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KGBT (RGV) pushes Larry James out the door

S

Smittian

After 43 years at KGBT, weatherman Larry James announced his "retirement" effective immediately.

http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/james_25042___article.html/station_kgbt.html

I'm not buying this "retirement" story. You don't stay in one place for nearly 44 years and up and retire abruptly and refuse comment except to direct all questions to the TV station. And if he had indeed retired, why is KGBT also refusing to comment?

Sounds like age discrimination at it's finest. It wouldn't be the first time KGBT has done something like this. Frank Sullivan had the same fate fall upon him a few years back. He sued the station for age discrimination and won.


Get a good lawyer, Larry!
 
Actually, Larry's been hosed before.

When I was working down in the Valley (late 70s, early 80s) he was their prime weatherman, and dominant in the market. Then the old company sold to out of staters and the first thing they did was take Larry down a peg. I heard from folks at my old station there that he had to take a severe salary cut and was relegated to second team status. Frankly, I never cared for Larry's style on the air, but he has gone the route of many Valley TV folks and given his entire life to one station. If people in larger markets followed the example of those folks who have been down there in the RGV for 20+ years, local news would a product far superior to what it is today.

As I remember, Larry's first stumble came during Hurricane Allen, and it wasn't even his fault. When the TV stations went down, the competition over at KRGV kept their radio signal up and blew (so to speak) KGBT out of the water. KRGV was also the first back on video after the storm and it seemed like ever since then, led the market in weather coverage. None of that was Larry's fault, but if you want to trace the fall of what was a once-dominant station, that's as good a place to start as any.

Frank and Hilda Sullivan...I remember them so well. I don't think either of them could get a job in any decent-sized market in Texas today, and we're all the poorer for it. And I won't even start on the list of folks over at KRGV who took that market from KGBT and have had their hands full as more and more competition signed on over the past few years.

They're all good local people doing good local television. And there's not nearly enough of that any more.

You're right, Smittian...Get a good lawyer, Larry! Frank did it, so can you. KGBT, as you well know, is not the place we all knew.
 
I had completely forgotten about Hilda and Frank Sullivan. Didn't Frank win a huge settlement from KGBT?

Good Luck Larry! I hope you have hired a good lawyer! KGBT deserves whatever they get!
 
Frank got something, I think Hilda may have either died or was very ill by the time that came about. More injustice from what was KGBT.
 
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