Chris Moore (sportscaster)

Chris Moore
Born1958 (age 67–68)
New York City, U.S.
EducationSleepy Hollow High School
Ithaca College
OccupationsRadio sportscaster
Radio personality
SpousePam Moore
Children3

Chris Moore (born 1958) is an American sports broadcaster and radio personality who has done ice hockey play-by-play at both the college and NHL level,[1][2] employed, respectively, by the University of Cornell,[3] University of Wisconsin, New Jersey Devils,[2] and Florida Panthers.[4] Moore has also worked intermittently as a sports talk radio host at WFAN in New York City.[5][6]

Early life and career

Born in New York City[7] in 1958,[a] Moore spent his formative years in Tarrytown,[7] where he attended Sleepy Hollow High School,[9] graduating in 1976.[10][11] He then attended Ithaca College in upstate New York, finishing in 1980.[3]

Career

Close on the heels of college graduation came Moore's affiliation, circa fall 1980, with nearby Cornell University, replacing longtime "voice of Cornell hockey," Roy Ives, as the school's hockey, football and lacrosse play-by-play announcer on station WHCU,[12] where he worked alongside Cornell graduate Pat Brown,[3] as well as fellow Ithaca College alumnus Eric Reid.[13]

In 1984, Moore beat out more than a 100 applicants to become the sports director at WTSO in Madison, Wisconsin,[12] where he also provided the play-by-play for both football and hockey broadcasts.[13] In 1988, when his first NHL opportunity presented itself, Moore was succeeded as sports director by Matt Lepay, whose recollections of that transition are recorded in the preface to his 2012 memoir, Why Not Wisconsin.

Within a few days, I received a call from Chris Moore, who was the station’s sports director, morning drive anchor, hockey announcer and, when needed, an all-around nut job who could crack up a room with his humor. [...] Chris is a very gifted broadcaster, and he is also funny as hell. He does a great Dick Vitale impression, and he had a number of other character voices that came in handy during his sports updates for WTSO and also WZEE (Z104), a highly rated Top 40 station. Chris was able to chase his dream of becoming an NHL broadcaster, and he left Madison for the New Jersey Devils. He later became the voice of the Florida Panthers. [...] He lives on the East Coast now, and his wife, Pam, is a successful attorney. Chris could tell Linda and I had reservations about moving to Wisconsin, and he went out of his way to make us feel comfortable. Maybe many of you have no idea who Chris Moore is, but I will say without hesitation that any success I have had in this business is in large part because of Chris. He discovered my demo tape and was very aggressive in giving a 26-year-old know-nothing a shot at calling major college basketball games.[1]

During his mid-90s tenure as Florida Panthers play-by-play broadcaster, Moore coined the soon-to-be ubiquitous nickname of "Jovocop" for Panther defenseman Ed Jovanovski, reflecting the then-teenaged Jovanovski's crushingly physical style of play.[14]

Personal life

Since the late 1980s, Moore has been married to attorney Pamela Moore, who was attending law school in Syracuse when she first met the then-Cornell University play-by-play broadcaster.[8] Their first child was born in March 1989, and their second, just over three years later.[b] As of April 1999, the imminent arrival of child No. 3 precipitated a career-altering move—i.e. away from the "regular NHL play-by-play position"—Moore had been wrestling with for well over three years.[8]

I am looking forward to living in Morristown, N.J., with my family 12 months a year. It's always tough to leave a job where you are treated so well. There's nothing about the Panthers job I don't like. That makes it hard. But other than that, it's not a hard decision. It's time to get home and be a better father and husband. I have a 10-year-old, a 7-year-old, and another child coming in June.[17]

