The Final Signoff for Karen Adams
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday's 6pm broadcast on Channel 12 was the final newscast for anchor Karen Adams. As news nights go nothing terribly memorable. The lead story was a Johnston house fire. Adams made no mention of her retirement after 21 years at the top of the broadcast. She made her way story after story and at 6:20pm, a 4-minute tribute to her started looking back on her remarkable career.
It was in 1989 when she joined Walter Cryan on the anchor desk - taking over for Janice Glynn. The video profile included testimonials from various politicians and Cryan himself. It also highlighted the thousands of hours of charity work she has done here in Southern New England including her dedicated work with Meeting Street and Crossroads RI.
At 6:24pm, Adams, joined at the anchor desk by meteorologist Tony Petrarca and anchor Mike Montecalvo - become emotional as she wrapped up her career on the air by thanking all the people behind the scenes who helped paved the way for her. "I'm leaving on my own...with my pride intact" Adams then added.
Channel 10 says goodbye as well
While Karen Adams was anchoring her final newscast, down the dial, the folks at Channel 10 were also sending Adams best wishes. At 6:12pm, Channel 10 anchor Patrice Wood took time to wish Adams a happy retirement along with meteorologist Mark Searles. A class act by Channel 10 to acknowledge the main anchor on "another station".
In the final moments of the Channel 12 newscast, Adams said she was not going far and will be in Rhode Island living in Narragansett. She did say she would be part of the station's Telethon coverage on January 29th.
With a simple "thank you...and good night" and then applause by people standing to the side off camera in the studio, 21-years of a television career comes to an end. Station insiders say the search for her replacement continues but it has been narrowed down. No word yet on when a replacement gets named.
Hats off to Karen Adams for coming from out of state to make a name for herself in a place where winning viewers is an art form - not a science.
Jeff Derderian is a former television news reporter and anchor both in Providence and Boston. He is one of the founders of the Station Education Fund. He can be reached at [email protected]
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