“Now, why am I gonna call you back when I’m busy looking for replacements for your ass!”*
Today was a sad day for the news. First, we lost the great Peter Jennings. He was 67. I think one of my favorite blogs put it best: “I always thought God would take Rather first.” While I was never an ABC kid, I always liked Mr. Jennings. He had a Mr. Belding quality about him, like he’d be the cool principal, always spouting off useless trivia to make you smarter.
While many may not be aware, the world also lost John H. Johnson. The publisher of Jet and Ebony passed away at the age of 87. When creating those magazines, his goal was to counter the negative portrayal of Blacks in other printed media. While it could be argued whether or not that goal survived changing times, Mr. Johnson was certainly a pioneer. What I learned from him was that 1) all of the best Jet Beauties come from Clinton, MD and 2) if I ever have my wedding pictures published in Jet, I will undoubtedly be the most gorgeous person ever featured in that section. But I digress…Mr. Johnson certainly made his mark on American pop culture, giving Blacks magazines that they could call their own.
Now, let’s just hope that shuttle lands, ’cause there ain’t nobody left to report on it…
*There’s your shout-out, J-E. Man, I sure hope your girl realizes the writing’s on the wall…
