Leave it to the KERA folks. They arranged a 50th anniversary at the Wyly last Tuesday with a stellar collection of personalities from PBS’s past and present, no commercials and just a couple of nudges about the need for support. Honorees were to be the late Ralph Rogers, who had pioneered the frontier days of PBS and KERA, and Bob Wilson, who had been KERA’s first president. For out-of-towner names KERA’s Newsroom first anchor/executive producer Jim Lehrer, NPR Senior News Analyst Cokie Roberts, Pulitzer Prize winner David McCullough and Weekend Edition‘s Scott Simon were on the roll call to join locals Bob Ray Sanders, Lee Cullum and Krys Boyd.
Then just a couple of days before (like early Sunday) word came that an “undisclosed illness” would prevent honoree Bob from being front-and-center.
No sooner had that news sunk in than Scott had to pull out due to a personal emergency.
Not to worry. Event Chair Melissa Fetter and KERA President/CEO Mary Anne Alhadeff made a few adjustments and proceeded as planned for a celebration incorporating entertainment, video clips, tributes, memories, fabulous food and plans for the future including a soon-to-be-announced significant expansion of KERA’s news coverage after the first of the year.
The reception in the Wyly lobby was bulging with KERA fans, both old and new, like Margot and Ross Perot, Alice and Erle Nye, Jennifer and Peter Altabef, Lisa and Chris Ryan, Diane and Hal Brierley, Roger Horchow,
Nancy Halbreich, Barbara and Steve Durham, Toni Brinker, Holly and Doug Brooks, Caren Prothro, Lizzie and Dan Routman, Clay Mulford and Ruth and Ken Altshuler.
Just as the lobby was approaching the overload state, word was passed to go upstairs for the seated dinner and program.
But once up there, the talk continued. Main attractions were the Wilson boys (Owen and Luke) who caught up with old friends like Angus Wynne and made a bunch of new buddies. Two women at separate times in the evening approached photographers saying they’d give a million dollars to have their photos snapped with Owen. An oldtimer upon hearing those offers laughed, “Things haven’t changed. I remember when he waited tables at S&D Oyster and was the hit with all the customers, especially the ladies.”
On the sidelines Meg Simpson patiently played second fiddle. Besides being a lawyer and former basketball player, she’s Luke Wilson’s girlfriend, and was used to the celebrity attention that surrounded Luke.
But once the dinner was a done deal, the program started. After a video narrated by Bill Moyers on the legacy of Ralph Rogers, Bob Ray had the members of Mary Nell and Ralph Rogers‘ family stand. At least three tables of Rogers rose.
Then David McCullough told the group spoke about Ralph’s courage, brave programming and unorthodox choices and his friendship with Bob. Then he recalled asking the late Stanley Marcus what he would change, if he could. The retailing guru said, “I’d do something about television. . . because if you can change that, think what can be accomplished in other fields. . . It’s as if we’ve invented fire, and all we’re doing with it is burning things down.”
To acknowledge the evening’s recognition in place of Bob, his sons Owen and Luke Wilson subbed in. However, even the boys with more charm than a Miss America finalist could not quell the question of the night, “What wrong with Bob?” Owen would only say, “He’s doing much better, and we’re hopeful he’s going to make a full recovery.”
Luke did let it out that Bob was hospitalized one block away from Sonny Bryan’s BBQ, where he used to love to go on Sunday afternoons, and added that his father was a Heineken drinker in a Coors, Bud, and Pabst world. Luke also admitted that had his father known that he had borrowed his father’s shirt, tie and shoes for the evening, Bob would have had one of his famous 1970s-era temper tantrums!
But don’t for a minute think that Luke had the corner on the humor market. Owen told the more than 350 guests that his father removed the family televisions set for two years after he caught Owen watching Gilligan’s Island one too many times.
Despite Bob’s not being present, Wilson matriarch/photographer Laura Wilson watched her sons fulfill their understudy responsibilities with pride and a chuckle.
And while the Wilson boys were a very hard act to follow up, Lee, Bob Ray, Krys, Jim and Cokie proved their chat chops. Highlights of their discussions included:
- When approached by Bob to join KERA, Jim admitted he didn’t really watch television. Bob said he didn’t, either. Jim said he didn’t know anything about [doing a KERA program]. Bob said, “I don’t either, but we can do this thing together.”
- Bob “touched me and literally changed my life,” Jim said.
- He added that calling Ralph Rogers, Ralph “would have been like calling the Pope, Sam.”
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During the early days of KERA’s Newsroom, the staff prepared to run a story regarding a big name Dallasite and some downtown property. Mr. Big Name wanted KERA to “hold” the story for three weeks pending a formal announcement. “We ran the story,” Lehrer said, and Rogers told him the next day, “That was a mistake; you shouldn’t have done that,” but he didn’t interfere with Lehrer’s decision. Jim admitted, “If he had said no, that would have been the end of Newsroom.”
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Regarding today’s opinion-filled news, Cokie and Jim applauded themselves and PBS for never giving their opinions on the news. Jim said blurring the lines between straight news and opinions and analysis has “damaged the end result,” especially on cable news. Cokie said NPR is un-opinionated and thorough, and it is growing.
- On the upcoming presidential election, Jim predicted that it’s going to be nastier than ever, requiring resources to sort through the shouting and cut through the noise and, “That’s what PBS does better than anyone.”
Following the onstage conversations and tribute, and just before the curtains surrounding the Wyly Theatre rose with Ray Benson and Asleep at the Wheel kicking into gear, Mary Anne announced that in addition to the evening being a sell-out, it had also raised $1M for KERA. Nice way to end the evening. Bob and Scott, wish you could have been there.