Dave Brandt (sportscaster)

Dave Brandt

David Leroy Brandt Jr. (February 8, 1919 – June 10, 2007) was an American sports broadcaster, host, and reporter. Brandt began his career in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he transitioned local sports coverage from radio to WGAL-TV (then WLPA, now WRKY).

Early life

Born in Marietta, Pennsylvania, he was the son of David E. and Beulah Mae (née Dyer) Brandt.[1] Throughout his life, Brandt maintained a strong interest in sports, participating as both a spectator and observer. He graduated from Marietta High School, where he played baseball and acted as both the school paper's sports manager and the school's student manager of athletics. After graduation, he enrolled at Elizabethtown College. In his sophomore year, he applied for a sports broadcaster position at WGAL radio (then WLPA, now WRKY) in Lancaster. After a successful audition, the station manager hired him as a full-time announcer.[2] He broadcast various sports and introduced a 15-minute news segment titled 'Brandt on Baseball.' He continued this for three years until he was drafted into the U.S. Army in June 1941, serving overseas until his discharge in 1945.[3]

Career

Brandt is credited as playing a significant role in the early transition of sports coverage from radio to television in American broadcasting.[4]

After his military discharge in 1945, Brandt returned to Lancaster and rejoined WGAL radio as a staff announcer and sports director.[5] For a brief period, he also served as a farm director. In March 1949, Brandt transitioned from WGAL radio to WGAL-TV upon its founding, becoming one of its co-founders and the station's first sports director. At WGAL-TV, he continued his 15-minute segment, Brandt on Baseball, following the station's first live telecast on WGAL Channel 4 (later Channel 8). This segment served as his main platform for sports coverage. Beyond sports, Brandt also hosted the game show Stump Your Neighbor. During his tenure at WGAL, Brandt interviewed numerous sports figures, including Barney Ewell, Nellie Fox, Yogi Berra, Althea Gibson, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Julius Erving, and Moses Malone.[2] His last interview was with Moses Malone.[6] Brandt founded and coached the Red Rose Softball League in 1964. He also managed the Channel 8 Cardinals team for eight years.

Brandt retired from WGAL in 1982, concluding a 45-year sports broadcasting career, 33 of which were spent as sports director at WGAL-TV.[4][7]

Awards

In 1975, Brandt was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. A year later, in 1976, he was presented with the George W. Kirchner Memorial Award for his commitment to sports at the Lancaster County Sports Hall of Fame.[8] In 1997, he received the J. Freeland Chryst Award.[9] Nine years after his passing in December 2016, Brandt was posthumously inducted into the WGAL Hall of Fame, recognized as one of the station's founders and pioneers.[10]

Personal life

Brandt married Phyllis Yeagley in 1951, and they settled in Lancaster. The couple had two daughters, Sally Marie and Ann E. Sally, the latter of whom died unexpectedly in 1972.[2][11] They also had one grandson, Kerry, and a great-grandson, Skyler.[12]

Death

Brandt died of natural causes on June 10, 2007, at age 88.[13][14]

References

  1. ^ Schneider, David (February 1995). "It's Getting Easier to Find a Date". Scientific American. 272 (2): 18–20. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0295-18a. ISSN 0036-8733.
  2. ^ a b c "Sports is Brandt's Forte". Sunday News. August 31, 1958.
  3. ^ "IS YOUR FILE UP TO DATE?". Chemical & Engineering News Archive. 36 (43): 2. 1958-10-27. doi:10.1021/cen-v036n043.p002. ISSN 0009-2347.
  4. ^ a b Clinton, Roger (September 30, 1982). "Dave Brandt, Voice Of Sports, Retires". Intelligencer Journal – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Dave Brandt | Lancaster County Sports Hall of Fame". lancastersportshalloffame.com. Retrieved 2025-08-20.
  6. ^ "Dave Brandt | Lancaster County Sports Hall of Fame". lancastersportshalloffame.com. Retrieved 2025-08-20.
  7. ^ Snyder, Steve (October 31, 1982). "Friends Salute WGAL's Dave Brandt". Sunday Pennsylvanian. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. p. B1 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Dave Brandt 1976 George Kirchner Award". Lancaster County Sports Hall of Fame.
  9. ^ "Dave Brandt 1997 J. Freeland Chryst Award". Lancaster County Sports Hall of Fame.
  10. ^ Lemon, Kim (16 December 2016). "'WGAL Hall of Fame' unveiled, honors founders of the station". WGAL. Retrieved Dec 16, 2016.
  11. ^ "David Brandt Jr., 88, sports broadcaster". The Ephrata Review. June 20, 2007 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Poulsen, Sally-Ann (2010-05-17). "Carbonic anhydrase inhibition as a cancer therapy: a review of patent literature, 2007 – 2009". Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Patents. 20 (6): 795–806. doi:10.1517/13543776.2010.484803. ISSN 1354-3776.
  13. ^ "Dave Brandt WGAL sports pioneer passes away at 88". LancasterOnline. Jun 13, 2007. 13 June 2007. Retrieved Sep 12, 2013.
  14. ^ Hersh, Jim (17 June 2007). "So long to a voice of local sports". LancasterOnline. Jun 13, 2007. Retrieved Sep 11, 2013.
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