MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former longtime WCCO-TV news anchor Dave Moore died Wednesday, the station reported.
Moore spent nearly his entire career at the station in his hometown of Minneapolis.
Moore, 73, underwent quadruple bypass surgery in May 1997.
Moore passed away at about 5:10 p.m., according to Cindy Mattson of WCCO-TV. He died following a six-month illness, anchor Don Shelby announced on the air.
“Dave has touched the lives of just about anyone who has called the Twin Cities home,” Shelby told viewers during the station’s 6 p.m. newscast.
Moore anchored WCCO newscasts for 34 years, retiring in 1991 to host a Sunday morning show, “Moore on Sunday.” The show used substitute hosts after Moore’s surgery before going on hiatus in September 1997.
“This will be no maudlin, tearful farewell,” Moore told viewers in the closing minutes of his last newscast on Dec. 6, 1991. “Just a simple, but a very heartfelt thank-you to all of you for your support down through the years. I’ve been very touched by it.”
Born, raised and educated in Minneapolis, Moore was one of the few television anchors to work almost entirely and exclusively in his hometown.
Moore started as a sports reporter for a radio station in Battle Creek, Mich. A year later, in July 1950, the 26-year-old Moore returned home to join the company that came to be known as WCCO Television.
In his early TV days, Moore was an announcer for the “Malderson Dude Ranch” show, hosted “Bowlerama” and did children’s and audience participation shows.
“It was all local programming, of course,” Moore said. “There was no network, no videotape. We just went out and did these things.”
In 1957 the station canceled three shows and introduced a 10 p.m. newscast. CBS newsman Walter Cronkite turned down the job, so Moore was hired as anchorman and held the top spot for 28 years. He anchored the 6 p.m. news from 1968 until 1991.
From 1962 to 1971, Moore hosted and performed on “The Bedtime Nooz,” a late Saturday night satirical review of the day’s news. During the show, Moore drew on his experience as an actor at the University of Minnesota and from local theatrical productions.
For many years he also anchored “The Moore Report,” a documentary and public affairs program. The show won numerous awards, including a George Foster Peabody Award for a special called “Hollow Victory: Vietnam Under Communism.”
In 1985, Moore stepped down from his 10 p.m. news anchor post and continued anchoring the 6 p.m. news until his retirement in 1991 at age 67.
Moore was named Outstanding Broadcast Personality of 1991 by the Minnesota Broadcasters Association. In 1983 he won the Mitchell V. Charnley Award for outstanding contributions to broadcast journalism, presented annually by the Northwest Broadcast News Association, which represents broadcasters in six Upper Midwest states.
Known for his many character voices, Moore was a popular choice for national commercials, corporate videotape presentations and local theater productions.