The recent passing of Willard Scott brought back a few memories. Yes, he was best known for being the weatherman on The TODAY Show, which originates from New York. Willard, however, was a Washington guy through and through.
Born just over the line in Alexandria,
Virginia, Willard graduated from American University in the mid-1950’s. Even prior to that, he began his 65-year
career with NBC as a 16 year-old page at the network’s radio station in Washington. Later, in television’s
early days, Willard worked in those studios, as well. When Eleanor Roosevelt arrived one Sunday
morning for an appearance on Meet the
Press, she handed him her coat as she prepared to be interviewed. During the broadcast, Willard was dispatched
on an errand away from the studio. When
it was time for Ms. Roosevelt to leave, he was nowhere to be found and no one
had any idea where he stored her coat.
The former First Lady and U.N. Ambassador was not amused, but Willard eventually returned and her coat
was retrieved.
My first awareness of Willard was when he
was on TV himself in the role of Bozo the Clown on a weekday show in the early
1960’s. He hosted local children, showed
cartoons, had guests, and generally entertained with silly antics and
routines. I recall one day when Superman
appeared on the show and tore a telephone book in half. At some point, Willard became the first
person to appear on TV as Ronald McDonald in local ads for the burgeoning fast
food chain.
Willard and his college friend Ed Walker
began a radio show during their American University days, and it eventually
became a staple on WRC, the local NBC radio affiliate. Eddie was blind and read from Braille
scripts, as The Joy Boys voiced various characters for their comedy bits, played
records, and aired ads for local businesses, often with their own
comments. The show lasted some 20 years, and
for a good while I was a regular listener.
When my brother Dave was attending
American University he got a weekend job with NBC News. The offices and studios were located in the
same building as WRC, just a few blocks from campus. During his time there, Dave became
well-acquainted with Willard and Eddie. On a few occasions I was in the radio studio
during The Joy Boys broadcast, and also was with Willard
at other times. I can attest that with
him, what you saw was what you got. His
on-air persona was no different from who he was in person: joyous, lively, funny, and loud.
For a few years during his Joy Boys days Willard also did the
weather reports on the local Washington evening news at WRC. Costumes and gimmicks often were part of his
reports. At some point, The TODAY Show came calling and Willard
switched places with Bob Ryan who was the TODAY
weatherman. So, of course, that meant a move to New York and the end of The Joy Boys.
Willard took his act with him, to the
delight of many viewers of TODAY, although co-host Bryant Gumbel proved not to be a fan. Eventually, Willard scaled back his
appearances on the show, and worked out of Washington for a few more years
still doing the bit of spotlighting people who turned 100 years old, showing
their faces on jars of sponsor Smucker’s Jam. People still loved Willard.
Meanwhile, Eddie Walker continued with
various radio gigs around Washington until it all dried up for him. At that point, Willard hired his old pal to
work in his Washington NBC office, giving him an income until he finally
retired.
