Remembering A Dear Friend One Year Later

A year ago today, the radio world lost one of it's best broadcasters, a pioneer in my ol' hometown of New York City as he entertained audiences for over four decades from his days of being a WMCA "Good Guy", a WABC "All-American" and WCBS-FM's "Morning Mayor". Harry Harrison's unique conversational personality on the air was embraced by his loyal and true listeners as his one-on-one communication skills resonated in high fashion and it showed during each and every broadcast.

Harry was an instrumental part of my life as I always started off my day by hearing his pleasant voice over the speaker and it felt like he was talking to me directly after introducing a song, reading a live commercial or even giving me today's weather conditions and let me what time it was so I would not be late for school or work.

I was also fortunate to call Harry my friend in life and when getting together, he taught me the fundamentals of broadcasting and how to be a good announcer. His advice was very valuable through the years as I practiced what he preached plus his edict to me was to put my audience FIRST because you are entertaining the listeners that tune in  and not myself.

Last year, I lost three individuals who were a key part of my daily life: My mom, Dawn Wells and Harry Harrison who left us at the age of 89 on January 28th, 2020. Ironically, he passed away at 1:01 pm (the frequency of WCBS-FM where he played New York's Greatest Hits Of ALL Time each and every weekday morning from 5:30 to 9 am for over two decades). His memory remains eternal and everlasting and my goal is to continue in keeping his legacy alive by instilling what he taught me to be a better broadcaster on WSBS each and every day.

My thoughts and prayers go out to his daughter, Patti and his son, Patrick as their father is sorely missed each and every day. Tributes and remembrances continue on social media to acknowledge his unique on-air talent and all the joy he brought to everyone who tuned into his radio show on a daily basis.

In closing, I'll mention his final words upon signing off; "Wishing you the BEST: That is exactly what you deserve"

(Photo image courtesy of The Fans Of Harry Harrison Facebook page)