Showing posts with label TV News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TV News. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Too True To Be Good
This cartoon is from the 90s, but I think it's just as relevant today as it was back then. Click on the image to view it full size.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Say Seven?
Talk about going from one extreme to another! Before becoming the vanguard in slash-and-trash, if-it-bleeds-it-leads TV (ahem) “journalism”, WSVN (Channel 7 in Miami) was the tortoise/caboose/horse and buggy of local TV news. It was the old-fashioned, slower-paced, no-need-to-shout voice in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market. It was, to today’s “standards”, boring at times, but refreshing in several more important ways.
The Great Channel Swap of January 1, 1989 changed all that. With the station losing its NBC affiliation to WTVJ Channel 4 (which lost its CBS affiliation to our beloved WCIX Channel 6), long-time owner Ed Ansin had a choice: show old movies and tons of reruns, and go further back into the past… or reinvent the station as a sleazy mini-CNN, pushing the envelope at every opportunity to do so. We all know which path he chose.
Ansin had already hired general manager Joel Cheatwood a year or so earlier, so he had the right man to lead the charge. Cheatwood and news director Mark Toney turned Sally Fitz and Penny Daniels from even-keeled anchors into hyperbolic Chicken Littles; they turned the news area into the larger-than-life Newsplex; they turned every mundane police perimeter into some scary, better-lock-your-doors clarion call of doom (with Rick Sanchez proving the perfect person to spread hype and hysteria, through his amazing Crime Check segments). It was a freak show that every other news operation in town looked upon with equal amounts of scorn and envy. Scorn, because it violated every journalistic instinct. Envy, because all TV news people want to report stories that are larger-than-life… and every story that came out of the Newsplex was made to seem that way. And damn if the viewing audience didn’t eat it up. Oh my God, there’s a robber on the loose! And he’s heading this way!
(Breathless Sally and Frenetic Rick)
The videos that follow are from that moment in time before WSVN’s transition. They had started to loosen up a bit, but the Freak Show had not yet begun. Several past and future WCIX employees can be seen in this blooper reel, including Bob Soper, Jill Beach, Susan Candiotti (who didn’t even work for Channel 7!), and Mike Mason. There’s even a spoof of former Channel 6 Night Owl Movies host Big Wilson… plus then-Governor Bob Graham’s comedy debut. Don’t quit your day job, Senator! This is a rare glimpse into a time when the Three Stooges weren’t named Rick, Sally, and Penny. I hope this brings a big smile to your face.
(Look for Steve Rondinaro, Sally Fitz, Mark Wolin, Dave Willingham, Bob Soper, Bob Gilmartin, Stephanie Stahl, Steve Dawson, Denise White, Jill Beach, Wayne Fariss, Rick Sanchez, Susan Candiotti, Tom Brokaw, George Waldroup, Mike Mason, and others.)
The Great Channel Swap of January 1, 1989 changed all that. With the station losing its NBC affiliation to WTVJ Channel 4 (which lost its CBS affiliation to our beloved WCIX Channel 6), long-time owner Ed Ansin had a choice: show old movies and tons of reruns, and go further back into the past… or reinvent the station as a sleazy mini-CNN, pushing the envelope at every opportunity to do so. We all know which path he chose.
Ansin had already hired general manager Joel Cheatwood a year or so earlier, so he had the right man to lead the charge. Cheatwood and news director Mark Toney turned Sally Fitz and Penny Daniels from even-keeled anchors into hyperbolic Chicken Littles; they turned the news area into the larger-than-life Newsplex; they turned every mundane police perimeter into some scary, better-lock-your-doors clarion call of doom (with Rick Sanchez proving the perfect person to spread hype and hysteria, through his amazing Crime Check segments). It was a freak show that every other news operation in town looked upon with equal amounts of scorn and envy. Scorn, because it violated every journalistic instinct. Envy, because all TV news people want to report stories that are larger-than-life… and every story that came out of the Newsplex was made to seem that way. And damn if the viewing audience didn’t eat it up. Oh my God, there’s a robber on the loose! And he’s heading this way!
(Breathless Sally and Frenetic Rick)
The videos that follow are from that moment in time before WSVN’s transition. They had started to loosen up a bit, but the Freak Show had not yet begun. Several past and future WCIX employees can be seen in this blooper reel, including Bob Soper, Jill Beach, Susan Candiotti (who didn’t even work for Channel 7!), and Mike Mason. There’s even a spoof of former Channel 6 Night Owl Movies host Big Wilson… plus then-Governor Bob Graham’s comedy debut. Don’t quit your day job, Senator! This is a rare glimpse into a time when the Three Stooges weren’t named Rick, Sally, and Penny. I hope this brings a big smile to your face.
(Look for Steve Rondinaro, Sally Fitz, Mark Wolin, Dave Willingham, Bob Soper, Bob Gilmartin, Stephanie Stahl, Steve Dawson, Denise White, Jill Beach, Wayne Fariss, Rick Sanchez, Susan Candiotti, Tom Brokaw, George Waldroup, Mike Mason, and others.)
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Essential Credentials
Like J. Alfred Prufrock, measuring out his life with coffee spoons, TV journalists measure out their lives in press credentials, resume tapes, and war stories. I’ve already shared some tapes and war stories, so I guess it’s time to break out the you-know-what’s. As the mythical Prufrock once said, “let us go and make our visit”.
