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Tribute to Tony Cruise

Date: Nov. 20, 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Technology and Communication


TRIBUTE TO TONY CRUISE -- (Senate - November 20, 2004)

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. Tony Cruise, the morning voice of WHAS radio in my hometown of Louisville, KY. His love of Louisville and his perseverance and dedication to WHAS is something to be commended. Tony and his family moved to Louisville in 1969. As a child, he fell in love with the city and the voices he heard on the local radio. While most members of the media community long for the "big time" of New York or Los Angeles, Tony's dream, since he was a young man, was to be the morning anchor for WHAS, home of such Kentucky radio giants as Van Vance and Wayne Perkey.

Tony received his first radio job at WWKY in Winchester as the Saturday afternoon disc jockey in 1980. His career almost ended after his first show. Fortunately for future WHAS listeners, Tony was a quick learner. He graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a bachelor's degree in mass communications in 1982.

In 1992, there was a position available at WHAS. Tony wanted this position so badly that he waited outside the station for station manager Skip Essick to head home, so he could lobby for the position. His persistence paid off, when that October, Tony was hired. He hosted "Sports Talk," a call-in show that mainly focused on the interstate feud of athletic prowess between my alma mater, the University of Louisville, and the University of Kentucky.

In May of this year, Tony realized his lifelong dream, when he was named the newest morning show host at WHAS.
Unlike many radio personalities these days who love to offend, Tony is a decent, honest man who opens his heart to his listeners every morning. No wonder he is welcome in so many Kentucky homes, including mine.

Tony is a friend of mine and I have been privileged to be a guest on his show. It is a terrific program. The Louisville community agrees, as some 120,000 people tune in to "The Cruise-man" as he is known, every week. I enjoy and commend him for his excellent work.

I ask all my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to Mr. Tony Cruise for his outstanding contributions to the Louisville community.

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