Co-workers remember WBBM anchor fondly

WBBM Channel 2 lost a morning mainstay and a strong local presence with the death of Randy Salerno Thursday.

The 45-year-old Salerno was a solid midday anchor at WGN Channel 9 in 2004 when WBBM's President and General Manager Joe Ahern brought him over to Channel 2 in a talent raid. In that, Salerno followed in the footsteps of news director Carol Fowler.

"I was a big fan," said Fowler, now vice president of news at Channel 2. "I certainly was a big advocate to create an opportunity for him here… His gift for talking off-script made him an anchor that was a cut above."

"Randy was a talented news anchor and a major reason for our recent morning-show success," Ahern said in a formal statement issued Friday, "but it was Randy's sense of humor and quick wit that separated him from the rest. He was a skilled journalist, trusted colleague and dear friend to many in our newsroom -- especially to our morning team."

"He was more the regular-guy kind of anchorman," Fowler said, "and I think that made him particularly suited to morning TV, because morning TV tends to be more breezy and casual.

"He was totally comfortable in his skin," she added. "There are a lot of people on TV, they're a different person when they get on camera, and that's just the way it is. You have a camera presence and an off-camera presence. Randy was the same guy. The same guy you saw on the screen was the guy off the air."

Salerno won a local Emmy in 2004 as part of Channel 2's Chicago Marathon coverage and could also handle hard news if the situation demanded it. "He had an extremely bright future," Fowler said. "Certainly here on our morning show the ratings were growing significantly, and I give Randy a lot of credit for that."

Another reason for his success was his strong chemistry with co-anchor Roseanne Tellez, his partner for more than a decade at both Channel 2 and Channel 9.

"Roseanne told me a lot of times that she felt Randy was a brother," Fowler said. "And Randy is the big reason Roseanne came to work here. … She found it really appealing to work with him as a co-anchor, and that was a big draw for her.

"It's kind of like being married to someone," she added. "You're with them a lot of time, and to get along there has to be a trust and respect there."

"I just want everybody to know how lucky I feel to (have worked) with this guy, who was just so funny," Tellez said. "He was so smart and so talented."

There are no immediate plans to replace Salerno. Fowler said traffic reporter Susan Carlson would probably step forward to do more co-anchoring of the news on Monday.

Salerno grew up in Crystal Lake and was active in the community after coming back to town, joining Channel 9 in 1993. The Illinois State communications graduate began his career at WIFR-TV in Rockford and worked at both WMBD-TV and WHOI-TV in Peoria before leaving the Midwest for WNYT-TV in Albany, N.Y. He joined Channel 9 as a general assignment reporter and soon worked his way up to weekend anchor in 1994 before being promoted to midday anchor in 1999.

"All of us at CBS 2 extend our deepest condolences to his wife, Irene, their three children and their extended family," Ahern said.