She’s having a baby, someday

Jeriann Ritter and Paul Yeager on his final day at WHO-TV back in 2007.

Let’s get this out in the open. We are not having a baby. We’ve already done that with Noah and Levi. And I don’t mean me and Jeriann.

I’m talking about our friend Jeriann Ritter. The morning meteorologist at WHO-TV in Des Moines is pregnant with her second child. She’s due soon and is working as long as the doctors let her.

I am here to answer a few questions many of you have typed into Google. And lots of you have asked. I guess weather people really drive interest in Iowa. See previous posts on Bryan Karrick. Maybe I should write about Terry Swails or Eileen Loan.

Ok, back to the questions.

Yes. Jeriann Ritter is pregnant.
She is having a baby.
When is Jeriann Ritter due? Mid-January.

I guess many of you found this post asking the question, “What’s in the water?” It featured many of Des Moines area TV ladies becoming mothers.

Many of those mentioned in the post were able to hide behind a desk, plant, or prop in a stand up.
But not Jeriann. When Channel 13 switched to high-definition on all newscasts, they also made changes to their weather package which included showing the meteorologists. ALL of the meteorologists.

I know that the blog kept by the morning crew at Today In Iowa, anchor Patrick Dix has answered several questions about Jerriann and the pending arrival of the baby. Also, the TV13 holiday promo with the morning team was great. Pat and Brooke plus Brad decorating the tree. Then Jeriann comes in, dressed as Santa. Classic Kevin Rivers there.

Jeriann told me last week she hopes the boy comes sooner than the January 17th due date.

Even a Wartburg grad wishes his friend the Buena Vista Beaver the best on her pending arrival.

Merry Christmas

Hope you are enjoying your day.

Here’s a post about working the holiday known at Christmas Day.

And a recap of working Christmas Eve that I posted yesterday. I called it a K-WAY Christmas.

A KWAY Christmas Eve

As I’ve written before, the media profession is one of those that works all days of the year.

You depend on information, mostly the weather, during the days you are going to go to Grandma’s house or try to come home on that day.

Radio stations are the same way, always on, but most of it can be automated.

KWAY Radio studios, Waverly, Iowa. Now Y-993 on your dial.

That wasn’t the case in the late 90′s at Waverly’s AM and FM powerhouse, KWAY. I was a board operator there for a couple of years while at Wartburg. It was a chance to be at a professional radio station and get a little money as well. I would work Saturday and Sunday nights from 6-Midnight.

The station on the southside of Waverly needed to have a board operator from sign on to sign off. I was only there to make sure the satellite signal came in, got through the board and the commercials played correctly. No voice over work or any thing like that.

I believe it was 1996 and my regular Sunday shift was 6p to Midnight on December 24th. No one wanted to trade that night, so it was up to me to work my first Christmas Eve in radio. It wasn’t hard work, but needed to be done as mandated by the FCC.

That was usually the night we opened presents at the Yeager house back in Jesup. Some years we altered it so we were done by 1030 so Mom could go to work for her overnight shift. This year, I asked that we alter it more and not begin until I got home from work. I signed off the station at midnight per FCC requirements and got into the car and made the 45 minute drive home to the farm.

Then we began opening gifts. So really, that year, we opened gifts on Christmas morning. The Yeager’s are part nocturnal, so this was fine. Most nights family will stay up until 2 or 3 anyway, so this year was no different. There were no grandkids in the house that year, just spouses and Uncle Gordon.

That’s not the case anymore. We’re usually done by 8, so some of the kids can go to bed by 9.

Since that night, I’ve anchored the news on Christmas Eve, even shot video at a fight at a north Davenport club. That was my final Christmas Eve night that I’ve worked. Since then, I’ve been gone by 6 or so to be home with family.

My best to those of you working tonight and tomorrow.

Ann Arbor looks a lot like Cedar Rapids

The Clarion Hotel on Jackson Road hosted filming for the Hollywood movie "Cedar Rapids" this week. Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Turns out the producers of the movie Cedar Rapids did want to film the movie in Iowa. (Here’s a little background on the movie Cedar Rapids.)

