LANGSTON, JOE
Joe Langston (file photo)
(BN)
Joe Langston, whose voice was a signature of Alabama broadcasting news for three decades, died early today. He was 82
Langston, a native of Tuscaloosa County and a graduate of the University of Alabama, joined the staff of WBRC-Channel 6 in 1963, early on appearing on "The Tom York Morning Show" with York and Fannie Flagg. He eventually would become the station's director of news and editorial policy.
Most people, though, knew him as the station's news anchor, delivering the nightly news with an array of cohorts that included Mike Royer, Herb Winches, Pat Gray and others.
"My heart breaks to report that my friend, mentor and the most solid broadcaster I've ever known, Joe Langston passed away early this morning," Royer wrote on Facebook. "I can't put into words how much I'll miss my friend."
Royer, now an anchor at WVTM, joined Langston and sportscaster Winches as the weather man at WBRC as his first job in BIrmingham in 1979.
"He was like a father figure to me," Royer said of Langston this morning. "He was the best newsman I ever knew, always a stickler for using the right words."
"He was on TV back in an era where he had to do everything," Royer added. "Commercials, singing, filling in. He was a unique talent ... He was so funny. Always there with a one-liner."
Flagg called Langston "just an all-around good guy."
"He was such a sweet and funny guy," she said from her home in California. "We had a lot of fun. We used to play jokes on one another, do silly things. He had a great sense of humor."
Langston had a brief stint at Channel 13 before returning to Channel 6, where he retired in 1987. He joined the Jacksonville State University Department of Communication and retired from there as chairman of the department in 1998.
While in TV, Langston received every major award from the Associated Press and United Press International Broadcasters Associations. He was named outstanding alumnus of the University of Alabama College of Communication in 1982 and received the Distinguished Service Award from the University in 1988. He was also a member of the Alabama Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame.
Langston was president of the Alabama Associated Press Broadcasters Association and on the board of directors of the Birmingham Press Club and University of Alabama School of Communication Alumni Association.
Langston is survived by his wife, Margaret, and two children, Joey and Susan.
A service will be held Monday at 2 p.m. at Mountain Brook Baptist Church, with visitation to follow in Hudson Hall. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the church.