This was off the link on ESPN's webpage:

http://espn.go.com/dickvitale/071218lettertofans.html

To: My favorite people, all of the fans who make college basketball special!
From: Dick Vitale
During the past month and a half, I have had a very difficult time with discomfort in my throat. Personally, I want to apologize to all of the fans and all of the beautiful people at ESPN who have been fantastic to me during my 29 years working at the network.

I have been blessed to have the opportunity to work with so many wonderful people, especially my current teammates, Dan Shulman, Doris Burke, coordinating producer Dan Steir and director Doug Holmes, whom have all been so understanding and supportive.

The past six weeks have been very emotional for me and for my family as we've visited some of the most outstanding throat specialists. Fortunately, I am currently under the guidance of Dr. Daniel Deems in Sarasota, Fla. and he is an outstanding ear, nose and throat specialist. Dr. Deems strongly recommended that I visit Dr. Steven Zeitels, who is recognized as one of the premier throat and voice specialists in the nation.

Dr. Zeitels serves as the director for the Center for Laryngeal Surgery and Voice Rehabilitation at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. After an examination, it was determined that I had lesions on my left vocal cord and that they should be surgically removed. Dr. Zeitels said his goal is to have me back sitting at courtside in early February.

There is nothing professionally that I love better than sharing insights about the players and coaches that make college basketball so unique. I can't wait to get back with all my colleagues at ESPN. Visiting college campuses and interacting with the fans has kept me so young and energized. I can't wait to get back out there, having a blast with all of you, who are so vital to our game.

I am so proud to have started at ESPN back in 1979, where I have met so many beautiful people who have been so kind and fair to me and my family. Now more than ever, I have seen how special the people at ESPN are, starting with president George Bodenheimer, as they have genuinely been fantastic to me in dealing with this little bump in the road.

Once again, happy holidays to each and every one of you. Thanks so much for your tremendous support during my tenure with ESPN. I will be updating my Web site with basketball tidbits concerning the various teams, players and coaches during my rehabilitation process. This is already a dynamite hoop season and I cannot wait for March Madness.

P.S.: If you want to lend me a helping hand, go to dickvitaleonline.com and during this holiday season, help me assist kids that are battling cancer by making a donation to the V Foundation in memory of Payton Wright. You can send a check in care of the V Foundation and mail it to Tandem Enterprises, 7810 Mathern Court, Lakewood Ranch, Fla. 34202. Or you can call (800) 4-JIMMYV and please indicate that your donation is in memory of Payton Wright.

My goal is to raise $1 million for the Payton Wright research grant to help kids battling cancer.

[Edited on December 18, 2007 at 2:05 PM. Reason : ]

12/18/2007 2:04:09 PM

its good and all that he's still raising money for the V foundation

but i think common sense would tell most people that if you scream and yell all the time like Penis Vitale, you're bound to get some throat / vocal chord problems

12/18/2007 2:05:47 PM

so yelling all those years turned out to be a bad thing??

12/18/2007 2:06:42 PM

I goggled Dick Vitale looking for a funny picture but instead this picture of Mariotti came up

12/18/2007 2:17:37 PM

sweet mullet Mariotti

12/18/2007 2:25:40 PM

he must of messed those vocal cords up while sucking off duke and unc's basketball programs

12/18/2007 2:32:09 PM

This is the greatest day in the history of college basketball

12/18/2007 7:03:32 PM

hopefully he loses his voice forever

12/18/2007 7:32:04 PM

12/18/2007 7:33:25 PM

So who is gonna fill the quota for slurping Duke and UNC until Vitale is gone?

12/18/2007 7:37:11 PM

fucking idiots.... Vitale rules

12/18/2007 8:06:38 PM

the shitter

12/18/2007 8:08:06 PM

Get well soon Vitale.

12/18/2007 8:08:44 PM

^^^^Mike Patrick

12/18/2007 8:18:32 PM

Get well soon

except for your annoying voice

12/18/2007 8:21:33 PM

he's annoying as fuck, but he's sincere in what he says and i can't really fault him for that

12/18/2007 8:54:43 PM

i stopped hating a little when they interviewed him at a usf football game... apparently he goes to a bunch of them. he was absurdly excited about usf football and knowledgeable about the program to a surprising degree for a basketball commentator who just happens to live in town.

just seeing him genuinely gleeful about an event he wasn't actually paid to be excited about made me think his shtick is not an act. he really just is fucking nuts about college sports for some reason, to the extent that he actually can't help himself from going overboard and turning into this annoying gregarious guy who yells dumb catchphrases.

12/19/2007 1:21:07 AM

He is a die hard sports fan. Just gets paid for basketball. Enjoys them all and you can tell.

12/19/2007 2:50:58 AM

yeah, he really seems like a genuinely good guy. big sports fan. that can talk about any of them. he sometimes gets annoying. but you guys really should hate this much

12/19/2007 10:47:24 AM

^

I agree with all of that. I've always thought he was genuine. Him being who he is just happens to be a bit much for me!

12/19/2007 11:46:11 AM

Quote :

"^^^^Mike Patrick"

NSFW








photos/00373147.jpg

[Edited on December 19, 2007 at 12:34 PM. Reason : ]

12/19/2007 12:27:47 PM

Come on man... the NSFW tag doesn't exactly do much in the middle of a thread.. This isn't Chit Chat.

12/19/2007 12:30:21 PM

fine

12/19/2007 12:34:32 PM

Quote :

"yeah, he really seems like a genuinely good guy. big sports fan. that can talk about any of them. he sometimes gets annoying. but you guys really should hate this much "

my uncle met him and said he was an ass. (and my uncle is a unc fan)

12/19/2007 2:24:19 PM

I met him at RDU one night two years ago and my g/f waited on him when she was in high school at the Italian palce she worked... He was as nice as a guy can be (and apparently a REALLY good tipper) and you really have to appreciate how much enthusiasm he has for both the college game and for life in general.

Yeah, I make fun of him for his "Dookie love" but from everything I have heard and from when I met him he seems like a great guy with a big heart...

[Edited on December 19, 2007 at 2:50 PM. Reason : x]

12/19/2007 2:50:11 PM

Quote :

"Come on man... the NSFW tag doesn't exactly do much in the middle of a thread.. This isn't Chit Chat."

He's just damn lucky I didn't see it before he edited it.

12/19/2007 2:58:37 PM

Quote :

"he seems like a great guy with a big heartcock..."

fixed it for ya

12/19/2007 3:03:37 PM

Thanks... must have mistyped.

Though I think Doris Burke might have a bigger package than Vitale...

12/19/2007 3:13:17 PM

Probably, but they're both jealous of Pam Ward.

12/19/2007 3:14:21 PM

Cancer Free. Good for him

8/18/2022 10:48:03 AM

Some wild comments from 2007 itt. TWW continues to evolve!

8/18/2022 2:41:42 PM