BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) If you grew up in Western New York in the 70's and 80's and 90's you knew Tom Jolls. "Commander Tom" was part of TV history after joining WKBW TV in 1965.
Tom Jolls passed away Wednesday at the age of 89.
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"I was actually the first weather intern at Channel 7 back in the early 90's," said Meteorologist Andy Parker on WBEN Thursday. "I made a cold call to the station. They pushed me into the weather office and Tom answered the phone. I asked if he would would accept a weather intern. He said, I've never
had one, would you like to be the first?"
That was the start of a long friendship between the two and the start of Parker's career. Parker worked with Jolls until his retirement in 1999.
"After his years in TV, the two would often get together. "Tom liked to keep his finger on the pulse of weather and what was happening in Western New York television," added Parker.
Another colleague remembers Jolls fondly.
"He was a very humble man. He wasn't someone who sought the spotlight. The spotlight found him," said longtime channel 7 Promotions Manager John DiSciullo, now with WBBZ TV.
"In my tenure there, I remember taking Tom and his wife Janice to Wellsville for a parade. When we arrived, Oh my gosh, it was bedlam. They loved him and wanted to touch him, and get pictures and autographs. You saw the full effect of who Tom was. And Tom was so nice. He appreciated all of it," noted DiSciullo.
When it came to weather, Tom Jolls was a trendsetter. "He took a very bland weather presentation when there wasn't a lot of showmanship with weather, and created something that became iconic," said Parker. "He took the weather outside. He was out 'in' the weather." It's something that is still done today.
Jolls also came up with the 'weather word' at the end of his forecasts. There is one word that Tom will always be remembered for, Salubrious. As an intern, Parker said it took him a while to get all of the vowels right. It was a word Jolls didn't like to over-use. It was reserved for only the best weather days.
"The weather word started in the 60's with a handwritten word on a board. eventually it became digital. It was the last graphic shown after the 7-day forecast." Parker added, "It became another 'thing' that Tom had created."
Parker was with Jolls and his family last week. "I can say that right up until the end, he was the Commander. I had an opportunity to talk to his kids. I said, boy your dad never had a bad day. The Tom Jolls that everyone welcomed into their living rooms, when he walked off the set, put his feet up on the desk in the weather center and watched The Golden Girls, that was Tom. He was that way all the time."
Parker said he could not have been mentored, or had a better opportunity to learn from someone who understood how to be a person and to remain that same person in the limelight of television.
"To be able to take that and apply it to my own life was a fantastic opportunity for me. Tom was a 'Grade A' person and one of the best Western New Yorkers we could ever have as a centerpiece for television."
WBBZ TV will air Interviews with the legendary Channel 7 anchor team of Irv, Rick, and Tom Thursday and Friday night at 8p on Ch 67.1; Cable 5; DirecTV67.