O V E R
T H E
W A L L
What time is it?
ShOWTiMe!
P
By Timothy Hicks
eople parole from prison every day. Some even find jobs and turn out to lead good lives. Some might fail. But no parolee had ever become a broadcaster for the Golden State Warriors basketball game – until Aaron “Showtime” Taylor did it. Taylor announced a game for the Golden State Warriors on April 10, 2021. He was able to do this, in part, because he was prepared: during his time at San Quentin, he worked as the Sports Editor for the San Quentin News. He was also the prison’s official public announcer (PA), announcing the basketball, football and baseball games on the yard. Taylor perfected these skills in prison where he spent nearly 26 years for robbery and assault with a deadly weapon. However, doing time did not hold him back from fulfilling his goals. While he was incarcerated, Taylor’s dreams of becoming a broadcaster were no 30
WALL CITY
SUMMER 2022
secret. Everyone who had the privilege of knowing him knew that he would one day have the opportunity to use his voice—he’s got that natural gift of gab, and is not shy when it comes to flipping that tongue. I had the privilege to do some prison time with Showtime at San Quentin, where I watched him in action. Listening to him was sometimes more entertaining than the game itself. He used his creative mind to nickname prison athletes with superhero-like names (including Anthony “Half Man—Half Amazing” Adams, or Jamaal “Do it all” Harrison) while he called the games play-by-play. Timothy Hicks: Showtime, let the people know how it happened: you finding out you was requested to be the PA for the Championship team, the Golden State Warriors? Aaron Taylor: I was prepared for the moment when I got the unexpected email
from the Warriors organization. TH: When the Warriors organization called you, I know you were excited. Coming from sleeping in a small cell on a hard bunk. Did they accommodate you with a place to stay while you waited for the game day? AT: Man, they put me in a $300-a-night hotel. That bed was so comfortable, it felt way better than them hard bunks I used to sleep in at the prison. (Laughs) TH: I watched a television interview that ABC-7’s Larry Beil had with you. Wow, look at you. Fresh out of prison and on National TV with one of the best sports announcers on TV. What did you tell him? AT: I said that I embraced much more than what I was. It was like a dream come true. TH: Beil said that you “raised the bar”
