 Paul Harvey receives the Presidential Medal Of Freedom |
And now, the rest of the story…
Paul Harvey, the news commentator and talk-radio pioneer whose staccato style made him one of the nation’s most familiar voices, died Saturday in Arizona, according to ABC Radio Networks. He was 90.
Harvey had been forced off the air for several months in 2001 because of a virus that weakened a vocal cord. But he returned to work in Chicago and was still active as he passed his 90th birthday. His death comes less than a year after that of his wife and longtime producer, Lynne.
“My father and mother created from thin air what one day became radio and television news,” Paul Harvey Jr. said in a statement. “So in the past year, an industry has lost its godparents and today millions have lost a friend.”
At the peak of his career, Harvey reached more than 24 million listeners on more than 1,200 radio stations and charged $30,000 to give a speech. His syndicated column was carried by 300 newspapers.
In 1976, Harvey began broadcasting his anecdotal descriptions of the lives of famous people. “The Rest of the Story” started chronologically, with the person’s identity revealed at the end. The stories were an attempt to capture “the heartbeats behind the headlines.”
In 2000, at age 82, he signed a new 10-year contract with ABC Radio Networks. This listener will certainly miss him greatly.
I always enjoyed, The rest of the story.
He did a good job on that.
Thats all I knew about the guy though.
The rest of the story just worked with his voice.
Sorry to here he died.
It always surprises me when someone who I thought was already dead passes away.
I’d heard of him and heard him on the radio without knowing his politics. Guess all that doesn’t matter now.
May we all live to be that old (hopefully older).
Hyper-conservative, Jebus-believing, jingoistic America-is-the-bestest flagwaver.
Why should we pretend to be sad when a prick like that dies? The Repugs are going to dance on Ted Kennedy’s grave and celebrate when he passes.
I LIKED PAUL HARVEY.
I WOULD ALWAYS GO OUT OF MY WAY TO LISTEN TO HIS TAKE ON THINGS. HE WAS LIKE A FATHER FIGURE FOR ME.
well that sucks..
-another slice of American history gone to the archives.
i grew up listening to his ‘rest of the story’
and even in the last several years, at least 3 out of 5 days would try to always catch him on AM770 right before the 12’oclock news if the radio wasn’t on already. -some of the stories would leave you saying “no sh*t” on occasion..
bummer.
R.I.P Paul Harvey,
-many thanks for the many years of smiles.
-s
wow…just read the comments.
some of you people are a waste of human life.
ffs, can’t you put your politics aside for one second?
shameful.
-s
I created an online memorial for Paul. Please visit and leave a thought, prayer, light a candle, etc. Rest in Peace Paul!
http://www.ilasting.com/paulharvey.php
He was okay, not great. I listened to him occasionally because his short was between 2 radio programs I listened to so it was unavoidable.
All I remember was that he hocked sta-bil oil additive and gave his news stories a subtle rightwing tinge. Even he couldn’t resist a jab against modern progressivism, but I let him slide, he’s an old man from a previous, less educated generation.