After more than 4 decades, Jim Nabors to sing 'Back Home Again in Indiana' for final time

INDIANAPOLIS – Jim Nabors is back home again in Indiana, this time to say farewell.

The actor whose bumbling Gomer Pyle character endeared Nabors to an entire generation, and whose rich baritone voice has provided the soundtrack for the Indianapolis 500 for more than four decades, will perform "Back Home Again in Indiana" on Sunday for the last time.

Nabors has been singing it since 1972, when he showed up at the track and expected to sing the national anthem. Instead, he was told sing the Hoosier State's unofficial anthem, and he's been doing it just about every year since.

Nabors is finally stepping away in part because of his health, but he hopes the tradition will carry on through the voices of thousands of race fans who show up every year.