1990 - a potpourri of news

1990 –

Earth Tech was billed as a gathering of companies that wanted to show the latest technologies in recycling and saving energy.  They were talking about work on an 18-watt light that would replace the 60-watt incandescent bulb, and save 76-percent in energy use.  Many of us have converted to those low-energy lights.

I covered a special Senior Prom that spring.  Some older folks were invited to join kids at Quince Orchard High School for the event.   The high schoolers could have been the seniors’ grandkids.  Some dance steps from two different eras were exchanged, including the popular “Electric Slide.”

On March 25^th the Hubble Telescope was being eased out of Shuttle Discovery’s  cargo bay.  A solar panel needed some coaxing to unfurl.  The Hubble began its long career of sending back stellar images from its 380-mile orbit, even though it needed some work to improve its vision.  I still have my Hubble press kit.

On June 13th, I watched  Ron Jacko, a deserter,  turn himself in at the gates to Quantico.  Jacko had been a Marine PFC. who chose to live in Canada for 21 years rather than go to Vietnam.

June 2^nd was a big day in Washington history.    That’s when Garfinckel’s Department Store filed for bankruptcy - Chapter 11.  Some employees had 40 years with Garfinckel’s and were wondering if they would get any severance or vacation pay. 

June 16^th 1990, marked the first National Susan G. Komen “Race for the Cure” to promote breast cancer research awareness.  8,000 people took part, including Vice President Dan Quayle and his family.  Organizers passed out pink ribbons to recognize breast cancer survivors.

1990 was an interesting year for Montgomery County politics.  County Executive Sid Kramer thought it would be smooth sailing to re-election.  But Neal Potter, who had planned to retire after 20 years on the Council, put his hat in the ring two hours before the filing deadline to challenge Kramer.  I had been tipped about Potter and watched him file his paperwork at the Elections Board.  Potter won the primary.  Kramer first announced his support for Potter, but three weeks later began a write-in campaign.  Potter would go on to beat Kramer and a republican challenger, and wound up facing a 700-million dollar shortfall. 

After four years, 200-Million dollars, and 12 lanes, I-270 was about to open.  Seems like only yesterday.  It was 13 miles of wide-open highway, with collector-distributor lanes connecting exits to the main lanes.  After a few weeks, we learned it was a whole lot easier just to call them, “local lanes.”

October 1990: Washington metro area people were required to start dialing area codes to make local calls.  There were a few glitches, most of them human errors.  It’s hard to change old habits.

And everyone was watching the Middle East – Iraqi troops had invaded Kuwait, and the world was waiting for war.

Reporter's Best Friend - the Model 100

Okay, let’s take a break from the chronological tour of Washington, DC area stories and jump in to something more up-to-date:  my TRS-80 Model 100 (I actually have two of them – one was a gift.)

The Model 100 served me well for 15 years, and they were important years.  I bought the Model 100 as I was leaving Chicago for Washington, DC.  I wanted a new gadget to occupy spare time and learn more about pre-personal computing.  This portable computer ran BASIC and was limited in what it could do.  For a reporter, it was an ideal tool – it had a very simple word processor (no, it couldn’t do “track changes”) and a smoking 300 baud modem.  That meant I could write a TV length story and send it back to the station for a show producer, writer and editor to see what I had written.  It would take only 10 seconds or so to upload the story through an acoustical coupler (cups that fit over the handset of a payphone.  We also configured our live trucks with a phone jack so we could try file transfers via a cell signal.  Cell file transfers were not always reliable. The error rates were high.

I used the Model 100 for probably 8-10 years longer than I probably should have.  In the 90’s, reporters were starting to use new windows laptops that could do so many things the Model 100 could not – yet I dutifully carried the Model 100, tech guy that I was.  Their machines had menus, games, touchpads, and screens that were beautiful (not so beautiful outdoors), and battery life that was unpredictable.    The Model 100 ran on four AA-batteries, lasted two weeks on a set (always kept a spare set) and an LCD screen you could see in direct bright sunlight.  It did what I needed it to do – nothing more, nothing less.   

My little 100 was never a plaything, never a Swiss army knife for a multi-tasker, or anything beyond just a useful tool that was reliable. And, like a Timex, it took a licking and kept on ticking.  It was tossed around cars, live trucks and airplanes.  When I used it on a desk, I would often angle it up by sticking a couple of sawed off pencils in the recesses for the back screws.  That made the screen easier to see.  We were fancy in those days.

The Model 100 (followed by the Model 200) came before the need to be connected full-time.  Both models were the workhorses of news and sports people in the field, at the park.  See, write, and send it to the Mothership.  The stories my Model 100 helped me tell……

Weather, Traffic and Navy problems

1989 -

Here are a few Washington, DC area headlines:

      Metro added rail heaters to its system.

