Ron Hunter, TV Journalist, 70
Merrimac
bway...@gmail.com
> http://www.nola.com/obituaries/t-p/index.ssf?/base/obits-33/121445863...
> .xml&coll=1
I remember when he co-anchored the 11pm newscast at KYW Philadelphia
in 1978-81 (roughly) with Beverly Williams. He never clicked there -
never showed an ounce of warmth, and came across as almost robotic
onscreen. The station's already low-rated newscast sunk even lower.
This is a real shame. The guy had a lot of problems in his personal
life.
-Tim
Brad Ferguson
<onceisen...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://www.nola.com/obituaries/t-p/index.ssf?/base/obits-33/1214458635230270.xml&coll=1
Here's a pic of him back in the day (ca. 1970) here:
<http://broadcastmuseum.tripod.com/hunter.jpg>
The nola.com obit:
Ron Hunter, a distinctive presence on the New Orleans airwaves in
several decades, was found dead Tuesday in his home in the Las Vegas
suburb of Henderson, Nev. He was 70.
WWL-Channel 4, for which Mr. Hunter served as news anchor and reporter
from 1967 to 1972, reported Mr. Hunter's death Wednesday on its Web
site. Mr. Hunter's daughter, Allison Hunter, said Wednesday night that
the cause of her father's death has not been determined but is believed
to be natural causes.
Born William Siegelin in 1938 into a Bogalusa newspaper family, he
began work as a broadcast newsman while still a teenager. He briefly
attended Tulane University but dropped out to pursue a radio career.
After his stint at WWL, Mr. Hunter worked in high-profile newscasting
jobs in Buffalo, N.Y.; Miami; Chicago and Philadelphia.
In Chicago, he anchored with Jane Pauley before she departed local news
for the "Today" show, and Maury Povich, who would later gain fame in
syndicated daytime TV.
At the height of his success in Chicago, Mr. Hunter earned a six-figure
salary and was picked as the Chicago Father's Day Council's 1977 father
of the year.
He returned to New Orleans in 1981 to work for WVUE-TV, then the city's
ABC affiliate, gaining notoriety for his cocksure presence and
flamboyant reportorial stunts. He was eventually promoted to news
director at WVUE and granted a rich contract, but he later sued the
station after an acrimonious departure.
Mr. Hunter's personal and public personas tragically collided in 1990,
when his wife, Marilou "Bunny" Hunter, shot and killed herself while
lying next to him in bed, hours after she placed an anonymous call to
Mr. Hunter's radio show to discuss their marital troubles. The death
was ruled a suicide.
He later worked in local radio and created the "Stars and Shields"
program (later "New Orleans Most Wanted"), which aired on WNOL-TV.
Allison Hunter said her father retired to the Las Vegas area in 1998.
Ron Hunter is survived by his daughter, Allison Hunter of Baton Rouge,
and his son, Colt Hunter of Henderson.
orpheus
> In article <C4890ACA.26AF%onceisenough89...@gmail.com>, Merrimac
>
> <onceisenough89...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >http://www.nola.com/obituaries/t-p/index.ssf?/base/obits-33/121445863...
>
I, too, remember his stint in Philly at KYW. He followed Jessica
Savitch when she left for NBC. KYW introduced a new format, dubbed by
detractors, "disco news" and the ratings took a nose dive. I don't
think the station ever led the ratings in Philly again.
KingDaevid
> In Chicago, he anchored with Jane Pauley before she departed local news
> for the "Today" show, and Maury Povich, who would later gain fame in
> syndicated daytime TV.
>
> At the height of his success in Chicago, Mr. Hunter earned a six-figure
> salary and was picked as the Chicago Father's Day Council's 1977 father
> of the year.
...actually, the most notable aspect of his Chicago stint was that he
was brought in by WMAQ-TV to replace Floyd Kalber, who had himself
left to replace Lew Wood as the news anchor on "Today." WMAQ-TV's news
ratings never quite recovered from losing Kalber; the station, already
behind Fahey Flynn and Joel Daly on WLS-TV, was soon passed by Walter
Jacobson and Bill Kurtis on WBBM-TV as well. After Flynn's death, WLS-
TV hired Kalber, partly to keep WMAQ-TV from hiring him back...
kdm
http://kingdaevid.podbean.com/
http://amp.az/home/User/KingDaevid
http://1480kphx.com
peace 'n oranges...
bway...@gmail.com
> http://www.nola.com/obituaries/t-p/index.ssf?/base/obits-33/121445863...
Two more obits, with some interesting quotes, and pictures of Ron at
his height in the seventies:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-tv-anchor-death-web-jun28,0,1938805.story
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/obituaries/20080628_Ron_Hunter__70__former_TV_news_anchor.html
-Tim