ABC's Krashesky announces retirement

ABC7 Chicago's veteran anchor Alan Krashesky has announced his retirement. He will anchor his final newscasts on Nov. 22.

Krashesky began his career at ABC 7 as a general assignment reporter on Oct. 4, 1982. He has the distinction of being ABC 7's first morning news anchor. Since then, every newscast he has anchored has consistently been rated No. 1.

"This job is the fulfillment of the dream I had when I first walked in the door at WLS-TV 40 years ago at the age of 21," Krashesky said. "Over the past four decades, I've been incredibly fortunate to have worked alongside some of the best broadcast journalists in the business - and I'm honored that the people of the Chicago area chose to trust us and welcome us into their homes."

Krashesky's work has been honored with numerous awards including Chicago Midwest Emmys and a Peter Lisagor Award.

"Alan Krashesky's career is a template for any aspiring journalist. His professionalism, skill as an anchor and fairness as a reporter has earned not only countless awards but the respect of our viewers and his ABC7 colleagues. We thank him for a remarkable career and wish him nothing but the best. He will be missed by all," said John Idler, ABC7's president and general manager.

Early in his career, Krashesky served as a news reporter and weathercaster for KTBC-TV in Austin, Texas. He also worked on-air in news, weather and sports at WBNG-TV in Binghamton, New York. He gained his first broadcasting experience in college, when he was a news anchor on WICB-FM radio in Ithaca, New York.