Iconic Weatherman DeMere Talks Work as TV Pioneer

Editor's note: An earlier version of this article and an earlier subheadline incorrectly identified Howard DeMere's city of residence. DeMere lives in University City near Clayton. This story has been updated to reflect the correct city.

Howard DeMere is a pioneer of St. Louis television who lives near Clayton*. He was the first and only weatherman on the air in 1949. He didn’t have any competition until the early 1950s.

The people of St. Louis tuned in daily for 30 years as DeMere gave them their daily and weekly forecasts, bidding them good night with his signature sign-off, “That’s all from here, Howard DeMere.”

Since his retirement in 1979, the University City resident* has maintained an active role in the community, working with the St. Charles County Historical Society and keeping up-to-date on the latest technological advances in media. Because of his work and status as a St. Louis media icon, he will be inducted into the St. Louis Media Hall of Fame on Wednesday, where he will join other icons such as Bob Costas, Jack Buck and Harry Caray.

Clayton-Richmond Heights Patch recently talked with the famous newsman about his life, career and future in preparation for his induction.

When did you realize you wanted a career in broadcast?

That would be all the way back when I was a child during the Great Depression. I was born Dec. 24, 1925, in Wichita Falls, TX. I was always a curious kid, and that was most responsible for my career. Radio was the dominant and emerging technology of my time, and I had a second cousin, on my mother’s side, who ran his own radio station.

His name was Joseph B. Carrigan, and as part of a school project I interviewed him.I was infatuated by whole concept of interviewing, and this gave birth to the reporter in me. As for my cousin, he was impressed with the report— which I received an A for—and asked me if I would like to work at the radio station after school and Saturday mornings as the office boy.

I accepted and worked there beginning my sophomore year through the end of high school. He was a bit of a tyrant, but I liked the job. He made a good man out of me, and the office helped me realize I wanted to be an announcer.

What made you think you could make it as an announcer?

As a child, that was the farthest thing from my mind. I was a very shy boy. My mother, Nina Barwise DeMere, believed that every boy should know how to speak, so she had me take speech electives throughout school. I took the speech classes, signed up for drama and did as much as I could to improve my speaking and work on my shyness.

When I took a radio speech class in high school, the one I interviewed my cousin for, I thought it was great. I was still pretty shy, but with radio I’d be reading off a script, so I went with it.

Following high school, what did you do to prepare yourself for life as a journalist?

First, I joined the army in 1943. I served for three years during the end of World War II, and then I went to junior college. I applied for the University of Oklahoma School of Journalism shortly after. They had a top-of-the-line program, and I wanted to stay fairly close to home and mother.

My professor happened to be a news director at WKY, a radio station in Oklahoma City, and asked me to come up and audition. They gave me a job as an announcer, and I moved there from Norman with my wife and child. I wasn’t finished with my degree, and I would commute from Oklahoma City to Norman for classes, and then back for work until graduation.

What brought you to St. Louis?

I traveled to St. Louis on my way to interview with the NBC affiliate in Chicago. I turned down the job in Chicago and began looking into St. Louis. My family actually originated in St. Charles County, when my great-grandfather, J.H. Barwise, packed up the family in 1878 and headed south to found Wichita Falls. I wanted to learn more about my family history, so I interviewed at KSD radio and television (now KSDK) in 1949.

TV had only been on air in St. Louis for a year and a half. We wouldn’t even sign on until 3 p.m., and the station was black on Sundays and Tuesdays. It worked a lot different than it does in today’s 24-hour, seven days a week cycle. I was an unwitting pioneer, and we used very rough and crude equipment and methods to get on the air. I ended up being the weatherman for what would become Channel 5, and I stayed on until my retirement in 1979.

Looking back, what do you think of your career, and what does this reward mean to your legacy? Where do you see the medium going in the future?

I don’t mean to demean the reward or take away from its significance, but my philosophy is people make their own halls of fame. I walked away very satisfied with my work. I loved going in, and I enjoyed doing it. The psychic income, the pleasure I received in doing the job, that was the real reward. That’s what I gave myself.

As for the future, that belongs to broadband. I’ve lived through every technological achievement since radio, and the wonder I had back then applies now to the Internet. I’d describe myself as one of the few 85-year-old techno-geeks, and that’s because I want to understand it. Our ability to break news instantly is like nothing before it, and not just paper publications, but TV is at risk of losing its relevancy thanks to the Internet.

I’m really excited about the prospects of it and look forward to seeing where it all leads.

DeMere writes his own blog detailing Barwise family history. He has worked with both the St. Charles County Historical Society and Wichita County Heritage Society.