Van Amburg drew a lot of response in this corner. Many people in the Bay Area who watched him and the KGO-TV "News Scene"in the 70's and 80's still miss his presence on the local airwaves. Outside of the late Dave McelHatton and Dennis Richmond, few TV anchors here possess the type of legacy that Amburg left behind.
Why?
Because Van was good. Damn good. He was also intelligent, showed amazing deference and had a ton of on-air cachet and cred. He was helped by the late Jerry Jensen, but it was Amburg that guided the ship. Unlike so many modern-day insincere, disingenuous goobers--essentially, lots of Ron Burgandy's trying to be Cronkite--Van established himself right away and developed into a household niche for Bay Area viewers. They trusted him. Moreover, they liked him too.
That's the ultimate compliment.
*Follow me on Twitter
Van Amburg came across as the news authority for the Bay Area. We always would tune into the 11 o'clock Channel 7 News Scene because it was the best...
ReplyDeleteLet's beat these radio topics to death.
ReplyDeleteThis is a television topic, Goober! And we'll beat it to death if we damn well please. Now go away!
DeleteHe wasn't hired for his looks or joke telling, he was hired because he had charisma!
ReplyDeleteThe guy was all style and delivery. Look past that and the content was inferior. "Penis found on BART tracks, story at 11". A mix of TMZ, The Sun, and local stories. That sort of thing worked had many watching in the 70's, along with the matching blazers w 7 logo over breast pocket.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those 'things were better in the olden days' fallacies.
I totally agree. "everything was better before"...it just ain't so.
Delete"Penis found on BART tracks, story at 11"
DeleteSo THAT'S where I left it! I've been looking for thqat thing for 35 years....
I remember Van Amburg was incredibly popular with viewers and brought in huge ratings numbers that the network couldn't help but not notice. I think ABC really wanted him in New York anchoring news there. In fact, if memory serves me correctly, Amburg actually flew to New York during several weekends in which he anchored a late night newscast(s) for the network. I remember watching it several times...usually appeared around 11:30 after the local 11:00 newscast was over, usually on a Saturday night. I think it was a 15 min. newscast airing coast to coast. He knew how to report the news and he was superb at doing so.
ReplyDeleteAnchoring the nightly news cast is a bit like being the pilot of an airplane or the captain of a ship. You get lots of criticism when things don't go well, but when you're doing a good job, people sometimes take you for granted.
ReplyDeleteThat's true of many of the solid anchormen and anchorwomen, and it was especially true of Van Amberg. His background in radio as a talk show host, sportscaster, and news reporter served him well.
Van and the KGO news team were popular and credible and the SF area depended upon their hard work for many years, especially from the early 1970s through the mid 1980s. That's a good long, body of work and Van should be very proud he set such a high standard.
Van Amburg was the Ted Knight of the Bay Area...all style, no substance.
ReplyDeleteAren't you confusing the comedic actor Ted Knight with Ted Baxter, the pompous, egotistical, and self-centered newscaster he portrayed on the Mary Tyler Moore Show. Ted Knight was a highly successful comedic actor, being nominated for Emmy's seven different times (and winning in 1973/1976) for his highly successful portrayal of the bloviating Baxter.
ReplyDeleteBased on his acting success, I'd call Ted Knight as talented as his character, Ted Baxter, was egomaniacal.
Personally, I consider Van Amberg more a Ted Knight, than a Ted Baxter. But you're certainly entitled to your opinion.
Even JC, himself, has his fervent detractors.