But at that moment in mid-September of 2009 when pre-production was taking place, the scandal around the Iowa’s Film tax credits was hitting a high note.

So producers went to plan B. Ann Arbor, Michigan.

If you read some of the archives of AnnArbor.com you’ll see a few stories on the movie. Like how producers turned the Clarion Inn into a hotel in Cedar Rapids.

Almost a year to the day of this trailer coming to light, production on the film was wrapping in Michigan.

So again, the Wolverines beat the Hawkeyes. The state of Michigan has chased films after state’s like Iowa suspended the tax cut program. Incoming re-Governor Terry Branstad has said he’ll review the film program, but says he doesn’t see a big tax break portion of the program coming back.

You can’t spell Oscar without CR

Downtown Cedar Rapids.

The city of 5 seasons, smells and high schools is about to get some big time attention.

Get ready for “Cedar Rapids“, the movie.

Have you seen this? Or even heard of this?

First the Butter movie with Jennifer Garner has a little Iowa tie that’s set for release in 2011.

Now comes a story about an insurance convention to the big screen. Ironic? Or just good homework? I guess to truly be Iowan, they would have called a movie about insurance, Des Moines.

My old bus 11 pal Chris Corkery has the right words to describe this.

Not since Field of Dreams has Iowa seen this kind of heat. Complete with
the 500 Days of Summer voice over. If you film “The Iowa Hangover,” they will come.

Here’s the trailer to the movie. Enjoy.

Here’s the official IMDB on the flick. The synopsis of the movie is this:

A naive Midwesterner insurance salesman travels to a big-city convention in an effort to save the jobs of his co-workers.

Again, thanks to Michael Van Gorkom and Chris Corkery for pointing out the movie to the world. At least, my world.

There’s a few cover shots of the city in the trailer to show the movie’s producers at least bought some stock video of town.

There’s a great cast in this film. I love Stephen Root. He was brilliant in Office Space, which starred Marion-native Ron Livingston. Root played Jimmy James in NewsRadio.

Ed Helms, John C. Reilly, Sigourney Weaver, Anne Heche, Rob Corddry and Bob and Tom favorite Mike Birbiglia all star in the movie.

You know, you can’t spell Oscar without CR.

Peek-A-Boo with Levi

Levi squawks at Noah.

Levi is at the age where Peek-a-boo is a fun one. He can play it for hours.

Or what seems to be hours to him.

Or maybe just talk at his brother like he is in this photo from last month.

Here’s a look at little Levi and I playing last week.

Enjoy.

This is kind of like the trick I showed you a couple of weeks ago with Levi saying “ahhh.”

Thanks again for letting me document my child growing up and developing into another crazy Yeager boy.

I still am very thankful there weren’t any videos of young Paul on the internet from those early days. My first days in TV at Wartburg and KIMT are bad enough.

A white, rapping Norwegian, in church

I can’t make this up.

But when TeeVee’s Eric Hanson told me…

I do get to stretch my boundaries and participate in Hope’s kids Christmas program this coming weekend. I’m the only adult, playing a reporter (imagine that) with hundreds of kids in front of 10,000+ Hopesters… and (get ready) I have to rap to a Justin Bieber song. Yes, this could be interesting for a Norwegian Lutheran!

Now, we have video proof of Mr. Eric Hanson of KCCI fame serving as a “reporter” during Lutheran Church of Hope’s children’s Christmas program. Eric is a member there in West Des Moines at Mr. Mike Householder‘s congregation.

Also to share, Eric’s former work place and mine, KWWL, put together this fun video. It appears to feature every employee in the building. I saw many friends who are behind the scenes, including assignment editor, also Wartburg grad, Jason Mortvedt in the video. Another Wartburg grad Leslie Ortner is in the video as well.

Think Ferris Bueller’s Day Off meets the crew on E. 4th Street.

Here’s “Twist and Shout” that includes a dancing Ron Steele.