I have to admit these are fun to peruse—especially the ones with embarrassing or corny pictures on them. Here are a few that reflect some big events, not only in WCIX’s history, but also South Florida’s.
(Click images to view them full screen)
My first WCIX press credential, shortly after I made the move from electronic graphics to producing. Between a marathon stretch of shows, and producing Troubleshooter for Gail (Gayle) Anderson, I didn’t get to use this one very much.
The Pope’s visit to South Florida was a total clusterf@ck, and I’m not just talking about the media circus. Traffic in the Westchester and Doral areas was rerouted, and it took me more than an hour to drive the 4.6 miles to the station. We sure could have used a chopper in those days.
This pass got me into the parking lot and the stands for the 1990 FedEx Orange Bowl. After getting all the soundbites and B-roll that we needed, sports reporter John Deutzman managed to score a few cheap tickets from a desperate scalper. So we very quietly, and without anyone knowing (shhh!) sat down and watched part of the big game, which turned out to be a real snoozer. Come on, guys, let’s see some offense! Soon it was time to head back to the truck for our 11PM live shot. No one was the wiser.
I didn’t get to witness Nelson Mandela’s visit to South Florida. Instead, I stayed behind to produce a 15 minute instant special. I sure produced a lot of instant specials in those days! In typical Miami fashion, the headline was Mayor Xavier Suarez’s snub of the South African leader, who had refused to condemn Cuba’s human rights record. Several other Cuban-American mayors, and some local business leaders, also joined in the snub, which ultimately wound up costing the city a lot of $$ in lost convention business.
Thirty four world leaders gathered in Miami for the first Summit of the Americas, but once again, the headline became who WASN’T there: Cuban leader Fidel Castro. To this day, practically no one in Miami can tell you a thing about the summit or what it accomplished. All they remember is Fidel being told he wasn’t welcome!
This next credential has nothing to do with the old Channel 6, but it’s one of my favorites. It’s certainly the most colorful.
Whoa, baby! No one messes with The Blue Lakes Bugle -- my first reporter gig, with my elementary school newspaper. Even then I wanted to write about rock ‘n roll, but the teachers and advisers were gonna raise a fuss and gonna raise a holler. So I stuck to writing about the PTA, science projects, and not-so-burning issues. Jimmy Olsen had nothing on me!
Or as T.S. Eliot’s Prufrock pondered, “Would it have been worth it, after all?”
I have to admit these are fun to peruse—especially the ones with embarrassing or corny pictures on them. Here are a few that reflect some big events, not only in WCIX’s history, but also South Florida’s.
(Click images to view them full screen)
My first WCIX press credential, shortly after I made the move from electronic graphics to producing. Between a marathon stretch of shows, and producing Troubleshooter for Gail (Gayle) Anderson, I didn’t get to use this one very much.
The Pope’s visit to South Florida was a total clusterf@ck, and I’m not just talking about the media circus. Traffic in the Westchester and Doral areas was rerouted, and it took me more than an hour to drive the 4.6 miles to the station. We sure could have used a chopper in those days.
This pass got me into the parking lot and the stands for the 1990 FedEx Orange Bowl. After getting all the soundbites and B-roll that we needed, sports reporter John Deutzman managed to score a few cheap tickets from a desperate scalper. So we very quietly, and without anyone knowing (shhh!) sat down and watched part of the big game, which turned out to be a real snoozer. Come on, guys, let’s see some offense! Soon it was time to head back to the truck for our 11PM live shot. No one was the wiser.
I didn’t get to witness Nelson Mandela’s visit to South Florida. Instead, I stayed behind to produce a 15 minute instant special. I sure produced a lot of instant specials in those days! In typical Miami fashion, the headline was Mayor Xavier Suarez’s snub of the South African leader, who had refused to condemn Cuba’s human rights record. Several other Cuban-American mayors, and some local business leaders, also joined in the snub, which ultimately wound up costing the city a lot of $$ in lost convention business.
Thirty four world leaders gathered in Miami for the first Summit of the Americas, but once again, the headline became who WASN’T there: Cuban leader Fidel Castro. To this day, practically no one in Miami can tell you a thing about the summit or what it accomplished. All they remember is Fidel being told he wasn’t welcome!
This next credential has nothing to do with the old Channel 6, but it’s one of my favorites. It’s certainly the most colorful.
Whoa, baby! No one messes with The Blue Lakes Bugle -- my first reporter gig, with my elementary school newspaper. Even then I wanted to write about rock ‘n roll, but the teachers and advisers were gonna raise a fuss and gonna raise a holler. So I stuck to writing about the PTA, science projects, and not-so-burning issues. Jimmy Olsen had nothing on me!
Or as T.S. Eliot’s Prufrock pondered, “Would it have been worth it, after all?”
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
A Little Jive In '85
1967 (Channel 6 signs on).
1988 (CBS agrees to purchase WCIX).
1995 (WCIX switches to WFOR and Channel 4).
Those might be the three most important years in the history of WCIX, but right behind them would be 1985, the year of our move from Brickell Avenue to what is now Doral. It was a year of hopeful new beginnings, but for many, there was also sadness at leaving that silly round building behind. That feeling was reflected in our 1985 skit reel, which included the following news blooper piece that I co-produced with R.J. Heim (with assistance from Bill Retherford).