Notes

  1. ^ While it certainly appears to be the case that, as of January 1, 2026, no categorical statement to that effect—i.e. that Moore was born in the year 1958 (or, for that matter, any other year)—has yet been published, much less any specific birth date disclosed, it is also true that, among the few published age-as-of-date mentions, two specific ones—22 as of December 17, 1980,[3] and 37, as of December 26, 1995[8] (the other being 30, as of August 31, 1988[7]) —lead to the inescapable conclusion that the mere handful of possible non-1958 dates of birth for Chris Moore are contained within the less-than one week leading to—and including—New Year's Eve, 1957. (Incidental, but worthy of note, is the accompanying conclusion that Moore—whenever finding himself the subject of even a minimally comprehensive newspaper profile—has proven neither secretive nor shy about disclosing his own age.)
  2. ^ A three-weeks premature birth,[15] which coincidentally afforded the 24-year-old Kenny Albert a roughly 33-years-prior precursor to his own 2025 hiring as New York Rangers play-by-play announcer on MSG, succeeding that team's longtime TV voice, Sam Rosen.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b Lepay, Matt (2012). Why Not Wisconsin? : From Barry to Bo, Broadcasting the Badgers From the Best Seat in the House. Chicago, Ill. : Triumph Books. pp. 5–7. ISBN 9781600787058. "Within a few days, I received a call from Chris Moore, who was the station’s sports director, morning drive anchor, hockey announcer and, when needed, an all-around nut job who could crack up a room with his humor. [...] Chris is a very gifted broadcaster, and he is also funny as hell. He does a great Dick Vitale impression, and he had a number of other character voices that came in handy during his sports updates for WTSO and also WZEE (Z104), a highly rated Top 40 station. Chris was able to chase his dream of becoming an NHL broadcaster, and he left Madison for the New Jersey Devils. He later became the voice of the Florida Panthers. From there, Moore went on to stints with ESPN and Fox Sports Radio. He lives on the East Coast now, and his wife, Pam, is a successful attorney. Chris could tell Linda and I had reservations about moving to Wisconsin, and he went out of his way to make us feel comfortable. Maybe many of you have no idea who Chris Moore is, but I will say without hesitation that any success I have had in this business is in large part because of Chris. He discovered my demo tape and was very aggressive in giving a 26-year-old know-nothing a shot at calling major college basketball games."
  2. ^ a b Van Sickle, Kenny (September 20, 1988). "The Sport Tower: Busy Sports Weekend as IC, Cornell Both Host Games". The Ithaca Journal. p. B1. "Two local sports radio personalities of a few years ago have gone on to bigger and better things. Chris Moore, at the University of Wisconsin the last four years, will be the voice of the New Jersey Devils for WABC-New York."
  3. ^ a b c d Eisenberg, Carol (December 17, 1980). "The voice of Cornell hockey off the air". The Ithaca Journal. p. 3. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  4. ^ Halberstam, David (1999). Sports on New York Radio : A Play-by-Play History. Lincolnwood, Ill. : Masters Press. p. 89. ISBN 1570281971. "Hart had a definite opinion on Arnold’s replacement in 1988 on WABC. 'It’s a TV call,' referring to the style of Chris Moore who got his NHL break with the Devils. Chris spent four seasons in New Jersey, a period in which he did a good job of breaking in a woman color commentator, Sherry Ross. Moore’s easy-going conversational style was quite disarming, enabling Ross to feel comfortable behind the microphone. [...] While Moore was criticized for a non-radio, non-descriptive style, he knew hockey and would make bold comments that other play-by-play people would be afraid to make. 'If they continue to play this open style, they won't win.' This one sentence is quite redeeming and captures a thousand words. When Moore wasn't renwewed in New Jersey in 1993, he was hired by the expansion Florida Panthers and has enjoyed a successful career as play-by-play man and talk show host in South Florida."
  5. ^ "WFAN Turns Twenty: The Lineup – The roster of WFAN personalities over the years". The Star-Ledger. July 1, 2007. Sec. V, p. 7. "Mike Lupica, Stan Martyn, Bill Mazer, Jody McDonald, Chris Moore, Howie Rose, Sid Rosenberg, Russ Salzberg, Dave Sims, Suzyn Waldman, Warner Wolf - SOURCE: WFAN."
  6. ^ "Chris Moore". Audacy. Summer 2000.
  7. ^ a b c Kessenich, Tom (August 31, 1988). "Moore leaves WTSO to broadcast for NHL's Devils". The Capital Times. p. 16. "For Moore, 30, the opportunity to go to New York, the No. 1 sports market in the country, was too good to pass up. [...] Moore, a New York City native raised in Tarrytown, N.Y., admits that it may take some time to get re-adjusted to the hectic New York lifestyle. [...] Moore joined WTSO in May of 1984 as sports director. Over the past four years, he has handled play-by-play duties for Badger hockey, color commentary for Badger football and was the host of the Don Morton show last year."