Then there’s the Dubuque Bureau’s version..

Now, if I couldn’t only get all of those KWWL’ers to wear a hat. Lauren Squires wore one last year for our hat posting. I did catch a few of the other Channel 7 reporters in hat last week in this post. Mr. Hanson had a hat on last year as well as documented in this post.

New winter, new hats

It is the most wonderful time of the year. Reporters being sent out into the snow to tell of ghost stories and travels of long, long ago.

It is time for a new crop of TV reporters to head out and into the winter.

Emily Carlson on Saturday night.

Here we go.

We begin with the Blizzard of 2010.

This is Emily Carlson of WHO-TV13 during her 6p live shot. The snow and wind made it entertaining to watch.

I gotta say, those HD live shots look great. You can really see snow falling and the lights and blowing snow in those freezing arse shots.

Joe Augustine WOI-TV.

Here’s Joe Augustine of WOI-TV. This looked like what we call a “look live” shot, but he still had to go out into the storm.

His hat held him tight and all of us at home were really warm.

Joe is wearing the standard black stocking cap. Much like our friend Matt Davis would wear during his KWQC TV6 days. That was when Dwyer and Michael’s would make fun of him, but felt sorry enough for him to send Matt a couple of new hats to wear on the air.

Ah, I miss those Two Dorks and their pumpkin drop and adult Easter egg hunt.

Laura Nichols, KCCI-TV

A new reporter to the Des Moines market is Laura Nichols of KCCI-TV. This Channel 8 reporter is a Missouri graduate and is full into the Iowa winter.

I could really get into the make and knit of the hat, but won’t do that. Maybe we’ll get a hat expert to do that. She, too, was sent out Saturday night, during the height of the storm to get the story.

Megan Brown, WHO-TV

Another new market member is WHO-TV’s Megan Brown. She is a new multi-media journalist for Rod Peterson’s crew.

Translation, she’s a one-man band. She shoots her own video, edits it and appears on air. Here she is during a Sunday morning live shot.

Best to her in trying to stay warm this winter.

Molly Nelson of KCCI was out in the elements this weekend.

Now we bring in Molly Nelson of KCCI. She was featured in the teaser post for this season.

Molly is an experienced reporter of the market.

The Fort Dodge native is married to a college friend’s brother. Confusing? Her husband is Perry Peterson‘s brother. Perry and I were members of the class of 1998 at Wartburg College.

She’s also a former Drake basketball player, who in my opinion, has made great strides in her career at Channel 8 since starting.

Emily Carlson, still with WHO-TV

Here again is Emily Carlson of WHO-TV.

Different day, different hat.

Same style, but different color of lid. Almost same camera location, but that back door of 1801 Grand provides many views of Des Moines. There used to be a great live shot place with a beauty shot of the DM Skyline, but a loft blocked that view.

I think that loft is mostly empty today.

Recognize her? It’s Emily Carlson again of WHO-TV.

I have a theory of what’s going on here, but won’t share it but with my IPTV lunch crew. I believe Julie, Dave and Brian have heard the story too many times before.

At least I’m not talking about a certain morning anchor who’s changing shows.

Andy Ireland, KCCI-TV

Good to see the sports guys wearing protection.

Andy Ireland of KCCI was sent to Iowa City this week for coverage of the Hawkeye Football team. I believe you call Andy a journalist in this situation.

Is his camera operator a member of the media? A press person? That’s another discussion for another day. Maybe we’ll let Rob Howe of the Hawkeye Insider and Matt Perrault of KXNO discuss that another time.

Keri Gavin, KCCI-TV

And we have Keri Gavin of KCCI back in the blog.

She made an appearance last season with her hat.

Glad to have her back on the beat reporting from the Iowa Statehouse in her standard hat. There was a white construction hat one would wear on a tour of new facility or something, if my memory serves me.

Now time to bring in some other hats from around the state.

Kera Mashek, KWWL-TV

We head to my home area of northeast Iowa.

