The heads of the big three news networks convened at the penthouse of the Le Parker Meridien hotel this morning for a memorial service for Jeff Gralnick who worked at ABC News, CBS News, and NBC News during his TV news career.
NBC President Steve Capus spoke at the event as did Av Westin, the longtime ABC News and CBS News producer and executive. NBC News anchor Brian Williams “brought the house down” says one insider who was there. “He had people rolling on the floor with one vivid description of a certain part of the anatomy of Gralnick’s doberman pincer.”
Williams also recounted some of the emails he gotten over the years from Gralnick, including “Get the stick out of your ass” and “what are you doing wearing that jacket with those shoulder pads?”
When he got up to speak, NBC’s Tom Brokaw joked that he never got those kinds of emails. Gralnick was EP of “NBC Nightly News” during Brokaw’s years bringing the newscast from third to first place.
Former ABC News correspondent Lynn Sherr also spoke at the tribute. CBS News chairman Jeff Fager, ABC News president Ben Sherwood “Today” show co-anchor Ann Curry, “This Week” EP Rick Kaplan, and CBS Sports president Sean McManus, and about 200 others attended.
Gralnick died May 10.