Has it really been a year already?

  Has it been a year since I pushed a little yellow button on my audio control board that growled “THIS JUST IN TO THE WCBS NEWSROOM”…and then said those words?

“There is an aircraft down in the Hudson River.”

January 15, 2009. It was a pretty average winter day in New York City - sunshine, temps in the 20s - until around 3:30pm.

“There is an aircraft down in the Hudson River.”

So began our WCBS 880 coverage of one of the more remarkable stories I’ve been a part of in my 30 years in broadcasting.

Before I get too far into this, I’d like to invite you to go to our special WCBS 880 “Miracle on the Hudson” web page. It’s a good page…with audio from our coverage that day, video, photos and a whole lot more. Please check it out.

January 15, 2009. What a range of emotions! At first word, a report of an aircraft down in the river is ominous. There were many questions - What kind of plane, did it tumble from the sky or try to land, etc.

My first thought was…it didn’t matter. As a pilot and student of aviation, I knew there was no such thing as a successful water landing by a jetliner. Pilots had tried in the past…with mostly disastrous results. There had never been a water landing by a jetliner where every one emerged unscathed. It was impossible. 

Until January 15, 2009…the day the world met two fellows named Sully and Skiles.

I have two lasting memories of the blur that was our WCBS 880 coverage that day. One is hearing my colleague Peter Haskell apologizing for being out of breath in a live report - he had literally been running alongside the river, as the tide carried the plane downstream. The other is looking at my on-air partner Wayne Cabot when we got word that every one was okay…wanting to say something to the effect of “You have got to be sh*tting me!”…but settling, as I recall, for something like “Wow!” instead.

I was really proud to do what I do on January 15, 2009. I was proud of Wayne Cabot, who showed that day why he’s the best in the business. I was proud of our team of reporters, who fought cold and darkness to paint fabulous audio pictures for our listeners. I was proud of our producer, Jonathan Clark, who never got excited or raised his voice the whole day - just told us what we were doing next. I was proud of our boss, Tim Scheld, who provided guidance and resources…but, otherwise, let his team do their job. I was proud of our newsroom staff, our web staff and even non-newsroom employees who pitched in to help. Heck, I was even proud of myself that day. I thought we all had a pretty good day.

Almost as good as the 155 people onboard Flight 1549 (except our feet didn’t get wet!).

I’ve posted two photos that I took the day after the miracle landing. The plane was eventually corralled and tied up directly across the Hudson from where I live. I literally walked out our back door and took these pics. They’re not all that great…but, they’re my own little photographic evidence of that amazing event.

And, again…please check out our WCBS 880 “Miracle on the Hudson” page. It’s fun to look at and remember…especially knowing that everything turned out okay.

“There is an aircraft down in the Hudson River.”

I sure hope I never have to say those words again.

I saw this headline today on NJ.com…the web site of the Star-Ledger newspaper in Newark:

Former Marine pleads guilty in road-rage shooting of NJ resident

Why? Why did they write it that way?

First of all, any Marine will tell you…there’s no such thing as a “former Marine.” Once a Marine…always a Marine!

But, really…the bigger issue is this. Why did they see the need to identify him as a former military guy? Would they write “former accountant?” “Former teacher?” “Former construction worker?” “Former store clerk?”

I know why they did it. It stretches back to the Vietnam war, when returning veterans were wrongly and unfairly pegged as some sort of deranged baby-killers who could SNAP at any moment.

And, the defendant’s attorney says this “former Marine” suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, after serving in Haiti.

Haiti? Stressful? For a Marine?

I digress.

The story itself is a good one. And, because of the defense lawyer’s claim, the defendant’s past military service is arguably somewhat germane to the story. (You can read the whole story here.)

But for the headline to blast Former Marine is sensational and unfair.

And, unnecessary.

My wife, Jeanne, and I saw Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig in “A Steady Rain” on Broadway Saturday afternoon. It was a powerful, although somewhat dark, show…and, it was cool to be up close to Jackman and Craig in their two-man show. Each actor did a very nice job.

After the show, Jackman and Craig held an impromptu on-stage auction, benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. It’s a great cause. 

We ended up buying a couple of Playbills hand-signed by Jackman and Craig. 

If you’d like to support this very worthy cause, please check out this web site.

Thanks!

p.s. - “A Steady Rain” closes this coming Sunday, with a specially-added 7pm show…in which all proceeds will benefit local, NYC charities.

  When Game Six of the World Series reached the top of the 9th inning last night, I turned down the sound on the TV and turned up the radio. If the Yankees were going to win the World Series, I wanted to hear John Sterling make the call. John didn’t disappoint.

“Ballgame over! World Series over! Yankees win! THHHHEEEE YANKEES WIN!”

I know there are a lot of Yankee haters out there. That’s fine. Whatever.  I’m not one of them.

People here in New York who were born Yankee fans - or at least grew up with the team in the late 1990s - may think that winning the World Series is a birthright. It’s not (as witnessed by the last nine Series-less seasons).

I’m what you call an “acquired taste” Yankee fan. I’m a Yankee fan by choice, thank you…not birthright. I was born in California and then lived 20+ years in Chicago before moving here a few years ago. I don’t know when I started liking the Yankees a little. Maybe all the way back in the 1970s, watching the bickering between Billy Martin and Mr. Steinbrenner.  Maybe it was the late ’90s, with the emergence of Jeter, Pettitte,Posada and Rivera. It was certainly solidified when I joined WCBS 880, the radio flagship of the Yankees. I became a fan!

This is the first time that a team I really liked has won the World Series since the Oakland A’s of the early- to mid-1970s, when I was a kid growing up in California. Oh, I was in Chicago when the White Sox won in 2005. It was fun to watch their World Series run, but I was never a die-hard White Sox (or Cubs) fan.