This would be the entry from KWWL-TV’s Kera Mashek. She’s standing out from of the Channel 7 studios along E. 4th Street in Waterloo.

Notice the school closing listed below her. How fitting that Jesup comes up at the exact moment of her hat’s appearance.

As Col. Hannibal Smith would say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”

She is one of several new faces at KWWL. I guess that again is a reference to the A-Team. Not sure who the call Murdock in the station McElroy, Price and Buckmaster built.

Colleen O'Shaughnessy, KWWL

Thanks to a couple of friends in the market, I first went to KWWL.com to find a picture of Colleen O’Shaughnessy. A few pals said she had a good hat on her head Saturday night.

This was a story about driving north on Highway 63 and said she had trouble getting past Highway 3. I guess that’s why they call it Dead Man’s Corner. Although the original road has changed, many NE Iowa natives know exactly where I’m talking about right now.

Katie Gannon, KTIV

How about a look to the west and KTIV in Sioux City?

Here we find Katie Gannon out on the porch of Sioux City’s Channel 4. KTIV is the sister station of KWWL in Waterloo, so occasionally, you may see Katie pop up on Channel 7 while still doing work for Channel 4.

I don’t know if Katie was in the infamous We Built Sioux City video, but how about taking another look just to make sure?

If you’ve got any other hats or reporters we should look out for, let me know at IPTVPaul@gmail.com and we’ll get them posted. You know this won’t be the only post on reporter hats this season. We’re just getting started, after all.

Bob Nielson, former Wartburg coach.

Now to a couple of obscure, but fun lids found while cruising the interwebs.

Thanks to Romelle Slaughter for the lead on a NFL network reporter NOT wearing a hat in Chicago last week ahead of the Bears/Patriots snow bowl.

I found RHS76 had posted a picture of Minnesota Duluth head football coach Bob Nielson. Romelle knows Coach well, as Nielson was at Wartburg our first two years on campus in Waverly.

Now, Bob is coaching UMD. The Bulldogs are playing in the Division II national championship game this weekend in Alabama. Best to the man who inspired Bob’s Band back in the 1990′s.

Ed Werder, ESPN

And thanks to the news and sports director at KCNZ, Jesse Gavin, for this picture of ESPN’s Ed Werder. The reporter for the Mother Ship is standing in front of the deflated dome in Minneapolis. I was promised some Twin Cities pictures of reporters. We’ll see what we can do for next time.

Until then, thanks for reading the blog. Glad to have you aboard.

Preview of New Hats for the New Season

Molly Nelson of KCCI was out in the elements this weekend.

You have been warned.

I have lots of new pictures of TV reporters wearing hats during last week’s blizzard and the cold weather that has lingered this week.

One reporter is trying to set a market record for different number of hats she’s worn in consecutive liveshots. Those pictures will post later.

For now, a teaser of what lies ahead. Thanks to Molly Nelson of KCCI-TV in Des Moines for the shot. Her shot is really not a hat, but a great parka hood. Very cool.

If you’ve got a shot of a friend in their hat, send it to IPTVPaul@gmail.com and we’ll get it posted.

For the record, that post is now live. Enjoy.

Smiling Levi

Levi reads the paper.

I’m going through some of the pictures from the past year and have been reminded just how much my little Levi is growing and has grown in the last year.

Here’s a shot from late March, 2010.

Levi was playing around with the newspaper in this shot.

He’s really been a smiling little guy. I think his older brother is always helping him smile.

The two of them do seem to get along. Although, I’m not sure Levi knows he’s getting along or drug along in some moments.

How quickly they grow up. I know soon I’ll be posting their graduation pictures.

Levi at bath time.

Here’s Levi in the bath in November of 2010. There’s still quite a smile on this guy. He really loves the bath. He fights hardest when it is time to get out of the bath. He does wear earplugs to protect the tubes in his ears.

I’ll wait on posting the Christmas card photo of Noah and Levi. I’ll update you on the boys after that.

For now, enjoy my not-so-little-anymore guy.