Gabe Pressman

Journalist; one of the New York legends who was everywhere and covered everything -- via the New York  Times. A quintessential newshound. He was one of those guys who, if you were on his beat and who wasn't, was always up your ass, as it were -- a priceless quality in a journalist but not so much fun for others to be around, as I've observed in the trade. He started in newspapers, of course, then moved into radio. He was perhaps the first TV reporter in New York City. He covered the Andrea Doria, for heaven's sake (1956), Woodstock, the big 1965 blackout, and on and on. He was smart as a whip, he wrote his own stuff, he made his own award-winning documentaries. He could interview and moderate. He innovated, he did tough stories, and most importantly, he believed in what he was doing and he pursued it ardently. He was a force for good.