The Walter Cronkite Memorial will honor the centennial of the legendary journalist’s birth with an open house from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5 at the memorial inside Spratt Hall on the campus of Missouri Western State University. The open house will include a monumental new sculpture reflecting Cronkite’s close ties to the exploration of space, screenings of the memorial’s original “And That’s the Way It Is” trilogy, guided tours and an opportunity for visitors to record their own memories of Cronkite. The open house is free and open to the public.
Walter Cronkite was born in St. Joseph on Nov. 4, 1916. He went on to become arguably the most influential journalist of the twentieth century, serving as the anchor of the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981. The Walter Cronkite Memorial was dedicated at Missouri Western on what would have been his 97th birthday in 2013.
The newest addition to the Memorial is a 34-foot tall sculpture titled “We Came In Peace…” by Missouri Western’s artist-in-residence Eric Fuson. It depicts liftoff of the Apollo XI mission, the first manned moon landing. Cronkite is remembered for his simple on-air exclamation of “whew…boy!” when the lunar capsule landed on July 20, 1969, and he later wrote that “the first landing on the moon was, indeed, the most extraordinary story of our time.”
“And That’s the Way It Is” is a trilogy of live multimedia presentations: “Harry & Walter: Missouri’s Native Sons,” starring Jim Korinke as Cronkite and Ken Remmert as Harry Truman; “King & Cronkite,” starring Korinke and Walter Coppage as Martin Luther King Jr.; and “Cronkite,” starring Korinke. In honor of Cronkite’s centennial, the shows have been performed earlier this year at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri; Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri; the Lincoln Center in New York City; and the Newseum in Washington, D.C. The live performances have been recorded, and will be played in the Kemper Recital Hall at noon, 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Guided tours of the memorial will be held at 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. The 6,000 square-foot display features images and videos of Cronkite’s life and the many historic events he covered as a journalist. It also includes unique memorabilia and a replica of the newsroom from which Cronkite broadcast the news.
In 2014, the Missouri Division of Tourism honored Dr. Vartabedian and Missouri Western with the Spotlight Award, which recognizes significant contributions in promoting tourism in Missouri by an individual, business or organization that is not normally considered to be part of the tourism industry. It was also recognized as a “Travel Treasure” by AAA Midwest Traveler magazine. The live multi-media performance “Cronkite” was entered in the 2015 Pulitzer Prize competition by several scholars and journalists.
For more information about the memorial and the Nov. 5 open house, visit www.waltercronkitememorial.org or call 816-271-4100.
Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional liberal arts and professional degree programs. The university offers student-centered, high quality instruction that focuses on experience-based learning, community service, and state-of-the-art technology. Missouri Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit www.missouriwestern.edu.