      Conspiracy and theft charges were dismissed against Col. Oliver North.

      Mortgage rates then were 11%+ for a 30-year loan in some parts of the country.

      For fans of the Bay Bridge (over Chesapeake Bay) – the one-way toll went into effect.

      Scientists found 900 dinosaur footprints in what were mud flats near Culpeper, VA.

      Former DC Police Chief Maurice Turner turned “Republican” and ran for Mayor.  He didn’t win.

Short stories:

January 6^th, in the face of an “iffy” forecast, then Fairfax County School Superintendent Robert Spillane said, “the roads tomorrow will be fine.”  He was wrong.  The quote from my script: “…It wouldn’t be fine.  It was barely lousy.”

Inauguration preparations were underway and like every media outlet, we had to have stories about everything remotely connected to the inauguration - this one for George Herbert Walker Bush and James Danforth Quayle.  In the ensuing inaugural parade, Bush rode in USA-1 (limo) and 211 units from all over the country participated in the event.

Muslim extremists were upset with Salman Rushdie for his book, “the Satanic Verses,” which was a sellout.  Yes, there were threats against his life. He’s still with us.  His memoir is expected to be published next year. 

Most reporters are smart enough to know you ask the “sensitive” question last.  That way you have enough material to use in case the interviewee either hits you or simply ends the interview after that question.  March 17, a Marine Captain named Shirley Russell was missing.  Her husband, Robert Russell, a former marine captain was a suspect (person of interest).  I remember interviewing him about the “disappearance” of his wife.  After a few minutes of questions, I put the final question to him:  “Did you kill your wife?”  After asking for a “time-out” he said he would never harm his wife. Russell was found guilty of murder. 

In March, Eastern Airlines declared bankruptcy and was flying with replacement pilots.

Weather was a top story in March (how unusual). One of my famous quotes was, “they gave a rush hour and nobody came.”  That, of course, could not eclipse my first “snow” live shot at River Road and the Beltway (1985)  Our weather guru was predicting snow (prediction of snow meant apocalyptic repercussions).  I didn’t see any snow during my live shot and opined, “The only flake out here is me.”  The News Director was not amused.

A few members of VFW Post 10621 in Nokesville, VA who put up American Flags on utility poles along the main drag every 4^th, decided to put the flag “upside down” in 1989.  This is a distress signal, and was meant to reflect their feelings about a U.S. Supreme Court decision that protected desecration of the American Flag.  I remember that day clearly.  I was working with a network video crew.  Rain was coming down monsoon style.  That didn’t stop the Nokesville guys from making their point.

NASA began to harvest the fruits of Voyager II.  After 12 years of travel, the unmanned spacecraft was creeping up on Neptune (4 Billion miles away).  A major local source for comment on the mission was Dr. Richard Berendzen, President of American University.  He would have a bigger personal story later on and step down as President.

For transportation enthusiasts, 1989 was the 25^th anniversary of the Washington Beltway.  When it first opened people could actually “make time” on the highway. Now driving can occasionally distract motorists from texting, or reading the newspaper (or iPad).

In August of 89, Pete Rose and gambling became a big topic.  Would “Charlie Hustle” make it to the Hall of Fame?  Odds weren’t in his favor.

Shocker:  gas prices ---- July 4^th 1.12/gal; by Labor Day, they had “dipped” to 1.06 nationally.

Occasionally, my service in the US Navy came in handy for assignments, although it usually wasn’t good news. The IOWA investigation wound up, finding that a “wrongful intentional act” caused the deaths of 47 sailors aboard the battleship.  The battleship had been put back into service in 1984.  She returned to her Norfolk, VA homeport on March 23^rd.  Later, aircraft accidents/fires aboard several ships caused the Navy to impose a 48-hour “stand down” (unprecedented) to review safety procedures.

Amateur radio (I am a licensed "ham" K9ICF) played a role in letting the U.S. government know about the mobs and looting going on, and the danger to U.S. citizens in St. Croix following a big storm.  Through an amateur radio station in Fredericksburg, VA, I spoke with a doctor in St. Croix who described what was going on. The interview apparently caught the ear of government folks.

Louis Farrakhan filled the DC Armory with his talk about stopping the killing in DC.  Councilman Harry Thomas and Fr. George Stallings (look him up) were there.  Marion Barry was not.

And talk about history --- the Montgomery County Council was considering a 4.4 mile trolley line that would link Silver Spring to Bethesda and run along the abandoned Georgetown Branch Railroad.  The Council (seven members at the time) voted 6-1 for it.  The project was “de-railed” when cost estimates went from $75M to $224M.

1988 - a year of famine and feast

Looking at my scripts from 1988 brought back memories and pictures that trouble my mind.  There were a lot of homeless people on the streets of DC that Winter.  

