CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) -
Doug Mayes, a Charlotte broadcaster and beloved WBTV anchor, has passed away at the age of 93.
He last worked at WBTV News in 1982, but his legacy lives on. He was, and always will be, Charlotte and the Carolinas' first anchorman.
“Doug Mayes was a true professional and outstanding broadcast journalist who inspired generations of men and women in newsrooms all across America,” Governor Pat McCrory said Sunday. “He was a friend of the Charlotte community and he was a friend of mine. Ann and I are deeply saddened and mourn his passing.”
Mayes started his career in radio and as a musician. His talents took him to Nashville to play bass fiddle at the Grand Ole Opry, but was pulled away from the music industry.
In a 2013 interview with Paul Cameron, Mayes said his desire for a steady paycheck led him in a different career direction.
After a stint in the Navy reading news and working radio in Nashville, Mayes rode a bus all night to apply for a coveted job with WBT radio. He won the job and in 1952, made the move to television.
Mayes told Cameron, "I lucked out. Became the Esso reporter." There were only six Esso reporters in the country, including Walter Cronkite.
As the Esso Reporter, Doug commanded the news with one camera and one desk on wheels.
It was a position Mayes held for 15 years, until Esso ended sponsoring newscasts.
From that moment on, Mayes was WBTV's anchorman, teamed with long-time friend and weather pal Clyde "Cloudy" McLean who tried very hard to make Doug crack-up every night.
Anchor John Carter met Mayes when he started working here more than 30 years ago, and recently introduced Mayes when he was inducted into the Charlotte Broadcasters Hall of Fame in August.
"He really and truly embraced his audience and the people out there. He was genuinely interested in what people had to say and that's part of why he was so successful," said Carter. "He's just such a gentlemen, he really was."
In 1982, after 30 years at WBTV, Mayes took a job at WSOC, where he finished his career in 1988.
WBTV News Director Dennis Milligan met Mayes after he re-connected with the station to celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2009. Milligan said Mayes was to the Carolinas was Walter Cronkite was to the nation.
And in 1952, when Mayes started at WBTV, television was considered a new type of media.
“So as a member of this new team of people who developed television news, he had a lot of power,” said Milligan about Mayes’ ability to affect the Carolinas.
“I think Doug was tough, a hard-nosed journalist,” said Milligan.
His career went full circle when he returned to WBTV to co-anchor the 11pm news one night with Molly Grantham. “When the camera came on, so did he,” said Milligan.
The opportunity meant a lot to Mayes, too.
“I don't want to get too serious tonight…but this has really meant something to me deep down in my heart, because this has been always my home in broadcasting,” said Mayes during the broadcast.
Since retirement, Doug spent much of his time at his Lake Norman home offering sound advice.
"From my heart of hearts, be yourself. And work very hard to improve every day. Try to do better today than you did yesterday."
Sunday morning, WBTV reporters and anchors took to twitter to remember the beloved anchor.
A visitation for Mayes will be held Tuesday from 6PM – 8PM at Cavin-Cook Funeral Home at 494 East Plaza Drive (Hwy 150) in Mooresville. The funeral will be on Wednesday morning at 11AM at Denver United Methodist Church on Hwy 16 in Denver. (3910 Hwy 16 North). Both are open to the public. A private burial will follow.
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