So I was really hardcore into that style of comedy and improv. Then Second City - SCTV, the Canadian TV show was another huge influence John Jandy Joe Flaherty, Eugene Levy, all those great people. And then when Monty Python came along, I was just knocked over, it was you know, they were the Beatles of comedy, and just could not get enough of those guys. So all the great classic comedy, physical comedy I loved. And we watched the Marx Brothers and Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin. TIM KITZROW: I was fortunate to have a good background, with my dad being in charge of the audiovisual department at a school, where he was a teacher, and he would bring home movies on the movie projector. JAMES PARKINSON: Tim Kitzrow’s path to voice work for video games was accidental, but ever since he was young he’s had a passion for creative fields, like acting, improv and music. From Lawson Media, this is Gameplay, a show about video games and the virtual worlds that power culture and community. JAMES PARKINSON: NBA Jam was the first video game that Tim ever worked on, but back in 1992, he had no idea just how much a few hours in the recording booth would shape his voice acting career. So that's where I kind of got that timbre, that tone that NBA Jam had, based off of what I heard, and then just making it my own. But, “Marv is always way up high!” So I would, you know, “FROM DOWNTOWN!”. ![]() And I translated it, you know, took what he had, which is that high energy, high end, top of his register - higher than my voice, you know, I've a deeper voice. That was Vinnie Johnson, “The Microwave” from the Detroit Pistons, you know, they were always playing The Bulls and that was always the Game of the Week when The Bulls played. So if you turn on telecasts, and you just start writing down lines that you hear a lot, you know, you'll get the whole NBA Jam script “REJECTED!”, “HE’S HEATING UP!”, “HE’S ON FIRE!”. And that person happened to be Marv Albert. TIM KITZROW: Basically, we were just trying to capture the sound of the NBA on NBC Game of the Week, because that's really where we got our basketball back then. So that was no different than just being a kid playing. Every kid's done it, anyone who's ever played sports has called the play, the home run, you know, the play at the plate. And like, every kid in the backyard, I would always call it out, “Kitzrow with three seconds left - two, one from the corner, he gets it, they win!”. I've also been a guy who played basketball my whole life. But somehow along the way, it just simply became me. And I knew that I wanted to emulate that. You know, the jump off point was realising that to me, Marv Albert, compared to other sports broadcasters, he brought that extra energy, as Kevin Harlan does now. I was like, envisioning, you know, Jordan, great plays, I would have specific plays in my head for a specific line, I would see it first. JAMES PARKINSON: In the voice-over booth Tim would envision big plays and channel that energy into his performance. JAMES PARKINSON: The inspiration for Tim’s character came directly from real-life commentators like Marv Albert. ![]() TIM KITZROW: Hi everyone, Tim Kitzrow from NBA Jam. JAMES PARKINSON: It’s the voice of Tim Kitzrow, who’s performances have contributed to NBA Jam’s longevity, and its prominence in popular culture. NBA Jam Game Audio: "KABOOM!", "HE’S HEATING UP!", "HE’S ON FIRE!", "BOOMSHAKALAKA!". JAMES PARKINSON: NBA Jam is a memorable arcade game for many reasons, but the first thing that comes to mind for a lot of its fans is the game’s announcer, for iconic lines like this. ![]() In this episode, we meet Tim Kitzrow, the voice behind the catchphrase, and how NBA Jam shaped his career as a voice actor for video games. NBA Jam is a memorable arcade game for many reasons, but the first thing that comes to mind for a lot of its fans is the game’s announcer, for iconic lines like “HE’S ON FIRE!”, and “BOOMSHAKALAKA!”.
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