Paul Morris (PA announcer)
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Paul Morris (born 1938) is the former public address announcer for the Toronto Maple Leafs and sound engineer at Maple Leaf Gardens. Morris held the PA announcing job for 38 years, from October 14, 1961 to 1999, working 1,585 consecutive Leaf games over that period. His dispassionate, monotone voice was instantly recognizable to two generations of Leaf fans.
Morris's father, Doug Morris, was an electrician at Maple Leaf Gardens from its opening in 1931. Morris began working at the Gardens in the summer of 1958 while a student at the Ryerson Institute of Technology. He quit school and stayed at the Gardens, becoming PA announcer three years later when Red Barber was fired.
When the team moved from the Gardens to the Air Canada Centre in February 1999, Morris was not given a full-time job at the new building. Instead, he was offered $300 a game to continue as announcer. He finished the season and then retired at age 61. Andy Frost was hired as his successor in September.
At the Leafs' 1999–2000 home-opener on October 4, 1999, Morris was honoured during a pre-game ceremony. In the third period, he announced "last minute of play in this period" one last time.