Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Walter Cronkite Dead at 92

This is topic Walter Cronkite Dead at 92 in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=005849

Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 07-17-2009, 08:38 PM:

This one won't mean much to the younger folks here, but those of us elder statesmen sure knew him well.

Almost 40 years ago today, almost everything stopped (most workplaces shut down) as we watched the first man on the moon. Walter was there to be sure it all made sense. He told us of the death of both Kennedys. He was one of a kind and he told the news as straight as an arrow. There is no one quite like him around now.

Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-17-2009, 09:02 PM:

They're talking about him over on the ham radio sites. Walter Cronkite was also a longtime ham radio operator, holding the callsign KB2GSD. He narrated a popular video several years ago which introduced people to the diverse Amateur Radio hobby, but he himself never upgraded beyond the entry-level Novice Class license.

Amateur Radio Today, hosted by Walter Cronkite

Posted by James Westbrook (Member # 3690) on 07-17-2009, 09:32 PM:

I recall he was forced into retirement by CBS in 1981 and replaced with Dan Rather.
I won't comment one way or the other on Dan Rather but I feel CBS was too hasty in ridding themselves of Cronkite so soon.

Posted by Mike Babb (Member # 1379) on 07-17-2009, 09:42 PM:

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/hd/apollo11.html

I watched a few of these with WC earlier today before I found out about his death, I was too young to remember but it's amazing to watch today...

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-17-2009, 11:07 PM:

I grew up watching Walter Cronkite anchor the CBS Evening News. That was a time when objectivity in journalism meant something. These days so many "news people" commit the sin of throwing in their 2¢ and talking about themselves. Cronkite wasn't that type of guy. He was old school. The story was the only thing that mattered and Cronkite was the best at delivering it. Edward R. Murrow is the only other news guy I can think of who was anywhere near the titan that Cronkite was in news.

The news clip of Cronkite delivering the word about the assassination of John F. Kennedy is an iconic piece of television history. Perhaps the best moment was Cronkite breaking his normally professional deadpan demeanor letting the joy come through as he reacted to the Apollo 11 landing on the moon. That moment has been immortalized in tributes to Cronkite and stories about the journalism craft itself. The same clip was blown up for the big screen in Apollo 13.

It's kind of fitting in a way that Cronkite held on long enough to see the 40th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 mission (I wish he would have made it past Monday for the landing). I've been kind of grumbling about how the Apollo 11 40th anniversary hasn't been getting much news coverage at all. This was an extremely important moment in American history. Much more important than the marathon drama coverage surrounding Michael Jackson's death. Walter Cronkite was a giant in American popular culture and his passing will dramatically elevate interest in the 40th anniversary of the moon landing on Monday.

It may also be fitting that Cronkite passed at this time because real journalism is practically dead in the United States. I even see bullshit political spin and the infection of celebrity worship leaking into the traditionally boring financial news channels. Pretty sad.

In the old school world of real journalism Walter Cronkite was one of the big dogs. R.I.P.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 07-18-2009, 01:31 AM:

quote: Bobby Henderson
That moment has been immortalized in tributes to Cronkite and stories about the journalism craft itself. The same clip was blown up for the big screen in Apollo 13.

That's one of my favorite "life memories." Sitting at our kitchen table in front of a 12" black-and-white set, hearing "The Eagle has landed" and seeing Cronkite say "Man on the moon!" What a moment.

One of my other favorite Cronkite moments was in the '90s when David Letterman had Hillary Clinton on as a guest. In the middle of Letterman's monologue, Cronkite came walking out, and said "Dave, tonight you'll be interviewing the first lady of the United States. Try not to screw it up."

Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 07-18-2009, 01:44 AM:

Cronkite had the luxury of only having to compete with two other networks. He won hands down. I remember watching him when growing up but mostly during the summer when I visited my grandmother, she always watched Cronkite but when I was home I didn't watch the news much unless there was something on related to the space program or something happened to break in during a program. I do remember watching the news on his last day in 1981. Don't remember the last date though.

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 07-18-2009, 02:39 AM:

I'm old enough to remember him. Walter took CBS News to number one. "And that's the way it is". RIP Walter.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 07-18-2009, 02:48 AM:

Even Chet Huntley and David Brinkley of NBC couldn't even touch Cronkite in the 60's.

But they gave him a decent race in broadcast journalism.

It seemed that Cronkite, after he left CBS in 1981 and went independent, he was a much happier person.

R.I.P.

-Monte

Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-18-2009, 01:16 PM:

quote: Darryl Spicer
Cronkite had the luxury of only having to compete with two other networks.

Good point, Darryl.

We were a Huntley-Brinkley Report family.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-18-2009, 02:04 PM:

While there were only 3 major national broadcast networks it also must be noted that newspapers, magazines and radio stations had a far stronger standing in delivering news during Cronkite's time than they do today.

Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 07-18-2009, 03:38 PM:

ABC had Howard K. Smith and Harry Reasoner both former CBS alums.

Posted by Rick Raskin (Member # 1561) on 07-18-2009, 04:19 PM:

I felt that he came off as one of the family, and I remember many times people referring to him as "Uncle Walter". He was truly a titan of journalism in a time when that meant something.
RIP

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-18-2009, 10:51 PM:

I agree Rick, He was like a member of your family and one that you definately trusted.

A post I read today on You-Tube puts it perfectly...
There should be a picture of him next to the word "Professional" in the dictionary.

Mark

Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 07-25-2009, 06:34 PM:

quote: Bobby Henderson
The news clip of Cronkite delivering the word about the assassination of John F. Kennedy is an iconic piece of television history

Years later, Cronkite admitted he had a very low opinion of JFK the man. It seems Cronkite interviewed Kennedy during the 1960 Campaign in which some of the questions got under the candidate's skin and he gave somewhat of "frat-boy-like" responses. As Cronkite and the crew were leaving, Kennedy wanted to re-shoot the piece. Annoyed, Cronkite caved - acknowledging it was the only time he ever gave into that type of demand in his career, but his opinion of Kennedy dropped precipitously that day and, according to the journalist, never really recovered.

Posted by Joe Tommassello (Member # 4632) on 07-27-2009, 08:06 PM:

Speaking of Cronkite and JFK I have heard that he and his people were well aware of the Kennedy's "girls" and chose not to disclose it to the American people. Even in 1962 the media was favoring one side.

Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 07-28-2009, 11:32 PM:

That's right, and that's probably why Clinton's escapades later were completely ignored by "the media"...or not.

Or maybe in Cronkite's day, they still had a sense for what is really important in domestic and international politics - and what is not.

quote: Aaron Mehocic
Years later, Cronkite admitted he had a very low opinion of JFK the man. It seems Cronkite interviewed Kennedy during the 1960 Campaign in which some of the questions got under the candidate's skin and he gave somewhat of "frat-boy-like" responses.

That mirrors, in a way, what Gore Vidal said a few months ago in an interview with Bill Maher. He liked JFK the man (maybe in more than one way...), but in his opinion, he was a terrible President. He thought he made a lot of mistakes, from Vietnam to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

In contrast, in a series of programs from the late 90s titled "Cronkite remembers" which was re-aired after his death, Cronkite pointed out that while Nixon's image will forever be tainted by Watergate, people often overlook that he made some very important steps in foreign policy towards China and the USSR.

I think that kind of stuff is more important than JFK's "girls" and it shows that Cronkite and "the media" that he represented were not as biased as Mr Tomassello wants to portray it here.

The world we live in is not black and white.

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 07-29-2009, 12:08 AM:

The End.