Miller’s Focus Now on the Recovery of His Wife

The day the 310-day NHL lockout ended should have been a joyous one for Bob Miller, the Kings’ play-by-play announcer.

But on July 22, Miller had other concerns. His wife of 42 years, Judy, 63, had been complaining of tiredness and was unable to complete her daily two-mile walk.

The next morning, she could barely breathe and her left leg wasn’t working properly. The Millers went to the emergency room at West Hills Hospital, where Judy was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS).

It’s a rare inflammatory disorder of the nerves. Each year, it afflicts one or two people out of every 100,000. The most serious strain can cause permanent paralysis.

“Fortunately, Judy’s is not that severe,” Miller said. “She’s got a tough road ahead, but the prognosis calls for a complete recovery.”

Miller said his wife spent 10 days at West Hills Hospital, and for five days was given immune globulin for 16 hours a day through an IV. Tuesday, she was transferred to the rehabilitation unit at Northridge Hospital Medical Center, which, coincidentally is where Chick Hearn died three years ago today.

“She can now walk about 25 to 30 feet with the use of a walker,” Miller said. “It’s estimated she’ll be there two or three weeks.”

A voicemail message at the Millers’ home in Woodland Hills informs callers that Judy is getting stronger with each day.

Miller, all things considered, seems to be doing OK and retains a bit of his well known sense of humor.

After giving Guillain-Barre its proper French pronunciation, he said, “It sounds like the name of a hockey player from Quebec.”

FSN Makes a Decision

Carolyn Hughes, former co-host of the Dodger pregame and postgame shows on FSN West 2, will not be returning to FSN West or West 2 in any capacity, according to FSN spokesman Lou D’Ermilio. But she will continue as the host of “FSN Across America,” a national show that is carried on FSN’s 20 regional sports networks.

The weekly series is scheduled to return in mid-September, with 30 to 35 shows planned. The shows this season will be taped in Denver. Hughes might also be involved with other shows carried by the FSN network.

After a possible conflict of interest came to light because of a relationship between Hughes and Dodger pitcher Derek Lowe, Hughes was taken off the Dodger shows while FSN executives conducted an investigation. Lowe’s wife, Trinka, who alleges it is a sexual relationship that has been going on for several months, informed FSN of her suspicions about two weeks ago.

Burnett Off Laker Broadcasts

Not only does XTRA Sports 570 have a new Laker play-by-play announcer in Spero Dedes, the station has replaced pregame and postgame host Larry Burnett after an eight-year run.

The station, apparently planning a more hip approach, has hired Matt Smith, who is known as “Money.” He comes from KROQ’s “Kevin and Bean” show.

Burnett’s honest, straightforward approach will be missed.

A Different Philadelphia Story

ESPN’s “SportsCenter” is in the midst of a tour of 50 states in 50 days that concludes Sept. 4 in Waukesha, Wis. The network has assigned one anchor to each stop. Linda Cohn’s second assignment was Thursday night at Staples Center, where many of the X Game events are taking place. Cohn’s previous assignment was Philadelphia.

Philadelphia, Miss., that is.

She was in the small town in central Mississippi for the Neshoba County Fair and the harness races that are part of it.

“The people there were great,” Cohn said. “They made me feel like a rock star.”

Now she’s in L.A. for the massive X Games.

“Talk about going from one extreme to another,” she said.

Besides her “SportsCenter” assignment, Cohn is also serving as the host of a nightly X Games highlight show on ESPN2 at 9.

The X International Factor

The X Games are being televised outside the U.S. for the first time, going to 77 countries and territories. Besides being carried on ESPN and ABC, the X Games are also on ESPN Deportes for the first time.

The ESPN Deportes coverage, which focuses on Latino athletes, will be on tonight at 6, Saturday at 10 a.m. and Sunday at 6. Today is ESPN Deportes Day, featuring special Latino festivities.

New Shows Are Everywhere

FSN announced a new weekly NFL show. “FSN Pro Football Preview” will be taped Thursday nights at the Fox Sports Grill in Irvine in front of an audience and televised Fridays at 5 and 10:30 p.m., Saturdays at various times and Sundays at 7 a.m.

The cast will include host Chris Myers, studio analysts Tim Brown and Jason Sehorn and Fox NFL insider Jay Glazer. Rick Jaffe, co-executive producer, said audience participation would set the show apart. Mark Houska will serve as the show’s coordinating producer.

ESPN seems to be cranking out a new show each week. Last Monday was the debut of the daily “Quite Frankly With Stephen A. Smith” on ESPN2. This Monday, “Classic Now” will debut at 4 p.m. on ESPN Classic. The daily show, with Josh Elliott, will feature topical news and dialogue.

Elliott, 34, comes from Sports Illustrated and has been a contributor to several ESPN shows. He is from Westchester and attended Loyola High, UC Santa Barbara and Columbia.

“ESPN Hollywood,” an L.A.-produced show with Mario Lopez and Thea Andrews, will make its debut Aug. 15 at 3 p.m. on ESPN2.