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Cronkite’s grandsons at Lincoln Center tribute today
This morning’s Lincoln Center memorial to Walter Cronkite, the legendary CBS News anchor who died in July at age 92, will include appearances by Cronkite’s grandsons Will Ikard, an Austin law student and political consultant; and John Ikard, who recently left Austin to attend the French Culinary Institute.
“The entire immediate family — his children and grandchildren — are going to be receiving the Intrepid Award on behalf of my grandfather for service to the country,” Will Ikard says. “The award itself is a piece of the deck of the USS Intrepid, which is kind of neat.”
President Obama and former President Clinton are scheduled to appear, in addition to CBS president Leslie Moonves and astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Jimmy Buffet and Wynton Marsalis are among the musicians slated to perform.
It’s a given that none of these luminaries knew the legendary broadcaster as well as his family did, and it’s easy to forget that the Ikard boys might have been more or less oblivious to their grandfather’s celebrity.
“I don’t have any point for comparison,” Will Ikard says. “You know, he was just my granddad. In the ways that he was my granddad, he was just like any other wonderful grandfather. I spent summers with him sailing; Christmas in New York with him. I can always remember his eyes lighting up when we came downstairs on Christmas morning, that kind of thing.”
But Will realizes that Cronkite’s career lent his own childhood some extraordinary opportunities.
“He was still this worldwide celebrity, so we’d have Gloria Steinem or Ted Kennedy at dinner with us over the summer; and I flew on the Concorde when I was 6 or 7 to go to Europe with him. Those were experiences that most other people don’t have,” he admits. “It was a combination of just a regular kind, attentive grandfather and a really special, unique experience.”
John Ikard says he perceived his grandfather in much the same way the average viewer would have.
“In person he was exactly like you would hope he would be based on his television persona,” he claims. “Admittedly, I don’t really remember much of my early childhood; by the time I do remember he was already getting older. But he was very kind and very, very funny, which I’m not sure came out as much in his broadcasts as it did in person.”
John recounts that Cronkite enjoyed using his natural gravitas to pull one over on the family by telling “the worst shaggy dog stories of all time,” holding the assembled spellbound for up to 20 minutes at a stretch.
“Because he had so many fascinating stories on so many topics, it was always gripping,” he recalls. “We always were waiting for the finish for some amazing insight into politics or religion or science or whatever and then it was, you know, a terrible pun. It was wonderful.”
This morning’s 2-hour tribute will not be televised, but it will be streamed in a live Webcast on CBSNews.com, CBS.com, ustream.com and, locally, on CBS affiliate KEYE’s Web site, weareaustin.com, beginning at 9:30 a.m. central time.
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