Palestra loses its voice

John McAdams, who for 24 years served as the public address announcer at the Palestra, passed away in his sleep on June 15 at his home in Upper Darby, Pa. He was 64 years old.

John's wife of 42 years, Nancy, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that her husband, a Philadelphia native, was "a sports-aholic." His resume certainly proved that to be the case.

McAdams was a mainstay on the sidelines of "college basketball's most historic gym" -- a phrase he coined in 1986 -- since 1981. In addition to his duties as public address announcer at the Palestra, he also served as the official scorer for the Philadelphia Phillies, press box announcer for the Philadelphia Eagles and public address announcer for the Wilmington Blue Rocks, a single-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox in Delaware.

McAdams also worked for the Phillies' double-A affiliate team of the same name in Reading, Pa. It was there that he worked his final game, serving as the official scorer at Reading's game against the New Britain (Conn.) Rock Cats.

Sports figures from across the Philadelphia area paid tribute to McAdams' work.

Penn men's basketball coach Fran Dunphy said McAdams was "such a good human being, and to lose him is difficult."

"He just was always there," Dunphy said. "So it's going to be very difficult to walk into the Palestra on a given night and not have him be behind the mic."

"He left a great legacy in this business in this area as a guy who was completely selfless and just cared about all the kids he talked to, all the kids whose names he called out in any given game," Dunphy said. "He was a true Philadelphian ... just a one of a kind guy."

Former Penn baseball coach Bob Seddon expressed his wishes that future generations of Palestra fans know McAdams' name and importance.

"I would definitely try to keep his name alive, and point out that we had a name here that was very professional at what he did," Seddon said. "He was a legend here in [the Palestra], and he made people know the minute they walked in that this was the most historic gym in the United States."

It is that uniqueness, and the experiences that the 70-year-old Seddon shared with McAdams, that the longtime coach will miss the most.

Temple men's basketball coach John Chaney said that he knew McAdams "as long as I've been around in basketball here in the city of Philadelphia.

"In my opinion there is no one like John -- John was a perfect gentleman," Chaney said. "He was a person that never said no to any job that was asked of him. There wasn't anything he would not do in a professional manner to help anybody."

Chaney noted that while McAdams had a quiet personality, his voice was certainly anything but that.

"I think we'll all think of him in his gentle ways, and certainly that very strong voice of his that tended to reverberate all around the Palestra -- we certainly will always remember that."

Vince Curran, who played for Penn from 1987 to 1992 and has done radio commentary for Penn basketball games since then, said that McAdams "had the unbelievable ability to make you feel like you were the only person in the room.

"It could be in the press room at the Palestra, it could be with 9,000 other people out there on the court," Curran said. "John was so tuned in to the conversations he had with people and what was going on in their lives, he always knew where he left off with you and picked it up right there."

McAdams has not yet been inducted into the Philadelphia Big 5 Hall of Fame, whose members are listed on plaques along the west concourse of the Palestra. Curran had made it one of his goals to be there when McAdams was finally inducted.

"He was always so gracious and humble, but deep down I knew it was something that would have given him a sense of satisfaction that he had been recognized for how great he was," Curran said of McAdams. "He always said that when it

happened he wanted me to present him, and that was the first thing that crossed my mind today ? that I was never going to get the chance to do that ... to be there when he gained that status that he so richly deserved."

Phillies President and 1968 Penn graduate David Montgomery, said, "for me first and foremost, [McAdams] was a good friend."

"As far as somebody in sports, John was just extremely knowledgeable, and I know he loved his involvement with Penn, the Big 5, the Blue Rocks and with us in Phillies baseball," said Montgomery, who has been a Penn basketball season ticket holder for many years. "But more importantly I just found him to be a caring individual and a fine man."

McAdams had many friends in the media. One of the writers who knew him best was Dick Jerardi, who has covered college basketball for the Philadelphia Daily News for 20 years. He noted "what an absolute nice person John was."

"You feel like you could talk to him about just about anything," Jerardi said. "And as far as his job, nobody was better at what he did than John McAdams."

Jerardi added that McAdams' voice was so connected with the Palestra that he did not know who did the P.A. at the Palestra before him.

"I'm sure it was somebody but it seemed like there wasn't," he said. "It would not have been a game at the Palestra without John."

Veteran Associated Press writer Jack Scheuer, who has covered sports in Philadelphia for the AP for nearly 35 years, praised McAdams' announcing style.

McAdams "was a perfectionist -- he rarely made mistakes, and he would be very upset if he was told how to pronounce a guy's name and it wasn't right," Scheuer said. "But the best thing is that now we have all these guys who scream and yell when they introduce players, but John just did it without frills, which is what I think most people prefer."

Scheuer added a remark that will certainly resound with those who know Philadelphia basketball well.

"The Palestra is going to seem a lot different now, that's for sure," he said. "Whoever is going to replace him is going to have a big job."

McAdams is survived by his wife Nancy. The couple had no children.

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