*sniff*

For anyone who cares...

Robert Merrill died.

I liked him. He seemed like a down to earth kind of guy who just happened to be one of opera's most familiar faces, but maybe that's because he was a baritone and not a tenor. ;)
He sang the National Anthem on opening day at Yankee Stadium for 3o years.
Here's a quote from the CNN article:

He took the job seriously and once said he didn't appreciate when singers tried to ad lib with "distortions."
"When you do the anthem, there's a legitimacy to it," Merrill told Newsday in 2000. "I'm bothered by these different interpretations of it."

Hmph.
Thank you, Mr.Merrill.
Too bad most people didn't listen to you.