Dale Maxwell Stone Jr. found joy in his 24 seasons as the organist for the Atlanta Hawks and at least one season for the Braves.
Game after game, season after season, Stone would bang out music fitting the action on the basketball court. And if fans booed at the referees’ call, the ever-smiling Stone wasn’t above chiming in with a rendition of “Three Blind Mice.”
In 1988, then-Gov. Joe Frank Harris issued a proclamation, recognizing Stone as the Atlanta Hawks’ official organist. “Dale Stone’s enthusiastic performances in the Hawks’ games unite fans in rousing cheers, helping spur the team to victory,” Harris said at the time.