the night DJ and sportscaster and later worked in several capacities at KNPT, including station manager. But he always kept his morning “drive time” slot on the air where, for more than five decades, he anchored the morning show at KNPT. As the voice of the Newport Cubs, he called thousands of high school sports contests where he covered more than three generations of Newport High School athletes.
For several years in the mid-1960s, he worked as the radio broadcaster for the Eugene Emeralds minor league baseball team. During these years, he became well known for his skill in “recreating” the Emeralds' road games in the studio, a common practice at that time in the minor leagues, where teams could not afford to send a play-by-play man on road trips. For every road game, he would receive only a line-by-line box score giving just the basic facts of each inning; he literally made up the rest. Complete with bat-on-ball, crowd noise, and other sound effects, his recreations were so convincing that many listeners did not realize he was not actually at the ballpark.
He returned full time to Newport and KNPT in 1967. In 1978, he married Bernie Johnson in Newport. She died in 1996 and later that year, he married Janice Kitt.
He continued to work the morning show on KNPT and call the play-by-play for Newport High School sports up until the time of his death. In his final Newport High sports broadcast, he called the Cubs' thrilling victory over Astoria in the 2008 OSAA baseball state championship game at Volcanoes Stadium in Keizer as Newport won their first baseball state championship in 34 years.
His many awards over the course of his career included the Oregon Association of Broadcasters Heritage Award, the Oregon Athletic Directors Distinguished Service Award, the Oregon High School Coaches Association Sports Media Person of the Year Award and the Oregon High School Baseball Coaches Association Merit Award. One of his proudest moments came in 1999, when the Newport High School gym was officially named Spangler Court in his honor.
Second only to his love for his family was his devotion to the people and community of Newport. Spangler held a deep belief in the obligation to give back to his community, and he did so tirelessly in countless different ways. He especially loved his time spent interacting with the student-athletes involved in high school sports, which allowed him to combine his passion for sports with his ideal of inspiring young people to succeed.
He was preceded in death by his brother, Allen Spangler of Sacramento, Calif. and sisters Mary Strombeck of Albany and Ruth Inman of Rockingham, N.C.
He is survived by his wife, Jan Spangler of Newport; sons, Mark (Sue Ceswick) Spangler of Portland and Matthew (Barbara) Spangler of Newport; sisters, Lois Drushella of Stayton and Karen Clarke of Albuquerque, N.M.; granddaughter, Alison Spangler of Newport and numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial celebration honoring his life and career will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6, at Newport High School's Spangler Court. Memorial donations may be made to the Bob Spangler Memorial Scholarship, c/o the Lincoln County Foundation, 8423 Yaquina Bay Road, Newport, OR 97365.
The News Times, Newport, OR August 29, 2008
Robert Dale “Bob” “Spang” Spangler, 84, of Newport, Ore. died Aug. 25, 2008 at his home.
He was born June 1, 1924 to Ralph Orin and Elizabeth Baber Spangler in Gordon, Neb. His family later moved to Chamberlain, S.D., where he was an outstanding athlete in baseball and basketball at Chamberlain High School. After graduating from Chamberlain High School in 1942, he moved with his family to Oregon, where he worked in the Portland shipyards.
In 1943, he entered the U.S. Army. After training at Fort Knox, Ky., he was deployed to France in June 1944 with the 43rd Cavalry under the command of General George S. Patton. As a sergeant in charge of a reconnaissance unit, he served in Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhineland and Central Europe, and earned a Bronze Star for valor.
Upon his return from World War II, he signed a professional baseball contract as a pitcher with the San Diego Padres. After pitching two seasons for the Padres, he decided to give up professional baseball to pursue a career in broadcasting. He returned to Oregon, where he attended Oregon State University for two years. During his time at OSU, he starred as a pitcher for the Albany Alcos semi-professional baseball team. He later graduated from the Northwest School of Broadcasting in Portland.
In 1947, he married Barbara Bussard of Albany. The couple later had two sons, Mark and Matthew.
After completing broadcasting school in 1952, he came to Newport to go to work for Tom Becker's new radio station, KNPT. He started as the night DJ and sportscaster and later worked in several capacities at KNPT, including station manager. But he always kept his morning “drive time” slot on the air where, for more than five decades, he anchored the morning show at KNPT. As the voice of the Newport Cubs, he called thousands of high school sports contests where he covered more than three generations of Newport High School athletes.
For several years in the mid-1960s, he worked as the radio broadcaster for the Eugene Emeralds minor league baseball team. During these years, he became well known for his skill in “recreating” the Emeralds' road games in the studio, a common practice at that time in the minor leagues, where teams could not afford to send a play-by-play man on road trips. For every road game, he would receive only a line-by-line box score giving just the basic facts of each inning; he literally made up the rest. Complete with bat-on-ball, crowd noise, and other sound effects, his recreations were so convincing that many listeners did not realize he was not actually at the ballpark.
He returned full time to Newport and KNPT in 1967. In 1978, he married Bernie Johnson in Newport. She died in 1996 and later that year, he married Janice Kitt.
He continued to work the morning show on KNPT and call the play-by-play for Newport High School sports up until the time of his death. In his final Newport High sports broadcast, he called the Cubs' thrilling victory over Astoria in the 2008 OSAA baseball state championship game at Volcanoes Stadium in Keizer as Newport won their first baseball state championship in 34 years.
His many awards over the course of his career included the Oregon Association of Broadcasters Heritage Award, the Oregon Athletic Directors Distinguished Service Award, the Oregon High School Coaches Association Sports Media Person of the Year Award and the Oregon High School Baseball Coaches Association Merit Award. One of his proudest moments came in 1999, when the Newport High School gym was officially named Spangler Court in his honor.
Second only to his love for his family was his devotion to the people and community of Newport. Spangler held a deep belief in the obligation to give back to his community, and he did so tirelessly in countless different ways. He especially loved his time spent interacting with the student-athletes involved in high school sports, which allowed him to combine his passion for sports with his ideal of inspiring young people to succeed.
He was preceded in death by his brother, Allen Spangler of Sacramento, Calif. and sisters Mary Strombeck of Albany and Ruth Inman of Rockingham, N.C.
He is survived by his wife, Jan Spangler of Newport; sons, Mark (Sue Ceswick) Spangler of Portland and Matthew (Barbara) Spangler of Newport; sisters, Lois Drushella of Stayton and Karen Clarke of Albuquerque, N.M.; granddaughter, Alison Spangler of Newport and numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial celebration honoring his life and career will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6, at Newport High School's Spangler Court. Memorial donations may be made to the Bob Spangler Memorial Scholarship, c/o the Lincoln County Foundation, 8423 Yaquina Bay Road, Newport, OR 97365.
The News Times, Newport, OR August 29, 2008
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