I’m not a jump-up-and-down kind of fan. But, as I listened to John Sterling call the final out last night, I found myself quietly doing a Derek Jeter-esque bent-arm clenched fist. The radio broadcast on WCBS was several seconds ahead of the TV broadcast…so I knew the outcome before my wife saw the final play on TV. I turned up the sound on the radio.

 Ballgame over! World Series over! Yankees win! THHHHEEEE YANKEES WIN!

Indeed!

So, excuse me, Yankee haters. Let me - and other Yankee fans - enjoy the Yankees’ 27th World Series title.

My WCBS 880 colleague, producer Lou Zambrana, put together this nice AudioFile that brings you the sounds of the Yankees’ Game Six win.

Now…bring on the parade in the Canyon of Heroes!

(Yankee celebration photo courtesy Getty Images)

It must be hard to be a New York Mets fan today. 

The Mets’ hated rival, the Yankees, have advance to the World Series…where they will play the Mets’ hated rival, the Philadelphia Phillies.

What’s a Mets fan to do?

Just ignoring the World Series is not an acceptable answer. Mets fans are some of the most loyal, most passionate fans in all of baseball. And, they are baseball fans. They could never just ignore the World Series.

It’s mathematically impossible for neither team to win the Series. So, that option is out for Mets fans.

I know a bunch of Mets fans. Most of them say they will root for - get this - the Phillies. Yes, their hated division rival…the team that has kept the Mets out of the playoffs the past few years. These Mets fans so hate the Yankees, so despise them, that they will root for any one to beat them. In this case, that “any one” is the hated Phillies.

I don’t know who will win the World Series, but it must really be tough to be a Mets fan right now.

What IS a Mets fan to do?

(Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Yes, the Yankees are in the ALCS. Yes, the Giants are 5-0.

So, it’s time to talk…basketball!

I did the public address announcing last night, as the Knicks played their pre-season home opener against Philadelphia at Madison Square Garden. Here’s a nifty picture taken courtside before the game! 

Something was different last night. No, I don’t mean the Knicks’ Nate Robinson changing his number from 4 to 2.

During the pre-game introductions, instead of announcing referees with names like Dick Bavetta, Jess Kersey and Joe Crawford…I announced Scott Twardoski, Mike Bobiak and Jaime Morales. The only Joe Crawford to be found was a reserve player on the Knicks’ bench.

The regular NBA referees are in the midst of a labor dispute with the NBA. They’ve been locked out, and replaced by…well, “replacement” officials. The replacements come from places like the WNBA and the NBA’s Development League. Last night, for the Knicks and 76ers at the Garden, it was Scott Twardoski, Mike Bobiak and Jaime Morales.

You know what? They did the best they could.

NBA players (and coaches) can be tough on the regular officials. When they get inexperienced replacements, it’s like a shark smelling blood in the water. They make catty remarks. They react with Academy Award-winning performances when a call goes against them. In short, they bait them as best they can.

A retired NBA referee sat courtside to counsel, encourage and rate the replacements. Some of the things he reminded them about seemed pretty basic compared to the NBA refs. But, I thought they did the best they could, and called a decent game. Sure, there were more traveling violations called than usual - NBA players are used to getting away with an extra step or two. And, they called the fouls a little tight. But, all in all, I thought Misters Twardoski, Bobiak and Morales did okay.

Neither team won nor lost because of the officiating. And, at the end of the game (especially a pre-season game with replacement refs) that’s all either team could ask for.

That said, I sure hope this labor dispute can be resolved soon. And, I hope that “other” Joe Crawford will be back at the Garden soon!

The brand new USS New York left Avondale, LA, this morning. She’ll be officially commissioned here in New York City on November 7th. 

The USS NY was built with 7 1/2 tons of World Trade Center steel, which was welded into her bow.

God bless the USS New York and her crew. Fair winds!

(photo courtesy ussnewyork.com)

So, it turns out the suspect in the David Letterman sex extortion case, Mr. Halderman, works for 48 Hours…and was arrested yesterday right here in (or just outside) the CBS Broadcast Center. 

Darn. I wish I had wandered down the elevator and stumbled upon that one!

I get the feeling that when Mr. Halderman’s mug shot is released, I’ll see and say…“Hey, I’ve seen that guy in the cafeteria!”

Seriously…what a story! Every one I’ve run into here in the Broadcast Center today is still buzzing about it.

And, I still think Dave handled it about as well as he could have, given the circumstances. Embarrassing for him, I’m sure…but, he was smart to get out in front of the story.

Okay, let me get this straight.

The Empire State Building was bathed in red and yellow light last night…to mark the 60th anniversary of Communist rule in China. What? China? 

I find it a bit odd that one of the great, iconic structures in the United States of America is paying homage to sometimes ruthless regime with a terrible history of human rights abuses.

I know some one probably paid some one else a whole lot of money to make this happen. And, I know we’re in a new era of cooperation with China.

Blah blah blah.

In the words of that noted social philosopher, Mike Ditka…“Who ya crappin’?”

I don’t recall seeing the ESB illuminated to mark the anniversary of many other countries…from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Why China? Communist China? What’s next? Cuba?

I’m with the protesters who stood outside the Empire State Building last night. This was a bad idea.

I’ll be at the New York Press Club Foundation’s 2009 Journalism Conference tomorrow at NYU’s Kimmel Center. There will be some excellent panel discussions, guaranteed to generate a healthy exchange of ideas.

One of the highlights: My WCBS 880 colleague Irene Cornell will receive the NY Press Club’s President’s Award, recognizing her storied career covering courts and cops.

Every one is welcome! Click here for more details and registration info.