Here’s an edition of the ABC Evening News with Harry Reasoner and Barbara Walters as aired over WLS Channel 7. This was from not long after Roone Arledge took over as President of ABC News, and began a transition of presentation that culminated in the rollout next July of World News Tonight. (It was also three months to the day after the commencement of the second New York City blackout – and one day before the death of legendary entertainer Bing Crosby.)

Includes:

Newscast open (voiceover by Bill Rice), with preview of major four stories (voiceovers by Sam Donaldson, Geraldo Rivera, Dan Cordtz and Barbara Walters), and items:

– Sam Donaldson on President Carter’s attack on oil companies in attempt to drum up support for his energy policies [Note: about 30 seconds of the report had to be edited out to prevent Copyright issues], followed by Don Farmer at Senate with remarks from Sens. Russell Long (D-LA), Howard Baker (R-TN) and Henry Jackson (D-WA), and Roger Peterson with reactions from oil industry executives Hill Bonin (Gulf Oil) and John Swearingen (Standard of Indiana a.k.a. Amoco – massive tracking issues during his segment)

– Carter continues to emphasize urban blight problem in wake of his visit to South Bronx; James Walker reports on one apartment building that fell big-time to neglect, with a sad tale of the last resident known as Pearlie

Commercials for:
Nabisco Wheat Thins (with Sandy Duncan at a wheat field)
Geritol

– Geraldo Rivera on phenomenon of PCP (a.k.a. ‘angel dust’); better off users more eager to conceal their identities than poorer users

Commercials for:
Sunbeam Mixmaster Mixer (with Shirley Jones)
Edison Electric Institute (a father speaking to his children on how long it takes power plants to build)
Pontiac Grand Prix
A1 Steak Sauce

– Parents go to court in San Francisco over IQ tests they say discriminate against their children; Bill Redeker reports about battle over Wechsler Intelligence Scale (WISC), featuring interviews with education expert Asa Hilliard, mother Selena Lannigan and her son James Lannigan, and state school superintendent Wilson Riles

Wall Street closing numbers

Commercials for:
Delta faucets
Doan’s Pills
KitchenAid dishwashers
General Electric reflector bulbs (75 vs. 150 watts)

– Carter proposes tax cut that hinges on state of economy; Ann Compton reports on steel industry and union leaders’ meetings with him to aid the industry, and Dan Cordtz outside Bethlehem Steel plant in Sparrows Point, MD, on examples of how modernizing steel mills would be very costly

– President, at press conference, says Panama Canal Treaty may need some clarification, but no rewriting

– Last week’s meeting between Carter and Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan wasn’t exactly diplomatic

– West German airplane hijacked over Spain, forced to land on Cyprus; 90 passengers on board

– Nobel Prize for medicine won by Rosalyn Yalow of New York, Roger Guillemin of San Diego, CA, and Andrew Schally of New Orleans, LA, for “brilliant and formidable research into hormones”

Commercials for:
Final Net non-aerosol hairspray (woman on campaign trail)
Litton Meal-in-One Microwave Oven

– As World Series pauses at 1-1 tie and action moves to Los Angeles, Barbara interviews New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, after a look at his early career as a shipbuilder, going from there to owning racehorses (a look at his Ocala, FL stud farm) and backing Broadway plays to acquiring the team in 1973 for $10 million

And with that, the newscast ends

Beginning of promo of night’s schedule, starting with Welcome Back, Kotter, before recording ends (voiceover by Bill Rice)

This aired on local Chicago TV on Thursday, October 13th 1977 during the 5:30pm to 5:58pm timeframe.

This was from a tape donated to The Museum of Classic Chicago Television as part of The Mike and Britta Fayette Collection.

About The Museum of Classic Chicago Television:

The MCCTv (FuzzyMemoriesTV) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose primary mission is the preservation and display of off-air, early home videotape recordings (70s to early 80s, mostly) recorded off of TV (in Chicago or other cities now too); things which would likely be lost if not sought out and preserved digitally. If you have any old 1970s videotapes recorded off of TV please email: tapes@fuzzy.tv Even though (mostly) short clips are displayed here, we preserve the entire broadcasts in our archives – the complete programs with breaks (or however much is present on the tape), for historical preservation. For information on how to help in our mission, to donate or lend tapes to be converted to digital, please e-mail tapes@fuzzy.tv Thank you for your help!

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