The hopefulness of a new beginning shines though on this piece, despite the sometimes stupid and sometimes strange moments that we captured for posterity. I always enjoy watching this one. Look for the following blasts from the past (in order of appearance): Barbara Sloan, Solon Gray, Rod Meloni, John Turchin, Joyce Evans, Andy “Hey Andy” Leopold, R.J. Heim, Mike Bradley, Glenn (what city is this?) Hutton, Gail “Gayle” Anderson, Steve Zager, Bill Retherford, and the late Nelson Milton. If you enjoyed this, hated this, or whatever, be sure to leave a comment and let me know.
Note: All news blooper reels contain profanity. If the boss or kids are watching, you might want to bookmark this page and watch the video later.
1988 (CBS agrees to purchase WCIX).
1995 (WCIX switches to WFOR and Channel 4).
Those might be the three most important years in the history of WCIX, but right behind them would be 1985, the year of our move from Brickell Avenue to what is now Doral. It was a year of hopeful new beginnings, but for many, there was also sadness at leaving that silly round building behind. That feeling was reflected in our 1985 skit reel, which included the following news blooper piece that I co-produced with R.J. Heim (with assistance from Bill Retherford).
The hopefulness of a new beginning shines though on this piece, despite the sometimes stupid and sometimes strange moments that we captured for posterity. I always enjoy watching this one. Look for the following blasts from the past (in order of appearance): Barbara Sloan, Solon Gray, Rod Meloni, John Turchin, Joyce Evans, Andy “Hey Andy” Leopold, R.J. Heim, Mike Bradley, Glenn (what city is this?) Hutton, Gail “Gayle” Anderson, Steve Zager, Bill Retherford, and the late Nelson Milton. If you enjoyed this, hated this, or whatever, be sure to leave a comment and let me know.
Note: All news blooper reels contain profanity. If the boss or kids are watching, you might want to bookmark this page and watch the video later.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Ham-I-Am (Sorry Scripts, Part 2)
95 percent of the folks that write for newscasts get writer’s block from time-to-time. As for the other 5 percent… well, they’re lying.
I remember being a novice producer during the ’84 political season. There I was, trying in vain to write about one of the democratic debates, without resorting to stupid clichés. Then Walter Mondale just had to do it! He had to go and parrot the catch phrase from a famous Wendy’s commercial, meaning I pretty much HAD to waste precious time on the democratic frontrunner exclaiming “Where’s the beef” . As if it wasn’t already difficult enough summing up everything in 90 seconds! So I’m sitting there trying to write the lead, trying to grab our viewers, trying not to trivialize the event while not hyping it as well. And all that could come out of me was trivia… hype… clichés. That was one of the few times I ever let anyone else write the lead to the top story. To me, that is the producer’s job. The pre-show tease, the opening headlines, and grabber lead make up the most crucial minute of the entire show, and as the captain of the ship it was my duty to keep us on a bold course. Or so I always thought.
Then came… John Hambrick.
(Click images to view them full screen)
“Hambone” was already a star in this market, thanks to his years at WTVJ. I was a fan. Hambrick was an actor before he was a journalist, and it showed. The man could really play the camera.
John could be a joy to work with, but he could also be a royal pain in the ass. One day John let me know that when it came to him, the rules were different. “They’re paying me a lot of money,” he told me. “Not just to sit at the anchor’s desk, but to put my brand on what I do.” It made sense to me. If things went wrong, it was John that the viewers saw, not some guy (me) behind a keyboard. So John got to put his stamp on the stories that he read, and that included writing the lead to the top story in the newscast.
Most of the time, it was not a problem. John understood the importance of writing in the active tense. He understood that a lead was meant to grab and entice. He understood the importance of making our viewers care, and selling that big, big story of the day.
But sometimes, like the rest of us, John would get writer’s block. Sometimes I would have to remind him that it was 10 minutes to show time, and the lead to the top story was not yet in. Sometimes John would then sit at his typewriter, and type WHATEVER. Oh it would be active, enticing, and big, but would it be coherent? Often there was no time to proofread his leads. The bosses would say that as producer, it was my responsibility to approve every script before it aired, but we’re not talking about any old script. This is Hambone we’re talking about. So occasionally, the news open would roll, the anchors would say hello, and John would read something like this:
(Click images to view them full screen)
Oh… my… God. A 35-second lead! “The whooshing spew of water under pressure”! The word “ostensibly”, used twice (great word, but hardly conversational). In the quest to turn an early-morning fire into poetry, we completely buried the nighttime lead: that a suspect, taken into custody, had died. If this had been a newspaper story, it would have been different. The headline would reflect the breaking development, and the talk of “flames, smoke, sirens, determined shouts above the din of engines, generators, and whooshing spew of water” would paint a vivid picture of the scene, sans pictures, which of course is the world of newspapers. But for the lead to a developing story on a major market 11PM newscast? Ostensibly, it missed the mark.
