Whatever
Happened To...
STAR-BULLETIN / 2002
Les Keiter has been part of the Hawaii sports community for decades.
‘The General’ Les Keiter
is still ‘passionately
involved’ in sportsQuestion: What ever happened to sports broadcaster Les Keiter?
Answer: The veteran broadcaster, nicknamed "The General," may be retired -- for the second time -- but he is very much involved in sports broadcasting.
The 83-year-old Keiter said he is "passionately involved" in producing a weekly radio show on KKEA, "The General Remembers," in which he interviews sports figures.
Keiter began the Wednesday night show in August after his retirement from Aloha Stadium, where he served as spokesman for eight years. It was his second retirement. He had retired in 1993 from KHON-TV, where he was sports director for 21 years.
Keiter, who was born in Seattle, pursued a sports announcing career despite his father's objections. After attending the University of Washington, he worked as an assistant sports director at KELA radio in Washington.
Keiter enlisted in the U.S. Navy after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and served for four years. Following his discharge as a lieutenant, Keiter worked for various radio stations, including KPOA in Honolulu, where he was sports director for 20 months beginning in 1949.
During the 1950s and '60s, Keiter announced major sports events, including the New York Giants' football games from 1954 to 1962, the New York Knicks basketball games from 1955 to 1962, and 14 championship fights for ABC and Mutual Radio between 1956 and 1985.
Keiter's Honolulu career includes being sports director at KHON and announcing the games of Hawaii's Triple A professional baseball team from 1971 to 1979.
In addition to national honors, Keiter was inducted into the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. His other Hawaii awards include the 2000 March of Dimes Lifetime Achievement Award and the University of Hawaii Circle of Honor in Sports in 1999.
On Jan. 24, Keiter will be inducted into the Big Five College Basketball Hall of Fame at the Palestra sports arena on the University of Pennsylvania campus.
Now that he has the time, Keiter said, he also plans to spend his retirement with his wife, Lila, visiting their five children and eight grandchildren, who live from New York to Los Angeles.
Keiter also spends some of his free time as the "permanent emcee" of the Honolulu Quarterback Club, a sports enthusiasts group founded in 1945 that meets every Monday.
This update was written by Pat Gee.
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