Bio

Lon Simmons attended Glendale Community College and played baseball in the early 1940s. Instead of accepting a scholarship offer from University of Southern California, he decided to serve his country and enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard. Lon had a promising career as a pitcher for the Phillies and the Boston Braves farm teams, but that career was cut short by a shoulder injury, and, like they say, The rest is history..

Lon had a long career in professional sports. He began his career as an announcer in baseball for a semi-pro league in Marysville, CA. He also announced football at Yuba College for two years. In 1954, he worked as an announcer in baseball, football, and basketball at Fresno State for two years. Then, he joined the SF 49ers in 1957 as a color announcer. In 1958 he took over the play-by-play announcerrs duties on 49er radio broadcasts and remained in that role though the 1980 football season. 

His most famous call during his first stint with the 49ers came on October 25, 1964, when Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall picked up the fumble by the 49ers and ran the wrong way, scoring a safety for the 49ers instead of a touchdown for the Vikings. The transcript of the call:
George Mira, straight back to passslooking down, now stops, throwsscompletes it to Billy Kilmer up at the 30-yard line. Kilmer driving for the first down, loses the footballlit is picked up by Jim Marshall, who is running the wrong way!! Marshall is running the wrong way!! And hees running it into the end zone the wrong way!!! He thinks he has scored a touchdown! He has scored a safety!!!

His tenure as the 49erss play-by-play announcer lasted 24 years with the team never winning a championship. One year after his departure, the 49ers began a Super Bowl run and Lon returned as the 49erss announcer in 1987. His 1988 call of Steve Younggs game-winning 49-yard scramble against the Minnesota Vikings became as memorable as the play itself. A year later, the 49ers won Super Bowl XXIII and Lonns call of the 49erss game-winning drive can be heard on the NFL Film highlights package. He retired from announcing 49er games in 1989.

His work announcing SF Giant Baseball began in 1958 and continued until 1978 before moving across the Bay to call games for the Oakland Athletics from 1981 through 1995. From 1996-2002 he called the Giantss games part time. A legend in the Bay area, Lonns famous home run call, Tell it goodbye.. is etched in the memories of many Giants fans to this day.

Lon received the 2004 Ford C Frick Award given annually by the Baseball Hall of Fame to a broadcaster. He was elected to the Bay Area Hall of Fame as the first class inducted in 2006, as well as, the Glendale Community College Hall of Fame that same year. He is also in the Yuba College and Fresno State Halls of Fame.