Let’s be honest. TV news has really been dumbed down in the past decade and a half. I would love to see a more intelligent, respectful-to-the-audience’s-intelligence approach. We should not be afraid to use the occasional 40-point-in-Scrabble word, but only if it’s the best available word (and never, never, at the expense of remaining conversational). It’s all about connecting. While that connection can be broken through too much dumbing down, it can also be broken by giving the impression that the words are being spoken by the great and powerful Oz. There’s a balance in there somewhere. I hope to see that day when that balance, “ostensibly”, is rediscovered.
I remember being a novice producer during the ’84 political season. There I was, trying in vain to write about one of the democratic debates, without resorting to stupid clichés. Then Walter Mondale just had to do it! He had to go and parrot the catch phrase from a famous Wendy’s commercial, meaning I pretty much HAD to waste precious time on the democratic frontrunner exclaiming “Where’s the beef” . As if it wasn’t already difficult enough summing up everything in 90 seconds! So I’m sitting there trying to write the lead, trying to grab our viewers, trying not to trivialize the event while not hyping it as well. And all that could come out of me was trivia… hype… clichés. That was one of the few times I ever let anyone else write the lead to the top story. To me, that is the producer’s job. The pre-show tease, the opening headlines, and grabber lead make up the most crucial minute of the entire show, and as the captain of the ship it was my duty to keep us on a bold course. Or so I always thought.
Then came… John Hambrick.
(Click images to view them full screen)
“Hambone” was already a star in this market, thanks to his years at WTVJ. I was a fan. Hambrick was an actor before he was a journalist, and it showed. The man could really play the camera.
John could be a joy to work with, but he could also be a royal pain in the ass. One day John let me know that when it came to him, the rules were different. “They’re paying me a lot of money,” he told me. “Not just to sit at the anchor’s desk, but to put my brand on what I do.” It made sense to me. If things went wrong, it was John that the viewers saw, not some guy (me) behind a keyboard. So John got to put his stamp on the stories that he read, and that included writing the lead to the top story in the newscast.
Most of the time, it was not a problem. John understood the importance of writing in the active tense. He understood that a lead was meant to grab and entice. He understood the importance of making our viewers care, and selling that big, big story of the day.
But sometimes, like the rest of us, John would get writer’s block. Sometimes I would have to remind him that it was 10 minutes to show time, and the lead to the top story was not yet in. Sometimes John would then sit at his typewriter, and type WHATEVER. Oh it would be active, enticing, and big, but would it be coherent? Often there was no time to proofread his leads. The bosses would say that as producer, it was my responsibility to approve every script before it aired, but we’re not talking about any old script. This is Hambone we’re talking about. So occasionally, the news open would roll, the anchors would say hello, and John would read something like this:
(Click images to view them full screen)
Oh… my… God. A 35-second lead! “The whooshing spew of water under pressure”! The word “ostensibly”, used twice (great word, but hardly conversational). In the quest to turn an early-morning fire into poetry, we completely buried the nighttime lead: that a suspect, taken into custody, had died. If this had been a newspaper story, it would have been different. The headline would reflect the breaking development, and the talk of “flames, smoke, sirens, determined shouts above the din of engines, generators, and whooshing spew of water” would paint a vivid picture of the scene, sans pictures, which of course is the world of newspapers. But for the lead to a developing story on a major market 11PM newscast? Ostensibly, it missed the mark.
Let’s be honest. TV news has really been dumbed down in the past decade and a half. I would love to see a more intelligent, respectful-to-the-audience’s-intelligence approach. We should not be afraid to use the occasional 40-point-in-Scrabble word, but only if it’s the best available word (and never, never, at the expense of remaining conversational). It’s all about connecting. While that connection can be broken through too much dumbing down, it can also be broken by giving the impression that the words are being spoken by the great and powerful Oz. There’s a balance in there somewhere. I hope to see that day when that balance, “ostensibly”, is rediscovered.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
The Bigger The Gaffe...
One of a news producer’s most tedious duties is the writing of the nightly discrepancy report. If the show was clean, the producer could get home at a reasonable hour. If it was a “TV’s Bloopers & Practical Jokes” kind of newscast, it could mean an extra hour or more in front of the keyboard, reliving every botched super, clipped piece of audio, or story that failed to make its slot.
I’ve been on the producing end of some newscasts that were so brutal, the discrepancy report was pages long! Everyone hates those kinds of shows, except around Christmas time. Every December, it’s time to gather that year’s news bloopers, and put something together for the annual skit reel. That’s the time when those mispronunciations and technical theatrics stop being sore spots, and become, well, funny. It’s the time when the laugh’s on us, and the bigger the gaffe… the bigger the laugh!
I’ll be posting a few different news blooper reels in the months to come, starting with this offering from 1983. This one concentrates more on behind-the-scenes flubs and mishaps, and as you’d expect… the language is graphic. You might want to wait until the kids, or the boss, aren’t around to watch the following video. (You can’t survive in a newsroom if F-bombs bother you. News professionals curse more than Dick Cheney at an environmentalist’s convention.)
Look for Dave Levine, John Turchin, Joyce Evans, Amanda Moss, Barbara Sloan, Mike Medrano, Jay Held, Don Franklin, and even Channel 7’s Bob Gilmartin in this video.