  8. ^ a b c Neal, David J. (December 26, 1995). "NHL goes home for holidays; League doesn't play on Xmas". Boca Raton News. p. 2B. "Florida Panthers play-by-play radio man Chris Moore kept his perfect record alive for being home for the holiday. But he knows he was lucky. [...] This season might be the longest Moore has spent as a broadcaster because it's the first one he'll be separated from his wife and two sons from October to April plus probably playoffs. [...] Pam, 36, and Chris, 37, met when she was in Syracuse law school and he was doing play-by-play for Cornell's hockey, football and lacrosse teams. When he got a job doing play-by-play for the University of Wisconsin hockey team, she finished at Wisconsin law school. Chris got a break in 1988 when he was hired for the same job by the Devils. They moved, and Pam took the New Jersey bar exam. They moved once more, to Florida when Chris took the job with the Panthers in 1993. Now, there are only so many bar exams an attorney can stomach. Pam didn't want to take the Florida bar, so after the 1993-94 season, she and Chris decided she would move back to Morristown, N.J."
  9. ^ Shustack, Mary (August 22, 1996). "On Radio: Two shows spotlight sports at WVOX, WRTN》". Tarrytown Daily News. p. F23. "Chris Moore, who does the news during the WAXQ-104.3 FM morning show, grew up in Tarrytown. He was discussing his upcoming Sleepy Hollow High School class reunion on the air earlier this week."
  10. ^ "Bus service in Greensburgh good and bad". September 24, 1975. p. D5. "Bus service in northern Greenburgh has received mixed reviews in : a study conducted by student volunteers working in Democrat Richard Brodsky's campaign for county legislator in the Ninth District. [...] The students, seniors at Sleepy Hollow High School in North Tarrytown, found that a heavily-subsidized run originating in Ossining and passing through Tarrytown and Irvington on the way to Scarsdale had inferior ontime performance and ridership to the line linking Tarrytown and White Plains. [...] Participating in the study were Michael Behrman, Katherine Chamberlain, James Finberg. Michael Kelly, Cindy Martin, Chris Moore and Esther Stornfeld."
  11. ^ Patton, Gregg (June 5, 1976). "Rats on Way Here". The Reporter Dispatch. p. A13. "The Good Rats are coming to Sleepy Hollow High School in North Tarrytown on Friday, June 11 [...] The show is sponsored by the high school co-op and A Enterprises, run by Sleepy Hollow senior Chris A. Moore."
  12. ^ a b Rosenthal, Phil (May 22, 1984). "WTSO's new voice". The Capital Times. p. 19. "Moore, 26, comes to Madison from Ithaca, N.Y. After attending Cornell University, he worked for WHCU-AM and FM in Ithaca and did play-by-play on that station's Cornell football, hockey and lacrosse broadcasts."
  13. ^ a b Jackson, Barry (September 19, 1993). Spotlight on TV, Radio: Tune in to hear Panther's voice. The Miami Herald. p. 2C. "Moore comes to the Panthers from New Jersey, where he called Devils games for five years. Born in New York City, Moore went to Ithaca College and announced Cornell University sports with Eric Reid, now the Heat's TV announcer. (Moore and Reid remain good friends.) Moore, 35, announced Cornell sports - including hockey - for four years, then called University of Wisconsin hockey and football for five years. His tenure with the Devils ended in June when they did not renew his contract."
  14. ^ "Panthers Profile". South Florida Sun Sentinel. May 19, 1996. p. 52. "NICKNAME / WHY: JovoCop. Radio announcer Chris Moore coined the nickname because of Jovanovski's crunching hits." See also:
    • George, Dave (February 27, 1997). "Jovanoski Back Where He Belongs". The Palm Beach Post. p. . "Saturday's grudge match between the Florida Panthers and Philadelphia Flyers was barely six minutes old at the first sighting of blood. Ed Jovanovski saw to that. That it was Jovocop himself doing the bleeding, a small trickle running from the corner of his left eye, mattered little to him."
    • Neal, David J. (January 18, 1999). "Trade no surprise for Jovanoski". The Miami Herald. p. 4D. "Sunday's trade to Vancouver came as no shock to defenseman Ed Jovanovski, who became a South Florida sports icon as 'JovoCop' his rookie year and spent the next two and a half seasons trying to live up to expectations set then."
  15. ^ Chere, Rich (April 27, 1992). [ "A replay of '91? The Devils insist: 'Not!'"]. The Star-Ledger. p. 40. "Pam Moore, wife of Devils' radio voice Chris Moore, gave birth to their second child yesterday just before 10 a.m. The baby boy came three weeks premature."
  16. ^ Albert, Kenny (2023). A Mic for All Seasons. Chicago, IL: Triumph Books. OCLC 1377502436. "After the Skipjacks did not qualify for the playoffs in 1992, Spitz asked me to work as a reporter for WFAN covering Rangers postseason games [...] I was sitting in the upper press box (nicknamed 'the Halo') at Brendan Byrne Arena watching Game Four when I received a tap on the shoulder early in the second period. Devils radio play-by-play man Chris Moore had to leave because his wife Pam had gone into labor."
  17. ^ Jackson, Barry (April 13, 1999). "Panthers' radio voice to leave". The Miami Herald. p. 3D. "Panthers radio announcer Chris Moore has informed the organization that he will not return next season, Moore and a club official confirmed Monday. Moore said he is considering two job options in the Northeast. One is a sportstalk and play-by-play role with ESPN Radio. Moore said he could not discuss the other job but that it was not a regular NHL play-by-play position."

Further reading

  • Kovacevic, Dejan (January 31, 1999). "THE STEAL OF THE YEAR? NOT BURE, BUT HACKETT: Trivia Question; He got shafted; Rocket takes off; Q&A: ; Star of the Week; Quotable; Parting shots". p. D-14. "The final Parting Shot comes courtesy of Panthers radio announcer Chris Moore, who shouted after Pavel Bure's third goal Tuesday, 'Thank you, Vancouver'."
  • "Sports Media: South Florida's memorable catch phrases". The Miami Herald. December 17, 2010. p. 4D. "6: Hot Dog - Hop aboard! Former Panthers radio announcer Chris Moore's snazzy call of select goals during the team's early years."
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