Sunday, March 12, 2006

The Weather Channel

TWC Classics No One Knows The Weather Channel Like We Do!

Ok, let me tell you a little hobby I have.

When I am extremely bored, I start looking people up. I believe that I could easily be a detective for the FBI and assist in looking up persons. It may take me awhile but I will ALWAYS find who I am looking for. Sometimes its real scary.

This week, for some reason I started looking up some of the old meteorologists from The Weather Channel. I am talking about when they first came on the air. When they had the one studio with their one static camera. There were no fancy video packages. Graphics were very rudimentary. The radar was primative. And you know what. It was fun to watch. I remember Ray Ban, who is still a executive with TWC. I remember Craig Weber, who had the greatest sense of humor. His banter with Bob Richards was classic in the morning. It was sad for me to find out that Richards was killed in a plane crash years later. Don Buser, who loved the Alabama Gulf Coast so much and was the first one I can remember who mentioned my hometown of Bay Minette during his weathercast. He spoke of times he drove from Bay Minette to Foley on business. I can remember the gentleman, Charlie Welsh, the grandfatherly Bill Schubert and the professional Charlie Levy, who actually was the one who signed off every evening about 7pm for a couple of hours every night as The Weather Channel "took care of business" and ran infomercials. Today, of course, that would be unthinkable. I can even remember founder John Coleman when he left ABC's Good Morning America to start The Weather Channel. Of course, OCM Bill Keneely is still there. As well as Dennis Smith. I am sure a few others behind the scenes are still there as well.

Also, how can one forget the legendary John Hope. His expertise on Hurricanes were so great that one could tell he was bored giving mold and pollen counts in the springtime. It was even more difficult to see him forecast a snowstorm.

Of course, the ladies were there was well. The beautiful Gay Dawson and Vicki Williams, later married fellow meteorologist Rick Griffin. I found out only the other day that overnight meteorologist Andre Bernier later married fellow TWC'er Sally Schmies. I later found Andre's website, andrebernier.com. Andre and his wife, Sally now work at a station in Cleveland, Ohio.

I really wish The Weather Channel would have a "Where are they now" segment on these great people. At least, it would be more entertaining than some of the primadonnas who are there now.
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