      “From a distance it is only a blanket near a street corner.  But a closer look reveals a woman – so still,   only blinking eyes say she is alive.” That haunting description still bothers me today as I read it.

 

And there was extravagance.  Jack Kent Cooke chartered a 747 to take a few friends out to San Diego for the Superbowl.  The Redskins won Superbowl XXII in Jack Murphy Stadium.  Shortly after that victory, Cooke began talking about  the need for a new stadium back home.  His first choice was DC, but he would entertain offers from the suburbs if DC couldn’t  make a deal. A lot of dealing and posturing took place.  In the end, a place Jack Kent Cooke called Ral-John was born - with its own zip code.  Now, it's still Landover, MD, and Fedex Field.

Speaking of stadiums, this was an era when stadiums were named after prominent people , or veterans as a group, not products.  Morganna, the “kissing bandit,” was in Baltimore City court because she had tried to kiss Cal Ripken in Memorial Stadium.  She didn’t serve any time – a deal reached that she was free to go if she promised not to do whatever it was she did - again.

This was the year the world heard about Gallaudet University and the students’ “Deaf President Now” campaign.  Students shut down the campus as they pressed the board for their first deaf president.  In the end, I. King Jordan, would be named president.  Jordan retired at the end of 2006.

The Virginia Lottery started up trying to grab some of the money its citizens were spending in DC and Maryland. Today, the Virginia Lottery pulls in 1.4 Billion dollars.  Since its inception, the Commonwealth has pulled in 7.55 billion dollars.

Carl Rowan was in court over his June 14^th use of a Saturday night special (which he didn't legally own) – in defending his property against a teenage trespasser.  Rowan was criticized for his actions because of his columns on gun control. His day in court ended in a mistrial.

DC was having a big drug problem, and under Police Chief Isaac Fulwood, accepted assistance from the National Guard.  The Nation of Islam also offered help in patrolling drug areas.  Several housing complexes, including Mayfair Mansions, took the Muslims up on their offer.

On the tech side, the Internet was still a network of networks, connecting some universities, government and military users.  The early effects of viruses were limited because there weren’t that many machines tied together.  Some, like the Brain virus, were spread from computer to computer by floppy disk. (No, you probably don’t have a floppy disk). The virus’ goal back then was to keep the computer tied up – making it copy the virus so the machine couldn’t do anything else.  

More later - as technology advances - opening up opportunities, and opening up all of us to exploitation.

1987 - a hint of tech and the diplomatic world to come

1987 was a transition year – we moved from typewriters to a computerized system, complete with the ability to print scripts on a dot-matrix printer.  Yahoo!

And it was a potpourri of stories for a general assignment reporter.  The recognition that tech and consumer electronics would be huge in the next decade had not landed yet in the mind of local TV folk

It was a bittersweet year for football fans: Redskins and Bear, Giants and Redskins - Joe Gibbs at the helm. Later, there would be an NFL football strike with replacement players, and a strike at NBC stations, with replacement photographers.

HDTV was making a blip on the screen, including a demo by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB).  Eddie Fritts was president of the NAB; Mark Fowler was Chairman of the FCC.

A big sting of pizza parlors in the DC area – one of the toppings, cocaine.  The feds figured the operation  at about 100 lbs. per month.

I covered a KKK rally in Forsythe County, Georgia.  Coretta Scott King and Andrew Young were there.

Fairfax Hospital (now Inova) had its first heart transplant. The recipient was standing in front of cameras – alive!

The name Ollie North became well-known as Iran-Contra unwound. I interviewed Col. North outside his Virginia home shortly after he had extra security installed.

NASA said it was hiring high tech people because it would be operating an international space station by 1997.

John Hinckley, Jr., shooter of President Ronald Reagan and others, was evaluated again for an outside visit.  His psychiatrist said Mr. Hinckley was no longer suffering fantasies about Jodie Foster.  After a lot of flack, St. Elizabeth’s withdrew its request for the visit.

Presidential candidate Sen. Gary Hart challenged reporters to follow him.  Bad choice.  They found, “Monkey Business,” and other things.  Sen. Hart withdrew, just as his staff said the campaign had “just begun.” I was left waiting at a “breakfast spot” for a planned campaign appearance in New Hampshire.

Diplomatic relations became strained when Iraqi jet fighters killed 37 sailors aboard the USS Stark.  I covered a presidential visit to mourn those sailors in Mayport, Florida, the Stark’s homeport.  The base was a city of satellite trucks to disseminate the message to America and the world.  The same year, the Navy Memorial opened in Washington, DC.  As both an enlisted man and an officer (Vietnam Era), I was moved.

The stock market took a big tumble.  No *etrade, etc.  Investors watched stock prices through “eye” street tickers, or in trading rooms at local brokerages.  Investors had to go to the power centers of the market, not use SmartPhones.  One culprit for the market drop was computer trading by the big guys. Ironic that individuals couldn’t “computer trade” yet.

