I saw my friend Jaime Zamora post that October 20th is the unfortunate anniversary of legendary Houston sportscaster Bob Allen's death.
Allen, 70, lost a long battle with cancer in 2016.
Most known for his decades-long tenure with ABC13 KTRK and later KHOU 11 Houston, Allen was an early supporter of this very blog.
As I was looking at my past posts, I remembered the famous HISD graduate, who was not only a TV star but also appeared in movies!
Allen's first foray into Hollywood actually happened right here in the Bayou City in 1977 for the made-for-TV movie "Murder at the World Series."
Back in 2009, I had been chronicling Houston anchor movie appearances, and Allen wrote me with this hilarious message:
"Mike...I am saddened and disappointed you left out two very seminal moments in cinema. My appearance as Frank the sportscaster in the ABC made-for-TV movie in 77 called 'Murder at the World Series.' I even remember my line. "There he is..Bill..Bill Virdon...who will you pitch on Friday?"
He had perfect recall, because if you watch Allen's "Murder at the World Series" appearance, that is precisely what happens!
"Then there's the blockbuster 1989 theatrical juggernaut 'Night Game' with Roy Scheider, where I was the Astros play-by-play announcer, whose miscall of the winning pitcher got someone killed in Galveston."
While we're not watching the Houston Astros play in the World Series in 2025, that honor goes to the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers, we can at least watch our team and Bob Allen in a film.
