Re: WABC IMISSEDIT NEWS

[Ron Bello <rbello@BelloAssoc.com>]

Sorry to differ but....

Tony Pepper replaced Jack Cole.  Remember the promo line to
"Join the Ellis / Pepper Bandwagon" in the early 70's.

Jack Williams arrived in 1975.  Everyone knew Ellis was going
to NYC.  Williams started anchoring the new 5:30pm news.
The 1/2 hour was light on news and known in the building as "4 play".
When Ellis left Williams and Pepper did 6 & 11 pm.

It did not take much time for Ellis to bomb in NYC.  He signed with WCVB
just about 6 months before his non-comp with BZ was set to expire.
He couldn't do much more than hold a microphone in front of someone
without talking.  I am not sure of when the triple anchor team of
Tom, Chet and Nat started together.



At 01:21 PM 2/14/03 -0500, Kevin Vahey wrote:
>Tony Pepper replaced Ellis at BZ in 70 or 71 and Jack Williams arrived in 74.
>
>If I recall correctly WABC gave Ellis something on the lines of a 10 year 
>contract and he sat at home on the Cape for a good chunk of it. In any 
>event he was at WCVB in the late 70's with the charming Nat and it was 
>around 1980 when she demanded CVB get rid of him. She of course wanted 
>Chet and Tom napalmed his relationship with Natalie when after a story of 
>a gorilla giving birth and breast feeding shot was shown Tom quipped "Oh 
>Natalie can ask her for lessons"
>
>1982 Tom was part of the WNEV "dream team" with Robin Young.
>
>
>
>
>On Fri, 14 Feb 2003 12:07PM -0500, Daniel Murphy wrote:
>>
>>I'm confused by the chronology here. I remember Ellis on WABC late
>>'70s/early '80s. Did he have another stint in New York?
>>
>>>There is a Boston connection to the birth of Eyewitness News in NYC.
>>>WABC was desperate to repair the damage done by Tom Ellis who Jim Jensen
>>>just had for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
>>>
>>>Then when Eyewitness took off, WNBC grabbed Chuck Scarboro from WNAC in
>>>a move that was laughed at 30 years ago.
>>>
>>>CBS did everything wrong. They revamped newscasts that were doing fine
>>>in both NYC and Chicago and sank to the bottom in both markets and have
>>>never recovered.
>