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Fred Cusick, Longtime Voice Of Bruins, Dead At 90

Fred Cusick, the radio and television voice of the Boston Bruins for more than four decades, died Tuesday. He was 90.

Cusick died at his Barnstable home after suffering from cancer, said his son, Ted. Cusick's death came one day before he was scheduled to be inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

Cusick began his career with radio broadcasts of the Bruins in 1952. He moved to television in 1971 and retired from calling games in 1997.

Cusick called Boston's Stanley Cup championship in 1970, one of the city's most famous sports moments captured in an iconic photograph of Bobby Orr flying through the air after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime.

The son of Irish immigrants, Cusick was born in Boston in 1918 and grew up in the city's Brighton neighborhood. He attended Northeastern University, where he played hockey, football and baseball.

He joined the Navy after graduation in 1942 and would remain in the reserves, eventually retiring with the rank of captain. He began his radio career with stations on Cape Cod and in Brockton, where he once interviewed the legendary boxer Rocky Marciano.

Cusick was a recipient of the Lester Patrick Award, given by the NHL to persons who make major contributions to the game in the United States. He also was the first American broadcaster to be inducted into the Media Hall of Fame in Toronto.

This program aired on September 16, 2009. The audio for this program is not available.

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