July 18, 2009
Morning Anchors Reflect On Evening Legend
Harry Smith, Maggie Rodriguez, Chris Wragge Trade Memories of Walter Cronkite
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Walter Cronkite reporting from Vietnam. (CBS)
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SPECIAL REPORT Walter Cronkite: 1916-2009 Remembering the legendary CBS newsman
Smith, co-anchor of "The Early Show", stopped by "The Early Show Saturday Edition" the day after Cronkite's death. The journalistic icon and longtime managing editor and anchor of the "CBS Evening News" was 92.
Fellow "Early Show" co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez anchored "The Early Show Saturday Edition," filling in for Erica Hill, along with regular "Early Show" co-anchor Chris Wragge.
Smith reminded viewers of something few knew: "Walter did the morning news here many, many, many, many years ago. Whenever I'd tell Walter, he always teased me. He said, 'The greatest success that CBS ever had in the morning was when I anchored the show.'
"He was correct. And I would always tease him back and say, 'Walter, was it you or was it the puppet?' When he did the morning news here, way back when, it was Walter Cronkite with a puppet. ... And they did the show together. (The puppet) was the comic relief.
" ... But it was very interesting, because he really had such a sense of pride about everything that he did. But he also had this wonderful sort of spectacular sense of humor. And he was generous. He had a very, very generous spirit because, as somebody coming along, sort of hoping in some tiny way to be following in his footsteps and trying to honor the legacy that he so profoundly built, all you were trying to d was do him proud. And I think that's what we're all still trying to do today."
"You think about the times he lived in," Smith said later, "especially some of the most turbulent times in modern American history, and we always see Walter Cronkite at the helm of a sailboat. And Walter was even-keeled. It didn't matter what the shoals were beneath, it didn't matter where the winds were blowing above, Walter was even-keeled, and he was steady, steady as she goes, Walter Cronkite."
Rodriguez observed that the U.S. space program was Cronkite's passion. "He said the most important story of the 20th century was the space program, space exploration," she said. "And how ironic that he died almost 40 years to the day of the moon landing, that we haven't been back to the moon since Walter Cronkite was in the chair. He wanted to go up in space, and probably would have liked to see us go back to the moon and continue that."
Wragge added, "Nobody covered space exploration better than CBS News and Walter Cronkite back in the day. It was probably the time when he was happiest on the air."
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- bonjour maggie, harry, chris
j'avais dit que je ne connaissais pas walter cronkite, en fait je l'avais oublié, mbc one en a parlé hier au 19h et là je m'en suis souvenue je la remercie d'ailleurs, un journaliste de grand talent qui a cotoyé de grandes personnalités tel que john f. kennedy et a vécu beaucoup d'évenements qui ont marqué l'histoire..qu'il repose en paix..
cbs a eu le devoir et la gentillesse de rendre hommage a ce grand journaliste..n'est elle pas sa deuxiéme famille..désolée pour l'oubli..merci..
au revoir - Reply to this comment
- Cronkite as a fraud? Althought I share the agreement, that much of the media drama kings and queens appear to be more concerned with sucking the life out of people's lives then intelligent and non-biased reporting, I will not agree in anyway that Walter Cronkite was a fraud. Mr. Cronkite came from an era when one could actually trust that there was integrity in televison reporting. Unfortunatley, it's now mostly about who can entertain or get the best ratings by going to any lengths to do it, regardless of thorough and unbiased reasearch. We have a few who try to hold on to the old ways and days of the Cronkite, but they are so far and few between, I personally rarely watch the news. I loved the "And you were there." series as a kid in grade school. I remember our fist t.v. set- back and white.
And no matter what you think, I am not that old! Thank goodness, I have had the opportunity to live in a time to see "real jounalism" in action, memories of television news that was reported respectfuly, and had heart to it. I beleive he considered it an honor that he took very seriously, each time he did a broadcast.
People who have been through wars, the depression, assasinations, moon walking (the real thing), those people often have a view of life that is important to listen to and learn from. Michael Jackson's story has been told over and over again, and all this sordid and ugly stuff about a talented person who died after having a very conflicted life just keeps on and on and on....Burying his flowers in cemetary plot in Detroit? Someone sugests a Butter statue? I don't even get where this King of Pop comes from. No, when it comes to appreciating and admiring a man in my life, Walter hits the mark. As for cover ups-well that's the history of man, like it or not. When I get to get to use the word "integrity", a seldom used word, much less concept these days, I am grateful to have that opportunity. So thanks Mr. Cronkite for the memories. Ones that are not tainted with drug use, family fueding, sensationalism, and delayed autopsies. Just a nice quiet thank you and goodbye. And for me, That's the way it is. - Reply to this comment
- I remember Walter Cronkite very, very well from all those years of watching him do the very best in broadcast journalism. No one comes close today in following in his footsteps. He was a man of courage, honesty, integrity, and professionalism with a depth of compassion and humanity that is unparalleled.
We have lost a giant in journalism; we have lost our "Uncle Walter."
May he rest in peace.
My heart and prayers are with his family and friends. - Reply to this comment
- .............Cronkite Is A Fraud..............
Cronkite is a fraud as a journalist, serving the interests first of the assassins of the fbi/cia; by withholding vital data from the people, Cronkite wreaked great damage on the social fabric of the world and assisted his homicidal brethren in the intel community in the cover up of a century of their atrocities. He was a de facto operative for the American intel services, just like many of his successors today in the main stream media. QUESTIONS!
geral sosbee (956)371-5210
http://libertynewsradio.com/podcasts/ibl/ibl20090418b.mp3 - Reply to this comment
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
