Service planned for former Green Wave radio broadcaster
Funeral services will be held on Friday (April 5) for Bruce Miller, one of New Orleans' legendary sports journalists and a member of the Tulane University Athletics Hall of Fame.
Miller, who was 81, died on March 27 at his home in Harahan, La. A devoted Green Wave fan, he was the play-by-play announcer for radio broadcasts of Tulane football games from 1959 to 1975 and well remembered by members of the Tulane community.
Reports are that at the top of Miller “great moments” list was the 1973 Tulaneâ“Louisiana State University football game won by the Wave, 14-0, for the first time in 25 years of that rivalry.
He received the Billy Slatten Award during Homecoming ceremonies in 2007 and was named to the Athletics Hall of Fame an honor which both surprised and honored Miller, according to fellow journalist and Tulane alumnus Angus Lind.
In his Oct. 23, 2007, column for the Times-Picayune, Lind wrote, “Never at a loss for words when he was behind the mike broadcasting Tulane University football games his 'Oh brother! Man alive! Holy cow! Hold the phone!' repertoire was legendary Bruce Miller was stunned by a recent phone call. It was from Tulane Athletics Director Rick Dickson. 'He calls me from out of nowhere and tells me I'm going into Tulane's Athletic Hall of Fame,' said Miller. 'I was speechless. It's astonishing, and a bit overwhelming.'”
Lind wrote that “Bronco Bruce,” as Miller's broadcasting sidekick Wayne Mack called him, “was half of one of the most colorful radio teams ever.”
Miller retired from WWL radio in 2000 after spending 43 years in New Orleans radio and television broadcasting. A memorial gathering for relatives and friends of the family will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday at Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home, 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd.
