Joe Hernandez (race caller)
Encyclopedia
Joe Hernandez was the voice of Santa Anita Park
in Arcadia, California
, from the time the track opened on Christmas
Day 1934 until he fainted at the microphone on January 27, 1972. During that time he called an incredible 15,587 races in a row. Over the course of his career his cry of “There they go!” echoed over a number of memorable races including Seabiscuit
’s win in the 1940 Santa Anita Handicap
and Johnny Longden
’s last ride in 1966. His cry of “And here comes Malicious
!” and “Silky Sullivan
trails …” are remembered to this day.
Hernandez broke into the business of race calling in 1932, when he became the first race caller at Tanforan. In the coming years, he became the premiere race caller on the West Coast, at a time when most Mexicans
and Mexican Americans were being repatriated to Mexico due to America’s Great Depression
. In the late 1930s, Alfred Vanderbilt, Jr. hired Hernandez to call the races at Pimlico Race Course
and Belmont Park
. While there, Hernandez encountered some discrimination when he was seen in public with his wife Pearl, an Anglo-American. In 1950, Hernandez called the Kentucky Derby
for fans at Churchill Downs
. A recording of his call was later distributed to over 60,000 racing fans.
Hernandez was not only a race caller; he was a highly respected sportswriter, handicapper, jockey
and buyers agent, radio
and television producer
, music composer, actor
, athlete, and philanthropist. He also owned a number of businesses related to horse racing
. For example, he owned his own film patrol company (a company that recorded races in order to determine if a foul was committed during a race). Hernandez also imported, owned and raced Thoroughbred
s under his own silks. The most noted race horse to run under Joe’s colors was Cougar II
the Chile
an import who was inaugurated into thoroughbred horse racing’s Hall of Fame
in 2006.
A bronze bust of Hernandez was unveiled at Santa Anita on December 26, 1974. The piece rests at the bottom of the track’s main grandstand entrance. Santa Anita track officials decided to place the piece here so Joe could be close to his fans, and they to him. As Rudolph Alvarado noted in his biography on Hernandez (The Untold Story of Joe Hernandez: The Voice of Santa Anita), “From here the bust would also serve to introduce Joe, and what he meant to Santa Anita to future racing fans. Most importantly, placed here, Joe’s gaze would always fall on his beloved Santa Anita.”
Santa Anita Park
Santa Anita Park is a thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. With its backdrop of the purple San Gabriel Mountains, it is considered by many as the world's most beautiful race...
in Arcadia, California
Arcadia, California
Arcadia is an affluent city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, and located approximately northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley and at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains....
, from the time the track opened on Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
Day 1934 until he fainted at the microphone on January 27, 1972. During that time he called an incredible 15,587 races in a row. Over the course of his career his cry of “There they go!” echoed over a number of memorable races including Seabiscuit
Seabiscuit
Seabiscuit was a champion Thoroughbred racehorse in the United States. From an inauspicious start, Seabiscuit became an unlikely champion and a symbol of hope to many Americans during the Great Depression...
’s win in the 1940 Santa Anita Handicap
Santa Anita Handicap
The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up , and is considered the most important race for older horses in North America during the winter racing season...
and Johnny Longden
Johnny Longden
John Eric Longden was an American Hall of Fame jockey. He was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire, England but his father wanted to build a better life for his family so in 1909 emigrated to Canada, settling in Taber, Alberta. By 1912 Longden Sr. had saved enough money to send for his wife and young son...
’s last ride in 1966. His cry of “And here comes Malicious
Malicious (horse)
Malicious was a Thoroughbred race horse sired by the winner of the 1917 Kentucky Derby, Omar Khayyam out of Ridicule . He began racing at the age of two—and didn't stop until he was thirteen years old. During that time he made 185 starts on virtually every race track in California as well...
!” and “Silky Sullivan
Silky Sullivan
Silky Sullivan was an American thoroughbred race horse best known for his come-from-behind racing style...
trails …” are remembered to this day.
Hernandez broke into the business of race calling in 1932, when he became the first race caller at Tanforan. In the coming years, he became the premiere race caller on the West Coast, at a time when most Mexicans
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Mexican Americans were being repatriated to Mexico due to America’s Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In the late 1930s, Alfred Vanderbilt, Jr. hired Hernandez to call the races at Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course is a horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Olde Ben Pimlico's Tavern in London...
and Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
. While there, Hernandez encountered some discrimination when he was seen in public with his wife Pearl, an Anglo-American. In 1950, Hernandez called the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
for fans at Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
. A recording of his call was later distributed to over 60,000 racing fans.
Hernandez was not only a race caller; he was a highly respected sportswriter, handicapper, jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
and buyers agent, radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
, music composer, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, athlete, and philanthropist. He also owned a number of businesses related to horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
. For example, he owned his own film patrol company (a company that recorded races in order to determine if a foul was committed during a race). Hernandez also imported, owned and raced Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
s under his own silks. The most noted race horse to run under Joe’s colors was Cougar II
Cougar II
Cougar II was a Chilean Thoroughbred racehorse who also competed in theUnited States where he was inducted in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He was sired by Tale of Two Cities, a son of Tehran, winner of the 1944 St...
the Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an import who was inaugurated into thoroughbred horse racing’s Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in 2006.
A bronze bust of Hernandez was unveiled at Santa Anita on December 26, 1974. The piece rests at the bottom of the track’s main grandstand entrance. Santa Anita track officials decided to place the piece here so Joe could be close to his fans, and they to him. As Rudolph Alvarado noted in his biography on Hernandez (The Untold Story of Joe Hernandez: The Voice of Santa Anita), “From here the bust would also serve to introduce Joe, and what he meant to Santa Anita to future racing fans. Most importantly, placed here, Joe’s gaze would always fall on his beloved Santa Anita.”