Paul Morris, the legendary public address announcer at Maple Leaf Gardens, passed away on Thursday at the age of 86 after a long illness. He died peacefully at Lakeridge Health in Oshawa, with his beloved wife Marion by his side.

Morris’ voice became inseparable from the Gardens, a sentiment echoed by former captain Darryl Sittler, who recalled how players felt they had truly made it to the NHL when they heard their names announced by him. “He was such a nice man, too,” Sittler added.

Though fans were familiar with the sights of the Gardens, it was Morris’ voice that became iconic for generations, with many attempting to imitate it. Reflecting on his time there, Morris once shared, “(Fans) didn’t live here like I did, but they did in their dreams.” His heartfelt words were spoken on February 13, 1999, during the final night at Maple Leaf Gardens, which he described as a home to many Canadians.

Only four men have ever held the position of public address announcer for the Leafs: Red Barber, who began when the Gardens opened in 1931, Paul Morris, who served from 1961 to 1999 with a brief stint at the Air Canada Centre, Andy Frost, and Mike Ross.

Toronto-based author and archivist Paul Patskou noted, “You heard Paul and knew exactly where you were.”

Morris, working from a small office in the northwest corner of the arena, called over 1,500 games between 1961 and 1999. His delivery, never exaggerated even during Toronto goals, stood in stark contrast to today’s more energetic announcing styles. Morris adhered to an NHL rule from the Original Six era that instructed announcers to avoid personal commentary, maintaining a tone of professionalism throughout his long career.

Paul Morris credited his father, Doug, the first building supervisor of Maple Leaf Gardens, with teaching him the art of inflection. Doug, a choir singer from Lancaster, England, and an opera enthusiast, helped shape Paul’s vocal style. Paul often remarked that his voice carried “loudly and forcibly” around the Gardens when he began working alongside his father in the late 1950s.

Before signing off after every Leafs game with his signature “drive and walk home safely,” Paul often worked a full day at the iconic arena, serving as a sound engineer. His duties included overseeing the scoreclock, TV feeds, security cameras, as well as events like junior Marlies games. He was sometimes there seven days a week. “The Gardens became my second home,” he said.

Paul’s first memory of the Gardens dates back to when he was five years old. His father took him to the arena on a quiet Sunday, where he explored the downstairs area with the large diesel generators that had been installed to conserve wartime power. Paul recalls, “Dad put my skates on, went to the referees’ room to get me a chair, and I pushed it around the ice while he worked.”

Paul attended Brown Public School, Northern Secondary, and later Ryerson to study electrical engineering. In 1956, when Doug heard that Shea’s Hippodrome was closing and its Wurlitzer organ needed a new home, he invited Paul to help Gardens sound technician Bob Wood dismantle and move it to Maple Leaf Gardens. Paul soon quit Ryerson to become Wood’s assistant. The giant pipes of the organ were reinstalled in the south end bandshell, where they performed so well that Doug forbade organist Horace Lapp from practicing for fear of damaging the arena’s walls with the vibrations.

Throughout his career, Paul continued to battle the acoustics of the cavernous 15-story Gardens, particularly during the concert era. “Dad had hung great big acoustic blankets in the ceiling to lessen the reverberation,” Paul explained. “Before that, sound took about six seconds to reach the top; after the blankets went up, it came down to around two.”