For me it's especially poignant, today being Father's Day. I lost my Dad to a heart attack seven years ago, and watching Meet the Press is one of those Commune-with-Dad rituals I've kept. I have memories of watching the show with my Dad in the early 70's. Back then it was a team sport to tune the program in, because my father would always want to check who was on the MtP versus who was on Face the Nation, and in order to maximize enjoyment, you'd want to discern that information in the first 30 seconds of the show, weigh the decision, and tune the TV accordingly. So, Dad would sit in his recliner, instructing one kid to turn the channel dial on the TV, while the others madly clicked the remote antenna dial to keep pace. I can still hear the metal behemoth turning on the roof: Ka-klunk, ka-klunk, ka-klunk... "Okay, Kissinger's on Meet the Press, who's on Face the Nation? Nixon? No! Go back go back!"
(Okay, Kissinger was probably never on opposite Nixon. I was little, okay?! But the Ka-klunking is historically accurate.)
Of course, Tim Russert took over the show well after that time, and his custodianship has been stellar. Keeping my Dad-Communing ritual with Tim has never been a chore.
Good job, Tim. You done good.
And Happy Father's Day, Dad.
PS I looked back through my blog, to see what I had previously written about Tim Russert. Predictably, I wrote that I had a crush on him. On January 7, 2008 I wrote (see full text here)
One last note: On Meet the Press yesterday, Tim had on a couple of veteran political strategists, a republican and a dem, neither currently affiliated with a presidential campaign. When asked who they thought would be the nominees, they both agreed: Obama and McCain. (Surprising, no?!)
[Which reminds me, hey, clipboard, is Tim Russert gay? Because I was finding him rather adorkable yesterday with his little puns and what not. I don't want to have my little crush crushed again by another closeted newsie...]
He knew in January. Impressive.
Here's a classy clip from Conan:
5 comments:
He was the BEST. Me and the Mrs. watched the "Wake" This morning. It was VERY moving, RIP Tim. And good luck NBC you will have one hell of a time trying to fill those shoes.
I had an ominous feeling about this Friday the 13th, but never in my wildest dreams did I think it was going to be Tim. Cheney, Rush Limbaugh, Castro, Amy Winehouse, Lindsay Lohan, Jane Fonda, Don Rickles, George Steinbrenner, ....
Any of those guys but never Tim.
Oh boy....Coo Coo, Coo Coo!
I loved how dependable he was and how everyman he seemed. I cannot imagine Sunday without him.
Post a Comment