Former Raycom MyNetwork TV affiliate WUAB/43 Lorain owner Steven J. Cannell passed away late last night at age 69, from complications associated with melanoma.
He was far more known for the multitude of TV series that he created or produced over the past forty years, including “The A-Team,” “21 Jump Street,” The Commish,” “Baretta,” “The Rockford Files,” “The Greatest American Hero,” and “Wiseguy,” among others. Even his studio’s production logo, which featured him pulling out a piece of paper from a typewriter, became iconic (and occasionally parodied).
But Steven J. Cannell also operated Cannell Broadcasting, which had then-independent WUAB/43 in their portfolio for the first half of the 90s. Cannell Broadcasting purchased WUAB back in 1990 from Gaylord Broadcasting, during the station’s twilight years as an independent ‘superstation’ throughout the Midwest. By 1994, in the midst of the CBS-FOX affiliation swap between New World’s WJW/8 and Malrite Communication’s WOIO/19, Cannell leased out operating control of WUAB to Malrite, pairing it with soon-to-be CBS affiliate WOIO.
After that, Cannell’s ownership of WUAB was a mere formality; WUAB and WOIO consolidated operations at their current home in Reserve Square in early 1995, and Malrite finally acquired the station outright in late 1999.
WUAB and WOIO were operated by Malrite until 1998, when Raycom Media took over. It was Raycom that bought WUAB officially in late 1999 or 2000.
Another interesting tidbit about Stephen Cannell’s early career was that he was a writer for the classic Jack Webb series “Adam-12”. Saw his name in the opening credits a few times. RIP…
I was interning at wuab at the old parmatown studios when the sale happened and had the pleasure of introducing myself to and shaking hands with Mr. Cannell on one of his visits to the facility. There was much excitement among the programming and production staff at the time because Mr. Cannell told them he saw wuab as the flagship of a mini-web. Unfortunately for them that never came to pass, obviously, and after the 19/43 joa, he really never looked back.