Star fete TV critic Dusty Saunders for his 50 years at News

Dusty Saunders holds up a copy of the third season of "The Sopranos," after a video testimonial from Rocky Mountain News reporter Mark Wolf mentioned that he had asked Saunders for the episodes many times. The event marked Saunders' 50th anniversary of working for the Rocky Mountain News, mostly as the paper's television critic.

Part testimonial, part roast and all fun, more than 500 well-wishers gathered at the El Jebel Shrine in Denver on Sept. 21 to honor Dusty Saunders ('53) for his 50 years at the Rocky Mountain News. On tape and in person, some of the biggest names in U.S. television delivered razor-sharp barbs and genuine affection for the longtime Denver TV critic.

Emceeing the event was CBS' "The Early Show" host Harry Smith, a former Denver news broadcaster. Among those providing tributes and quips were national broadcasters Tom Brokaw, Peter Jennings, Barbara Walters, Bill Moyers, Bryant Gumbel, Ed Bradley, Tim Russert; Katie Couric, Matt Lauer, Al Roker and Ann Curry, as well as Denver broadcasters Mike Landess of KMGH-Channel 7; Adele Arakawa and Mike Nelson of KUSA-Channel 9; Irv Brown of radio station 950 The Fan; Ernie Bjorkman and Wendy Brockman of KWGN-Channel 2; and Jim Benemann and Molly Hughes of KCNC-Channel 4.

The next day, the celebration was the topic of the Penny Parker's "On the Town" column in the News, in which she reported Saunders' surprising response.

"When it was Dusty's turn at the (microphone), he brought the crowd to an utter silence.

"'You think this is a hell of a party? I'm announcing my retirement Oct. 1, and we'll have a bigger party here. … That was a joke!' (Was that a huge 'whew' that echoed through the auditorium?)"

saunders@rockymountainnews.com