Jim Turpin was the known as the "Voice of the Illini." | Jim Turpin/Facebook
Jim Turpin was the known as the "Voice of the Illini." | Jim Turpin/Facebook
Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Douglas) honored radio legend Jim Turpin, who recently passed away.
Turpin was injured in a fall and passed away in the company of his family, according to Illinois Newsroom. Turpin was known as the "Voice of the Illini" for 42 years – from 1960 until 2002. Illinois Newsroom said that Turpin served as the general manager for WDWS-AM and its sister station, WHMS-FM, and hosted "Penny For Your Thoughts," a long-running WDWS morning talk show.
He turned 90 earlier this year and celebrated with family at his home, The News-Gazette reported.
"... Our area lost a legend over the weekend, and, first, I want to pay tribute [to] Jim Turpin. We are all praying for his family and thank them for sharing him with the rest of us for all those years," Rose said in a mid-April Facebook post.
Turpin was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Hall of Fame in 1979. The organization's profile page for Turpin noted that his broadcasting days began when he was a senior at Olney High School. He announced for the Armed Forces Radio and Television, then returned to the Champaign area to provide commentary for high school and University of Illinois (U of I) football and basketball games.
After graduating from college, Turpin continued to give the play-by-play for WILL in Urbana, according to his IBCA profile page. He included working at WTAX with his other duties in 1962.
Turpin retired in Dec. 2017.
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