Koppel makes plea as he leaves ‘Nightline’

MSNBC ^ | 11/23/05

[LdSentinal]

Departing anchor asks audience to support show or network will pull it

NEW YORK - As he walked out the door, Ted Koppel couldn’t resist one last dig at the network that almost dumped him three years ago.

Koppel, in his final broadcast Tuesday after more than 25 years as anchor of ABC News’ “Nightline,” asked his fans to give successors Martin Bashir, Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran a fair break when they start on Monday.

“If you don’t,” he said, “I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.”

[Semper Paratus]

He also interviewed a woman who accused whites of flooding NO deliberatly and Koppel said to her "You are a pistol".

He will not be missed.

[tallhappy]

Sorry for what?

Koppel hates to laugh.

[gondramB]

:“If you don’t,” he said, “I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.:

So he just called Nightline a comedy show? :)

[God luvs America]

Terry Moran??

Last I heard him he was the play-by-play guy for Fresno State\Hawaii football game a couple of weeks ago...

[angkor]

What, me worry?

[frogjerk]

"If you don't," he said, "I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you'll be sorry."

What's the difference? Nightline is a joke anyway...

[libertarianPA]

“If you don’t,” he said, “I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.”

I have a feeling I'll get through it... some how.

[dead]

[appleharvey]

“I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.”

I do believe he just described "Nightline".

[cynicom]

Will someone give the clown the hook.

[jennyjenny]

I wouldn't be sorry if they replaced it with some comedy. In fact, if it was any good, it might get me to watch their network for a few minutes a day.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

A liberal circle-jerk with an Alfred E. Newman look-alike for a host?

Nightline wasn't supposed to be a comedy show?

[G.Mason]

Oh please. Can't these pompous, egotistical readers of teleprompter B/S just go away, and spare us their pitiful pontificating?

[wideawake]

We are now Ratherless, Koppelless and Jenningsless.

Suh-weet!

[JennysCool]

You forgot Brokawless.

[DOGEY]

I thought Nightline was a comedy show.

[ncountylee]

Ted left an evil spawn. Being on CNN limits her damage though.

[advance_copy]

"I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry."

I won't be sorry, I will be glad when that Nightline show is yanked.

[Alberta's Child]

“If you don’t,” he said, “I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.”

Actually, I'm looking forward to it.

[wideawake]

I did forget. This is just great.

No one who replaces them will be able to claim any bogus moral authority and be believed.

All we need is a 60 Minutes planecrash and we're good.

[KStorm]

Sure Ted, I'll give them a fair break. I will continue to refuse to tune in to them, just I refused to tune in to you.

[Borges]

Unless they bring Cronkite back!

[Obadiah]

Ted Koppel - just another smug liberal.

[hosepipe]

LoL.....

[DJ Taylor]

The only good Ted Koppel ever did was to inadvertently help defeat Jimmy Carter in the 1980 Presidential Election. He did this by ending his nightly broadcast with a count of how many days the U.S. Embassy in Tehran had been held captive by by Iran, and in doing this he reminded America what a failure Carter was as a President.

[Willie Green]

asked his fans to give successors Martin Bashir, Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran a fair break when they start on Monday

Aren't these the 3rd string substitutes for Good Morning America's Gibson/Sawyer/Perkins/Roberts etc. etc. ???
Cripes, I didn't care much for Koppel, but at least he TRIED to address some issues in depth.
I don't think the morning format is gonna work out on late night, no matter which one does the weather.

[Kokojmudd]

Have the hostages been freed?

[wideawake]

If Cronkite comes back, in the interest of social justice I will turn my weapons on him. I speak metaphorically.

[eyedigress]

South Park syndication would fill the slot just fine Ted.

[Borges]

He turns 90 next year so get ready for some lugubrious CBS reminiscing.

[FormerACLUmember]

Martin Bashir, Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran present fairminded, liberal commentary:

[wideawake]

Ugh. I hope they present him with a platinum chinbucket.

[AppyPappy]

What kind of comedy show?

[SquirrelKing]

...another comedy show...

He had a comedy show?

I thought it was an infomercial for the Hair Club for Men.

[new yorker 77]

The show will be off the air within three years.

[FreedomSurge]

A comedy show would be divorced from reality.
The new nightline hosts are divorced from reality
Therefore the new Nightline Show = a comedy show.

[rlmorel]

These people (like Koppel) all think they are extraordinarily important.

One more lib down the tubes.

[SuziQ]

Yeah, well, if it weren't for the taking of the hostages from the American Embassy in Iran in 1979, old Ted wouldn't have been in that time slot, anyway. He parlayed that event into a permanent gig for himself, so why is he complaining? I figure every single day after the hostages were released on Inauguration Day in 1981 was gravy for him.

[Cinnamon Girl]

Terry Moran? The nut who tag teams with Helen Thomas at WH press briefings?

[napscoordinator]

Not cool. How can you wish that on people when all you do is disagree with their politics. That seems crazy to me.

[Bear_Slayer]

I caught that. It almost seemed like he meant it that way.

[trek]

"I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry."

Personally speaking I would much rather see reruns of Seinfeld than reruns of the '60s.

[napscoordinator]

Not cool. How can you wish that on people when all you do is disagree with their politics. That seems crazy to me.

[Spirochete]

If you don’t,” he said, “I promise you the network will just put another comedy show in this time slot. Then you’ll be sorry.”

Um, no I won't.

[wideawake]

If I only disagreed with the 60 Minutes clowns' politics, you'd be right.

But I wish death on all those who do their best to kill our troops in the field by aiding or abetting our enemies.

60 Minutes makes my country and my family less safe and less secure by the lies and misrepresnetations they deliberately spread.

[bkepley]

One more comedy act and this country will be handed over to the facists you betcha.

[wideawake]

I heard you the first time.

[Bear_Slayer]

If it were the guy at work, or your next door neighbor or some liberal in line at the store, it would be a psychotic, inappropriate thing to hope for, but for the treasonous, that are in a position to enable our enemies, change the landscape of our culture, and topple our nation, then hanging is too good for them. I mean that metaphorically.

[TX Bluebonnet]

If you didn't get enough liberal spin in their nightly news broadcast, Ted was there to spoon feed you more elaborate, in depth, liberal spin.