I’ve been on the producing end of some newscasts that were so brutal, the discrepancy report was pages long! Everyone hates those kinds of shows, except around Christmas time. Every December, it’s time to gather that year’s news bloopers, and put something together for the annual skit reel. That’s the time when those mispronunciations and technical theatrics stop being sore spots, and become, well, funny. It’s the time when the laugh’s on us, and the bigger the gaffe… the bigger the laugh!
I’ll be posting a few different news blooper reels in the months to come, starting with this offering from 1983. This one concentrates more on behind-the-scenes flubs and mishaps, and as you’d expect… the language is graphic. You might want to wait until the kids, or the boss, aren’t around to watch the following video. (You can’t survive in a newsroom if F-bombs bother you. News professionals curse more than Dick Cheney at an environmentalist’s convention.)
Look for Dave Levine, John Turchin, Joyce Evans, Amanda Moss, Barbara Sloan, Mike Medrano, Jay Held, Don Franklin, and even Channel 7’s Bob Gilmartin in this video.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
WHATZIS?
The most asked question about this blog is one that is short and sweet:
No, not why are you blogging, but why are you blogging about a TV station that almost always finished last in the ratings, doesn’t even exist anymore, and is barely a blip in the radar of many of the subjects of these musings. I admit that in some ways, it makes me look rather pathetic. Believe it or not, I do live in the here and now, and don’t dwell on the past. (Yeah, right….) Well it’s true. It’s just that I’ve swept that past under the rug for a decade or so, and have finally come around to embracing it once again. Doing so is both therapeutic and… dare I say it…. fun. The bad feelings I had when I jettisoned my TV news career have vanished into the ether, replaced by a warm and gentle spirit of healthy nostalgia and gratitude. It may sound wimpy when I say it, but it feels great to look back on these two decades of my life with a smile, instead of a growl. And yet a lot of my posts will be growly, because that’s the way things were a lot of the time. The negativity that pops up just reinforces that this is, by and large, a positive blog about an imperfect place with imperfect people. And Lord knows this writer is pretty damn imperfect himself!
This is also a one-stop spot for information about former WCIX employees, and (whenever possible) ways to get back in touch with them. To me, the “Life After Channel 6” links are just as crucial to this site as the blog posts. I’ve tried to include up-to-date links on as many former WCIX’ers as possible. If your name (or that of one of your friends) is not included, it means one of six things:
1. I could not find a link to your present whereabouts through an internet search. If you contact me through the comments section, or an e-mail, I’ll be glad to add your name, and link, to the list.
2. You’re still at WFOR (to the best of my knowledge). There is really no need to put links for present Channel 4 employees, since we know where to find you!
3. You worked at the station before my time, and I’m not aware of you.
4. Your last name has changed. This is especially true of some of the young ladies I worked with nearly three decades ago, who have long ceased to be single.
5. Your name just slipped my mind (which is not hard to do, after so many years). Again, contact me through the comments section or e-mail, and I will see to it that your link is added to the list.
6. You share your name with another person with a web presence, and I’m not sure which one you are. (How many different, successful women named Caryn Brooks are there, anyway?)
I feel that this site belongs to all the folks who traveled in and out that door (good line, bad song). I’m particularly gratified by the comments of one of my former colleagues, who said “thank you for bringing WCIX to life once again”. What he said really got to me, because technically, WCIX is dead, and HAS been for more than thirteen years. Some of you might say that only the name has changed, but come on now. Most viewers have already forgotten about the Great Channel Swap of 1995, and seriously believe the current WFOR is the same Channel 4 that Ralph Renick helped bring to life sixty years ago. WCIX may be “so last century”, but it cannot be forgotten. It WILL not be forgotten. That’s why this blog exists.
If you enjoy these pages, or even if you think they’re a waste of time, feel free to leave a comment after any of the posts. Also check out former WCIX news director Paul Stueber’s blog, Tying My Shoes, for some very entertaining stories about Channel 6 and his other ports of call. Those of you on Facebook are encouraged to join the Fans & Former Employees of WCIX group on there, for a chance to reconnect with old friends and share some photos and videos. (That group is 85 members strong, and growing by the day.) I really do welcome your comments, so by all means, speak up. We had a good thing going then, and with your participation, we can have a real good thing going now.
No, not why are you blogging, but why are you blogging about a TV station that almost always finished last in the ratings, doesn’t even exist anymore, and is barely a blip in the radar of many of the subjects of these musings. I admit that in some ways, it makes me look rather pathetic. Believe it or not, I do live in the here and now, and don’t dwell on the past. (Yeah, right….) Well it’s true. It’s just that I’ve swept that past under the rug for a decade or so, and have finally come around to embracing it once again. Doing so is both therapeutic and… dare I say it…. fun. The bad feelings I had when I jettisoned my TV news career have vanished into the ether, replaced by a warm and gentle spirit of healthy nostalgia and gratitude. It may sound wimpy when I say it, but it feels great to look back on these two decades of my life with a smile, instead of a growl. And yet a lot of my posts will be growly, because that’s the way things were a lot of the time. The negativity that pops up just reinforces that this is, by and large, a positive blog about an imperfect place with imperfect people. And Lord knows this writer is pretty damn imperfect himself!
