'This is Eyewitness News!': Meet the 1980s voice of Channel 7┃WABC-TV 75th Anniversary Moment

As WABC-TV celebrates 75 years on the air this summer, we look back at Gil Hodges and how he became Eyewitness News' longtime show announcer.
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[@TigsNYC]

As a Harlem girl born and raised, Channel 7 was the only station my grandma loved to watch. All thanks to Oprah, Jeopardy!, Wheel Of Fortune, Like it Is with Gil Noble and the grand marshal of the station, Eyewitness News! Those shows were the main reason it became the #1 TV station in the NYC media market. Happy 75th anniversary WABC-TV! Thank you for making Eyewitness News a huge part of our lives here in the Big Apple!

[@SigHawk04]

Mara Wolinsky reminding us that Eyewitness News is "number one".

[@jamallugo6544]

very most likely lol

[@US_Joe]

Thanx for this. Tom Snyder was vastly underrated by his own admission of not being politically correct. He was the maverick of journalism.👍👍👍👍👍

[@prycerobertson4695]

He was also the first announcer for ABC’s 20/20.

[@wmbrown6]

I'm curious as to whether there'll be a look at the various test patterns over the first nearly 50 years Channel 7 was on the air, as seen prior to sign-on (actual original telops or slides, not re-creations). There was one in the early to mid-1970's I vaguely remember (where the circle 7 rim was especially narrow), and I know used News Gothic Bold, but I've seen no aircheck with it anywhere since.

[@ericsamuelson5656]

Gil Hodges was Tom Snyder's Johnny Olsen

[@wmbrown6]

The business of thanking the announcer by name after the newscast open was done for years by John Schubeck on KNBC Los Angeles ("Thank you, Don Stanley / Donald Rickles / Victor Bozeman / Peggy Taylor. Good evening, everybody . . . ").

[@will89687]

@@wmbrown6 And switching genres, on the original "Jeopardy!" host Art Fleming would exclaim "Thank you Don Pardo" in his open.

[@bmasters1981]

@@will89687 And Peter Tomarken would say, "Thank you, Rod Roddy" on Press Your Luck on CBS.

[@wmbrown6]

There are episodes of "The Mike Wallace Interview" during its 1957-58 ABC run where Hodges' voice is heard at the end promo'ing upcoming shows "on ABC Television Network." (A few other episodes would have other ABC announcers who would be heard over their airwaves into the '80's, including Ed Jordan and Tedd Lawrence.) When he took over the "EWN" announcing gig, he had quite a few big shoes to fill - those of Scott Vincent, who died in 1979. And whom Hodges referred to in one of his interview clips - I presume the reporter was Mara Wolynski?

[@dulcineadurance1391]

I remember the 4:30 movie then Eyewitness News❤

[@armorybrunotjr.3204]

WABC prominent staff announcers: Don Dowd, Bill Rice, Scott Vincent and Gil Hodges.

[@DBR00]

I always liked Kaity Tong!

[@SamuelGriffin-zt1ze]

Super nice newscasters

[@richardmark561]

Does anyone know who announces the station today ?

[@realandrewcinque22]

No idea thats what i wanna know

[@Honoryoursystem]

Kaity Tong been in the New York media for a long time!

[@realandrewcinque22]

I wonder who the voiceover is now?

[@goldentvcommercialsgroup7279]

The voice behind Newswatch on RPN

[@samuelgriffin4167]

Must've been 1984

[@joshgalka9414]

😃

[@jamesgrant1253]

What happened to him? When did he die

[@johnnyballenatl]

There’s no obituary on this Gilbert Hodges anywhere online, but my guess is he died probably in the ‘90s or early 2000’s.