I never met Walter Cronkite, but I feel like I knew him. He was often referred to as Uncle Walter. He was worldly, authoritative, and yet down to earth, and I, along with most of the country, felt like we could trust what he said.
Everyone who hasn’t had their head under a rock during the last week, knows that Walter died on July 17, 2009, at the age of 92. I felt a real sadness with his passing. He was a big part of my life during my growing-up years, and it was like losing a family member or friend.
I first remember seeing him in the 1950’s, and he was there during the tumultuous 60’s and 70’s, informing us of the latest news, when our world seemed to be falling apart. I can still hear that deep, distinctive voice, signing off each newscast with “And that’s the way it is…”
In the 1950’s, when we first got a television set, the only station we could receive was a CBS station, Channel 8 out of La Crosse. I remember watching the political conventions in 1956 and Walter Cronkite was the host for CBS. I found them fascinating and watched the coverage every evening after chores were done. Incumbent Dwight Eisenhower and Democratic challenger, Adlai Stevenson were the candidates. It was the first of many political conventions I watched as Walter reported on the proceedings. It never seemed the same when he was no longer in the anchor chair. Eric Sevareid was also part of those telecasts, adding insight and commentary.
Walter also hosted the program, You Are There, that reenacted historical events, and he would interview historical figures. I loved history, and this show made the events come alive for me. For those of you who also watched this show, do you remember the famous line from the program? “What sort of day was it? A day like all other days, filled with those events that alter and illuminate our times… and you were there."
Another program he hosted in those early years was The Twentieth Century, a documentary series that used newsreel footage and interviews with people in the news. Needless to say, this program was also of great interest to me.
In 1962 he became the anchor of The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. We always watched it before heading for the barn to milk the cows. I remember when it went from a 15-minute program to half an hour.
During the following years, Uncle Walter was there to report many historic events. We needed his stabilizing presence during those times.
I remember hearing about President Kennedy being shot while I was cleaning the barn and listening to the radio. We quickly finished the chores and were watching the TV reports when Walter announced that Kennedy had died. During the ensuing days, we watched the non-stop coverage of events, including the shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald, live on TV, and the coverage of the funeral. Walter held our collective hand during those heart-wrenching days for our country.
He also informed me of the tragic deaths of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy.
Walter went to Vietnam, and reported from the front lines, out where the action was, where the bullets were flying, and people were dying, just as he had done as a war correspondent during World War II. He talked with the grunts, got their first-hand stories, and flew out on the same chopper that carried the bodies of Marines who had just been killed in battle.
I remember watching his reports from Vietnam and the special he did after returning home. At the end of the program he gave his personal assessment of the war, It wasn’t winnable. I remember thinking “Finally someone with guts enough to tell the truth about the real situation and mess the war had become.”
I watched the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago as Walter reported on the rioting in the streets and the violent police response. It seemed like the country was being torn apart by the war, but the one calming voice throughout the turmoil was Walter.
He was there to educate me about the journey into space and we watched along with Walter as Apollo 11 landed on the moon. Even he was almost speechless at that historic moment. I remember the evening of July 20, 1969, 40 years ago to the day, as I write this story. We watched as Neil Armstrong took that first step onto the surface of the moon. Walter was there to report that historic event too, arguably the biggest event in our lifetime.
So many historic events, and he was there, reporting and sharing all of them with us. Is it any wonder that he was like a member of our family? He was our link with history as we witnessed it. In many ways we had come full circle with him. In the 50’s we watched as he hosted old historical events. In the 60’s and 70’s, he was there to introduce us to events as they happened.
What sort of days were they? Days like all days, except these were filled with events that altered and illuminated our time… and we were there, right beside Walter. And that’s the way it was…
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