WHEN Channel 5 - Channel 5 Morning Report with Mike Leiderman - "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (1971?)

Transferred direct from Quad 2" tape, and not from Chicago itself, but Chicago-related, as this features Mike Leiderman who would go on to become a fixture both in front of and behind the camera in Chicago television (mainly at WMAQ Channel 5 and WFLD Channel 32).

This was from the days when he was an anchor at CBS affiliate WHEN Channel 5 (now WTVH) in Syracuse, NY. It is one of the four-minute Channel 5 Morning Reports he anchored at 8:55am and 9:55am (ET). On this particular morning, he was outside anchoring in temperatures of 2 degrees above zero, during a particularly brutal winter snowstorm of the type for which Syracuse has been known for many years.

This clip begins with a very brief set of color bars (minus -I and +Q matrix next to each side of the 100% white bar below) and ~400 Hz tone, followed by station ID / promo slide for the syndicated Garry Moore-hosted version of To Tell The Truth for Monday thru Friday at 7:00pm (voiceover by ??)

Opening title for Channel 5 Morning Report (voiceover by ??) (teletype sound effect courtesy Audio Fidelity sound effects library; was most famously used in "Channel One News" segment of the 1974 film "The Groove Tube")

On this cold and snowy morning, Mr. Leiderman starts off by summing up the conditions on the ground, and advises someone with an aunt in Puerto Rico to take a picture of the snow-covered area and send to her to make her feel better. Afterwards, he goes to business:

- Roads through Central and all upstate New York, from Albany to Buffalo, snow-covered and slippery, with visibility cut to zero; State Thruway closed from Utica to Pennsylvania state line; in Syracuse, most major roads are open but secondary roads are closed, and police advise no necessary driving

- Western New York conditions are even worse: Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming counties have all roads closed with visibility at zero, and snowplows even had to be called back in because they weren't making any headway

- Highway crews in Onondaga County had to be pulled off roads but are now back on; quotes Jamesville dispatcher about situation

- Most area schools, including Syracuse area public schools and city and county parochial schools, are closed

- All flights to and from Hancock Airport are cancelled till at least noon; Aviation Commissioner Burt Weidenkopf plans to get passengers to and from their intended destinations as visibility conditions permit

- Greyhound buses are running with some delays; all Penn Central trains are running

- Weather forecast calls for more of the same until this evening, with temperatures not rising above 15 degrees Fahrenheit and going down all the way to zero; next day will be 5 to 15 above

Ending titles, with notice for next newscast at 12:25pm (voiceover by ??) - ends with Leiderman throwing snow into direction of camera

"Well, what's the weather been like so far this morning? Take a look: Blowing and drifting snow, icy fingers, blustery winds, school closings, hazardous driving and stalled cars. It's all part of that Central New York winter we Syracusans have learned to know if not love - certainly not love."

Based on Mr. Leiderman's hairstyle and outfit, and opening promo slide, the period in which this aired on local Syracuse, NY TV would have been around early 1971 at 9:55am.

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