This is also a one-stop spot for information about former WCIX employees, and (whenever possible) ways to get back in touch with them. To me, the “Life After Channel 6” links are just as crucial to this site as the blog posts. I’ve tried to include up-to-date links on as many former WCIX’ers as possible. If your name (or that of one of your friends) is not included, it means one of six things:
1. I could not find a link to your present whereabouts through an internet search. If you contact me through the comments section, or an e-mail, I’ll be glad to add your name, and link, to the list.
2. You’re still at WFOR (to the best of my knowledge). There is really no need to put links for present Channel 4 employees, since we know where to find you!
3. You worked at the station before my time, and I’m not aware of you.
4. Your last name has changed. This is especially true of some of the young ladies I worked with nearly three decades ago, who have long ceased to be single.
5. Your name just slipped my mind (which is not hard to do, after so many years). Again, contact me through the comments section or e-mail, and I will see to it that your link is added to the list.
6. You share your name with another person with a web presence, and I’m not sure which one you are. (How many different, successful women named Caryn Brooks are there, anyway?)
I feel that this site belongs to all the folks who traveled in and out that door (good line, bad song). I’m particularly gratified by the comments of one of my former colleagues, who said “thank you for bringing WCIX to life once again”. What he said really got to me, because technically, WCIX is dead, and HAS been for more than thirteen years. Some of you might say that only the name has changed, but come on now. Most viewers have already forgotten about the Great Channel Swap of 1995, and seriously believe the current WFOR is the same Channel 4 that Ralph Renick helped bring to life sixty years ago. WCIX may be “so last century”, but it cannot be forgotten. It WILL not be forgotten. That’s why this blog exists.
If you enjoy these pages, or even if you think they’re a waste of time, feel free to leave a comment after any of the posts. Also check out former WCIX news director Paul Stueber’s blog, Tying My Shoes, for some very entertaining stories about Channel 6 and his other ports of call. Those of you on Facebook are encouraged to join the Fans & Former Employees of WCIX group on there, for a chance to reconnect with old friends and share some photos and videos. (That group is 85 members strong, and growing by the day.) I really do welcome your comments, so by all means, speak up. We had a good thing going then, and with your participation, we can have a real good thing going now.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
So This Is New Years...
(Push the button on the lower left to play the video)
There were dozens of people who made The Ten O’Clock News happen, but on most nights, only the producer and director received on-air credit. Once a week, we would remedy that situation with a credit roll, listing each and every person who worked on the newscast that week (plus the “regulars” who were on vacation).
What you see here is an interesting variation on the credit roll. On December 31, 1981, we sent cameraman George Buigas around the building to shoot film of all the behind-the-scenes folks who were stuck working on New Year’s Eve. We then edited the film, did some preproduction (supers, but not music) and bumped it to tape. The audio track ran live (off of a "cart") and unfortunately sounds sour, but that’s the way it aired, so that’s the way it’s being preserved.
A few interesting points about this credit roll:
1. Note the blackboard behind producer Arlene Ross. In those days the producer put the rundown of the show on a board, and it was everybody’s job to copy down the information.
2. Even Guy Thompson, the custodian, received credit that night. I’m sure it was the only time he was publicly acknowledged.
3. Several of the people in this credit roll are no longer with us, including Bob Hammerly, Ed Rehm, and Jerry Fisher. (Fisher was not acknowledged by name, since she was working as a reporter that night, and had an on-screen presence during the newscast. She can be sitting at her desk, behind Guy Thompson.)
4. The on-air team that night was Larry Klaas, John Loesing (sports), and Dave Corey (weather, substituting for Don Franklin). Corey was normally a booth announcer at the station.
5. It’s good to see Larry Wallenstein (Larry #3) in his role as assignment editor. He would exit in January 1984, only to return a few years later as news director.
6. Was that a space ship, or a news set? Beam me up!
7. I sure needed a haircut.
I hope you enjoyed viewing this rare artifact. Leave me some positive comments and bribes, and perhaps I can be persuaded to post some more clips from my Channel 6 archives. Send the bribes care of J. DeLaTorre (bad inside joke). Have a happy and safe 2009!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Where There's Smoke...
Life in a newsroom has changed in so many ways, and I'm not just talking about news content. In those days, people smoked pot out in the open, even in front of “adults”. Those that didn’t partake, usually looked the other way. Such was the way it was in the late 70s and early 80s.
I was ushered into the WCIX world of weed on my very first day at the station. Before I’d even known my way around that crazy round building, I was shown the ledge on the fourth floor, behind some of the big equipment in the engineering department. People visited that ledge at all hours of the day and night. I tended to wait until after the newscast to partake, but many people did it from the moment they arrived for their shifts. It truly was a different world then!
(Look carefully at the fourth floor. You never know who you’ll see!)
Another favorite spot was out on the dirt road along Biscayne Bay. Cars would park there every night after the newscast was through. It was a favorite way to unwind in those days, but there was always the fear of getting caught by the police. For a long time they turned a blind eye to our activities, but after the Luis Alvarez police shooting gave the department a black eye (and we reported it aggressively), they weren’t quite as accommodating, and we had to be a lot more careful.
