NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Something I can tell you about longtime NewsChannel 5 anchor and host Harry Chapman, he is a man with many friends and many quotes.
"Paul Anka wrote a song," Chapman said. "Memories are time that you borrow to spend when you get to tomorrow. I'm at that moment of life. I've got a lot of great memories."
Really, Chapman's story is practically told in friends.
By 1971, Hope Hines was a sports anchor and past college classmate when he helped Chapman get an audition for a weekend anchor job at Channel 5.
"It was a terrible, terrible audition," Chapman laughed. "Hope said, 'let me go out there. I think I can relax him, and I think you'll see a different person.' I have Hope Hines to thank for my opportunity to have a job at Channel 5. Great guy."
Then came another important friend. At a time it was still rare to see a Black woman anchor a newscast, Chapman and Oprah Winfrey became co-anchors at the station.
"She had that magic when the camera came on," Chapman remembered. "You knew this was somebody special. We were just two young kids happy to have a job in television, making a living."
After years covering the biggest stories in the state, a day came that would change how people heard the name Harry Chapman.
In 1985, Chapman was asked to join Talk of the Town. This was something different from news. It was just fun with friends Debbie Allen and Joe Case.
"Good gracious alive, it was just really spectacular," Chapman said. "I loved doing it. You never knew what was going to happen. We each had personalities that came together. We were different, but it meshed. It fit like a puzzle. Debbie liked to refer to Talk of the Town being talking over the fence, the window into the Nashville community."
The years brought more friends important to Chapman's life, co-workers Meryll Rose, Tuwanda Coleman, and Lelan Statom.
There was something else about Talk of the Town. Chapman always seemed to be catching people on their way to becoming known by the world. He did interviews with Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson just before their major breakthroughs.
It's now been twenty years since Chapman's time on Talk of the Town ended, but he's still recognized for it.
"I must have done something pretty good because people remember," he said.
The Nashville/Midsouth Emmys give awards honoring people for the years they serve an area. On Thursday night, Chapman was inducted into the Gold Circle, honoring someone for 50 years in TV. He's only the third Gold Circle inductee in the region. Friends including Rose, Coleman, and Statom were at the ceremony to see the induction. Another friend sent a recorded message.
"One of the things that have continued to follow you throughout your life, Harry, is you have continued to be patient and kind and generous, and that is why you are getting this award," Oprah Winfrey said in the message. "Congratulations to such a beautiful human who deserves it."
"I'd like to quote from the great blues guitarist Buddy Guy," Chapman said to the crowd. "I came to town looking for a dime and found a quarter. In Nashville, I found more than a quarter. Thank you very much, ladies and gentleman, and thank you for the Gold Circle honor."
Do you have a positive, good news story? You can email me at forrest.sanders@newschannel5.com.
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