I covered an outbreak of bacterial meningitis in Staunton, (pronounced Stanton) Virginia.  We used the satellite truck as an editing and transmission platform.  Satellite phones (and certainly cellphones) were unreliable at the time, so we convinced a resident to allow us to hook up to her home phone to set up communications to the station.  Techies will recognize this as IFB. IFB allows the reporter to hear programming and directions from the control room at appropriate times.

For traffic fans, there was a big push for an Outer Loop of the Beltway by former Congressman Mike Barnes.  Not gonna happen for a long, long, long, time.  23 years later, and it's still not gonna happen for a long, long time.

86' - an Interesting Year for Finance, Cars, Weather and Science

I expected to find more tech stories in my 1986 scripts.  Maybe because of assignments, or luck of the draw, most of my stories that year were political in nature, with some Washington standard stories in the mix.

Halley's comet was big in January.  We joined a few astronomy clubs at the Manassas Battlefield to watch the once-in-76-years comet cross the skies.  As I recall, the view wasn't so great - already too much urban light.

Computers were busy designing camouflage patterns for the military.  The standard patterns were good enough.  I remember this story for two reasons.  We visited the N. Virginia company creating the camouflage designs and one of our lights set a wall on fire during the shoot.  The second reason: we visited Ft. Belvoir to show the camouflage "in action."  Unfortunately, the camouflaged truck stood out (the leaves had fallen) like a sore thumb.  The story was picked up nationally....ooops.

(2/7/86) A big sleet and ice event caused hopeless traffic snarls across the region.  My script read, "it started out as a bad day and got worse."  There were a lot of days like over the next 20 years. Weather, Redskins and Traffic always are lead stories in Washington.

1986 was also the year that all the traffic folks got together and agreed that the American Legion Bridge was indeed the beltway bridge that spanned the Potomac between Virginia and Maryland - never mind everyone called it the Cabin John Bridge.

There was a bit of car history in '86.  I got to ride in a brand new Hyundai (rhymes with Sunday).  I called it basic transportation at below current market prices.  They've hung around.  The starting price for a Hyundai back then was about $5k. They're higher now!

Technology isn't always perfect.  On the night of March 5, 1986, the automated system that plays "taps" at Arlington National Cemetery ---- played taps 617 times.

Both Montgomery and Fairfax counties were wrangling over growth problems (shocker).  Remember, this was 1986.  Politicians wanted to rein in growth.  Charlie Gilchrist was County Exec. in Montgomery at the time.  He wanted impact fees.  This story hasn't stopped in 24 years.

There was drought, more savings and loan prosecutions, the emergence of the "he said, she said" of two prominent surgeonsin a child custody case - one of the physicians being Dr. Elizabeth Morgan.  The story took reporters down under, to federal court and to DC jail for a news conference I'll never forget.

Perhaps the "nicest" story that year for me was a proposal made in the newspaper (no, they didn't meet online), and we watched as the couple floated in a paddle boat in the Tidal Basin....and released a balloon to let the world know that she said "YES" -  they would be married.  Even Jim Vance was moved...

Only 25 years ago - Different, But Same

Paper Scripts - Remember?

I've finally begun digging through my old scripts (paper - achooo!!) and reviewing what was news 25 years ago.  That's 1985 - when I joined NBC4 in Washington.  Many of the issues then are the same today: improving airport security after several hijackings and the murder, by hijackers, of US Navy Diver Robert Stetham (hometown Waldorf, MD).

Members of Congress called for more air marshals, more R&D money to detect explosives, tighter carry on luggage inspection, including "physical" inspection.  Up for discussion was the International Airport Security Safety Bill.

The big controversy in Washington, DC during the Summer was the anticipated 4th of July concert by the Beach Boys.

The Federal Computer Conference featured 300 exhibitors.  The key phrases were netowrking - ways to make computers make by different  manufacturers talk to each other.  InfoWorld reported a 12-megabyte memory board for an IBM PC was featured at the show.  For many years, the performance of the computer was most important; what you could do with it was starting to catch up.

And laws were starting to catch up with some computer users, namely the use of pedophiles to brag and share pictures.Virginia, among other jurisdictions, were calling for laws to protect children.

A computer company named Seequa had some financial problem and decided to auction off office equipment and 320 of its computers.  An attorney for the the software company that came up with SuperCalc3 showed up with a temporary restraining order to prevent the software from being auctioned off with the computers.  Computers back then retailed for about $2500.

Shades of bank bailouts!  Maryland's Savings and Loan crisis came to a head.  Governor Harry Hughes called a special session of the legislature. Some people went to jail.

And 1985 ended with a lot of stories about Christmas shopping, but no mention of online sales.