musicradio77
03-20-2006, 07:38 AM
Beutel hailed as 'father figure'
BY RICHARD HUFF
DAILY NEWS TV EDITOR
WABC/Channel 7 anchor Bill Ritter led tributes yesterday to his legendary predecessor Bill Beutel, remembering the newsman as a friend, mentor and true professional.
Beutel died Saturday in Pinehurst, N.C. He was 75.
"Bill wasn't just a wise mentor to me, he was also, in so many ways, a father figure," Ritter said.
Ritter, who has posters of Beutel in his WABC office, has often said he succeeded the anchor, but could never replace him.
Beutel stepped down as an anchor at Channel 7 in 2001, ending a three-decade and a seamless 18-month transition from him to Ritter.
Mayor Bloomberg hailed Beutel as a "symbol ... of this city."
"He became the spokesman for a lot of us," the mayor added. "When people watched him on television, they had a confidence in him."
At the time of his last newscast, Beutel said he wasn't retiring, just entering a new phase. He was a correspondent for the station. In fact, he was back on the air during coverage of 9/11. He retired for good in 2003.
When he left the anchor desk, he ended one of the longest runs in local television, a run that started in 1962. In 1968, he became ABC News' London correspondent.
He returned in 1970 and was paired with the cantankerous Roger Grimsby on a then-new format called "Eyewitness News." They soon became the most popular anchor team in New York.
Funeral services for Beutel will be private, although a memorial service is being planned.
I used to watch "Eyewitness News" with Bill Beutel, because he was one of my great anchorman in New York City. I saw him on TV doing the news. I've seen it many times over the years. I do miss him. That was sad news.:( RIP.
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/international/video_us_abc/wabc-ewnlate80s.rm
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/international/video_us_abc/wabc-ewn93synth.rm
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/97/BillBeutelWABC1995.jpg
BY RICHARD HUFF
DAILY NEWS TV EDITOR
WABC/Channel 7 anchor Bill Ritter led tributes yesterday to his legendary predecessor Bill Beutel, remembering the newsman as a friend, mentor and true professional.
Beutel died Saturday in Pinehurst, N.C. He was 75.
"Bill wasn't just a wise mentor to me, he was also, in so many ways, a father figure," Ritter said.
Ritter, who has posters of Beutel in his WABC office, has often said he succeeded the anchor, but could never replace him.
Beutel stepped down as an anchor at Channel 7 in 2001, ending a three-decade and a seamless 18-month transition from him to Ritter.
Mayor Bloomberg hailed Beutel as a "symbol ... of this city."
"He became the spokesman for a lot of us," the mayor added. "When people watched him on television, they had a confidence in him."
At the time of his last newscast, Beutel said he wasn't retiring, just entering a new phase. He was a correspondent for the station. In fact, he was back on the air during coverage of 9/11. He retired for good in 2003.
When he left the anchor desk, he ended one of the longest runs in local television, a run that started in 1962. In 1968, he became ABC News' London correspondent.
He returned in 1970 and was paired with the cantankerous Roger Grimsby on a then-new format called "Eyewitness News." They soon became the most popular anchor team in New York.
Funeral services for Beutel will be private, although a memorial service is being planned.
I used to watch "Eyewitness News" with Bill Beutel, because he was one of my great anchorman in New York City. I saw him on TV doing the news. I've seen it many times over the years. I do miss him. That was sad news.:( RIP.
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/international/video_us_abc/wabc-ewnlate80s.rm
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/international/video_us_abc/wabc-ewn93synth.rm
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/97/BillBeutelWABC1995.jpg