Wayne Fariss, who spent more than a quarter century as anchor at Miami’s WCKT (now WSVN), died Friday at his home in Lake Placid, FL. He was 82.
Fariss began his broadcasting career with Armed Forces Radio. He then joined WDEL-TV in Wilmington, DE before making the move to TV in his hometown of Tampa at WTVT, where he anchored the station’s first newscast.
Fariss moved to South Florida and WCKT (now WSVN) where he would anchor for the next 27 years. In 1984, Fariss went across the state to WEVU (now WZVN) in Ft. Myers as anchor and VP of News. That lasted two more years when he left the TV business for a successful career in real estate.
Fariss leaves behind his wife of 59 years, four children, seven grandchildren and one great grand-daughter.
To get a sense of Fariss’s anchoring — and for a look at how hurricanes were covered in the 1960s — check out this WCKT clip on Hurricane Donna from 1961.