For those of you who watched him and knew him, I need say no more.
For those of you who didn't, I'm not sure there's enough space on the Internet for an adequate characterization.
Grimsby was, by all accounts, quite a character. And those who sat on the set with him, including my predecessor, Bill Beutel, never really knew what would come out of his mouth at any given time.
I suspect we'd get fired if we said 10% of the things Grimsby used to get away with, when he and Beutel reined the airwaves of New York City like few other anchor teams ever did. And like no one ever will again.
All that is prelude to one Grimsby story - told by our director Mark Fetner (40 years on the job, not one sick day - evidence, I think, that he's a man of honor and therefore a reliable source for this story).
During winter storms, when snow coverage takes over the newscast, Grimsby would make this snotservation: "Eyewitness News has learned that it snows in winter."
There is, of course, truth in the snideness. But it was also a tad cruel. After all, his colleagues would spend hours traipsing around in the harsh elements to bring viewers - viewers who made Grimsby enormously popular and able to enjoy a good life - the latest news about transportation, school closings and weather conditions during the storm.
I was thinking about Grimsby today, as we prepared our first cold-snap-of-the-season coverage. Yes, it's December and we're knocking on winter's door. And yes it gets cold in December. And yes it's cold now.
But it's still a good story - a human story, something that affects all of us at the same time. The kind of story that reminds us, simply, that we are all in this together, and no matter our differences - skin color, economic status, educational background - the weather is a huge common denominator.
And so, with all due respect to the memory of a giant of a newscaster here at Ch. 7, Eyewitness News has learned it gets cold in December. And we're all over it. Meteorologist Jeff Smith, in for Lee Goldberg tonight, is tracking the cold front, and has his weekend AccuWeather forecast, at 11.
Also at 11, the economy is making news - but not for job creation.
The House of Representatives today passed a sweeping overhaul of the nation's financial regulations. It's reaction to and fallout from last year's financial market collapse and it has been one of the Obama Administration's top priorities. The bill passed the house - but not by much: 223 to 202. Republicans call the bill a "jobs killer."
We'll see. And we'll have reaction, tonight at 11.
We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Scott Clark with the night's sports. I hope you can join Liz Cho and me, tonight at 11.
BILL RITTER