Then there was the art room, on the second floor. One night in 1980, a bunch of us went there after the newscast, thinking our illustrious assistant news director had left for the night. You can imagine our trepidation when he walked into the art room, at the same time many of us were passing the pipe around. We thought we were all in big, big trouble! The boss man walked over to us, and without missing a beat, asked (to our surprise), “hey, would any of you like to buy some sinsimilla?” Whew! The “Newser” was a User! I guess that would describe so many people that I worked with. Not Bob Rossicone, though.
Rossicone, the tough associate director with a pronounced New York accent, walked in on security guard Lazaro C. and me one time after hours. Lazaro was paid to watch the building, but spent lots of his time socializing and getting high. With the smell of pot permeating the room, Lazaro was afraid Rossicone would blow the whistle and cost him his job. When asked if he was bothered by what we were doing, we were greeted by one of the funniest lines I’d ever heard. Rossicone just looked at us and said, quote…
“I don’t care if you burn the f*cking place down!”
And so it went in those days. Times changed, the station grew more competitive, and soon drug testing was the norm. Eventually I stopped smoking, and I’m sure so did most of the other Boys From Brickell. But for quite a number of years, lighting up was a big part of my Channel 6 experience. It helped me cope with the pressure and frustrations, and being a shy person by nature, helped greatly in social situations.
And no, we never burned the place down.
Another favorite spot was out on the dirt road along Biscayne Bay. Cars would park there every night after the newscast was through. It was a favorite way to unwind in those days, but there was always the fear of getting caught by the police. For a long time they turned a blind eye to our activities, but after the Luis Alvarez police shooting gave the department a black eye (and we reported it aggressively), they weren’t quite as accommodating, and we had to be a lot more careful.
Then there was the art room, on the second floor. One night in 1980, a bunch of us went there after the newscast, thinking our illustrious assistant news director had left for the night. You can imagine our trepidation when he walked into the art room, at the same time many of us were passing the pipe around. We thought we were all in big, big trouble! The boss man walked over to us, and without missing a beat, asked (to our surprise), “hey, would any of you like to buy some sinsimilla?” Whew! The “Newser” was a User! I guess that would describe so many people that I worked with. Not Bob Rossicone, though.
Rossicone, the tough associate director with a pronounced New York accent, walked in on security guard Lazaro C. and me one time after hours. Lazaro was paid to watch the building, but spent lots of his time socializing and getting high. With the smell of pot permeating the room, Lazaro was afraid Rossicone would blow the whistle and cost him his job. When asked if he was bothered by what we were doing, we were greeted by one of the funniest lines I’d ever heard. Rossicone just looked at us and said, quote…
“I don’t care if you burn the f*cking place down!”
And so it went in those days. Times changed, the station grew more competitive, and soon drug testing was the norm. Eventually I stopped smoking, and I’m sure so did most of the other Boys From Brickell. But for quite a number of years, lighting up was a big part of my Channel 6 experience. It helped me cope with the pressure and frustrations, and being a shy person by nature, helped greatly in social situations.
And no, we never burned the place down.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
ANCHOR’S AWAY: THE PARTY (9/27/82)
Here’s a side of Larry Klaas we rarely got to see around the station. With his contract not renewed, and his career (at the time) hanging in the balance, he found himself able to just let go and enjoy himself at his going-away party, planned and hosted by his close friend, producer Arlene Ross. Here we see Larry and his wife, sharing a quiet moment. It’s the only time I’d ever seen him with his hair messed up.
Larry, opening one of his presents, with producer Jerry Fisher looking on. Jerry was a wonderful person, who a decade later would put up a valiant, but ultimately losing battle against cancer.
Dig the caricature of Larry on the piano, next to then-lovebirds Gary Slawitschka and Wendy Weisbrod. I don’t recall if it was Ron Laffin or Jim Hayek who created the portrait, but it’s a real beauty. To my eyes, it looks like Ron’s handiwork. Gary was a fellow Chryon operator at the time, before venturing into videotape editing. He was my best friend at the station, and is somebody that I think about from time to time. Gary, if you see this, please get in touch!
That’s Arlene Ross with her arm around Larry. These two had a lot of history, and were always very close. The big guy to the left and rear of Arlene is Tom Sedley, our ace (and under-appreciated) sports producer. Richard Chee-A-Tow from the engineering department is to the right rear of Larry.
John Loesing and his wife enjoy a piece of cake, while watching the frivolity unfold around them. John was very nice, but at times he might have been a little too low-key on the air.
I put down the camera for this group shot. That’s me on the far left, next to Arlene Ross, Gary Slawitschka, and Henry Rosenberg (videotape editor). Arlene’s future husband, director Dan Roujansky, is in the front. Can you guess which people in this picture are stoned?
Yeah, stoned. In those days, nearly everybody smoked pot, and the ones that didn’t, tolerated it. It was a generational thing that could never happen in this day and age. It was amazingly open, not just at parties such as this one, but all around the station as well. I think that’s going to be the subject of my next post.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Klaas Dismissed
(Click images to view them full size)
Was it Larry Klaas’ ego that got him fired? Was it an alleged demand for more money? Or was it that Dick Descutner (our news director) simply wanted to make a change, and Barbara Sloan gave him just that opportunity? It all depends on whom you ask.
