This past Friday at 7:42 p.m. the world lost an icon as Walter Cronkite passed away. I remember watching him when he was the CBS News Anchorman and just enjoying the way he presented the news. His was the only news broadcast I would watch regularly. He was called the 'most trusted man in America' and I firmly believe this. I watched intently as he 'took' the nation to the moon along with the Apollo 11 astronauts and when the landing was confirmed and the Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the moon you could see the absolute joy in his face. You could tell he wished he was there with them.
He brought a vibrancy to news broadcasting that has not been matched since. In fact, in some countries, they did not have a word in their language for anchorman and developed a word named after him. In Holland they are called Cronkiters, in Sweden, Kronkiters. Now that is a real honor to have your name represent something in another language. The only word that is based on my name is 'Dingleberry' and I would rather not talk about that.
He became anchorman in 1962 and led us through the turbulent sixties and seventies. He held our hand after Kennedy was assassinated, took us to the moon and was our eyes in Vietnam. In 1968 he remarked, after a tour of Vietnam, that the war was not winnable and it was time for us to withdraw. President Johnson was watching his broadcast and was heard to say "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost Middle America". It just shows you what respect he held. In 1981 he was forced to retire at age 65 due to a now outdated, and now changed, policy at CBS that forced people out at that age. That was a big mistake as he could have easily anchored the news for many more years. The CBS News has not been the same since.
And to honor him I conclude by saying...That's the way it is this Saturday July 18, 2009. Goodbye Walter...The Kingdom of Moronica, and the world, will miss you.
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