There were mixed feelings around the station when we learned Klaas was being ousted. He had his supporters, led by producer Arlene Ross. There were also people who felt a sense of liberation when word filtered down. Klaas was stunned by the dismissal, and told The Miami News’ Tom Jicha he was considering retiring from broadcasting. Obviously he reconsidered, and made a new start (albeit a little rocky) at KGUN in Tucson
Everyone in the newsroom had a Larry Klaas story to tell. If he was having a bad day, you knew it. In 1981, when my father was dying, I told producer Jerry Fisher that I might need to take a few days off. Klaas sat me down the next day, and in a stern voice, asked me why I told Jerry and not him. (This was before I became a producer. I was still a lowly Chyron operator/film archivist). Well, Larry, it was late and Jerry was still at the station, working on her nightly discrepancy report. You were gone for the night. Sorry I stepped on your toes, big guy. Show a little compassion for a guy whose dad is dying, will ya?
Yet I liked Larry. He was quick to criticize, but unlike a lot of managers, he would also tell you when you did a good job. I wished him well, and I meant it.
Yet I liked Larry. He was quick to criticize, but unlike a lot of managers, he would also tell you when you did a good job. I wished him well, and I meant it.
You’ll notice in Tom Jicha’s article that Descutner “found” Larry’s replacement, Barbara Sloan, through a five-second lead-in on another reporter’s audition tape. That was sort of how it went down, but it wasn’t Descutner who found her. The reporter on that tape was a former colleague of mine at WNWS, prior to my coming to Channel 6. He and I had something in common: both of our lives changed on March 17, 1980. Someday soon I’ll tell you that story.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
A Producer's Nightmare: The Critique!
(Click images to view them full size)
It’s nice to see the names of my old friends Nick Bogert (Mr. Cubs fan), Natalie Segal, Marianne Murciano, Dave Levine (who taught me a lot about conversational writing), Frank Lasko, Bill Lobean, and others. I was fortunate to run into both Bogert and Segal in the past few years.
While The Ten O’Clock News may have been a joke on some fronts, we had some talented folks who gave their all day in and day out. That’s why critiques can be so demoralizing. It’s great to get feedback, but you’ll notice there’s no criticism of the anchorman in here. I do agree with a lot that Larry #1 said (and not just his praise of my crafty Chyron work). We did need to pay more attention to things such as half track and match cuts. The best critiques are the ones that offer solutions and not just criticism. Little did we know it at the time, but things would get a whole lot worse, before they’d get any better.
One week after taking on the responsibility of Managing Editor, Larry Klaas started a new Channel 6 tradition: critiquing (or was it nitpicking?) the previous night’s newscast. Klaas (who was Larry #1 in a succession of three Larry’s that would be in charge of the news in the ‘80s) usually made an effort to be fair, but everyone who’s ever been around a live program knows that things can, and do, go wrong. All the Monday Morning Quarterbacking in the world won’t change that fact. I would take Larry #1’s critiques over Larry #2’s any day. (Larry #2 was a real piece of work, and even though he’s no longer alive to defend himself, I’m going to have to tell his story eventually.)
It’s nice to see the names of my old friends Nick Bogert (Mr. Cubs fan), Natalie Segal, Marianne Murciano, Dave Levine (who taught me a lot about conversational writing), Frank Lasko, Bill Lobean, and others. I was fortunate to run into both Bogert and Segal in the past few years.
While The Ten O’Clock News may have been a joke on some fronts, we had some talented folks who gave their all day in and day out. That’s why critiques can be so demoralizing. It’s great to get feedback, but you’ll notice there’s no criticism of the anchorman in here. I do agree with a lot that Larry #1 said (and not just his praise of my crafty Chyron work). We did need to pay more attention to things such as half track and match cuts. The best critiques are the ones that offer solutions and not just criticism. Little did we know it at the time, but things would get a whole lot worse, before they’d get any better.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Larry #1
This memo signaled a much-needed change in philosophy, when it came to management of The Ten O’Clock News. With our only newscast being at night, and with News Director Dick Descutner working only daylight hours, something had to be done to strengthen our nighttime management situation. Harlan Levy (the assistant news director) was simply too ineffectual to get the job done, and after yet another Larry Klaas memo complaining about him, Descutner decided to make Klaas the managing editor, and “reassign” Levy.
This, as you’d expect, presented problems. Klaas was both the anchor and the managing editor. When news would break, or when the producer would make any kind of in-show call, it was Klaas who had veto power over those decisions… while the show was on the air! Klaas was smart and quite competent, but he also had a gigantic ego, and many times there was just no reasoning with him. Still, it was a big step-up, news-wise, from what Harlan Levy offered in the evenings.
A year and a half later, Klaas was let go, replaced on the air by Barbara Sloan. Descutner would soon be out the door as well, but that’s a different story for a different day.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
The 1980 Anchor Team
This was the main on-air team when I first started working at WCIX, on March 24, 1980. Larry Klaas took the anchor's chair once occupied by Prescott Robinson (whom I had previously worked with at WNWS Radio). John Loesing moved from weekends to weekdays, replacing Bob Sheridan (I believe). Don Franklin was a veteran announcer and a super nice guy. Klaas had come over from WCKT-Channel 7, and had quite a bit of Ted Baxter in him. He was basically a good guy, but what an ego! Loesing was low key and soft spoken, and I remember his wife was a fan of the group The Buckinghams. The things a record collector remembers!
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