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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Retiring news anchor Randy Shaw sits for roast

Randy Shaw, retiring KREM 2 News anchor, cracks up at the jabs of chief meteorologist Tom Sherry, left, during a roast for Shaw at the Bing Crosby Theater. (Jesse Tinsley)
Friends and colleagues took turns poking fun at retiring KREM 2 News anchor Randy Shaw on Sunday, but the guest of honor upstaged them all with some of the best zingers of his two-hour roast. “All these people up here made me what I am today: seriously depressed,” Shaw told a crowd of several hundred inside the Bing Crosby Theater in downtown Spokane. “I want them all to know that I’ll remember this until I get to my car,” he added. Shaw is stepping down next month after anchoring more than 24,000 newscasts over a 33-year broadcast career – the longest-running news anchorman in Spokane history. Emcee and Spokesman-Review columnist Doug Clark got the roast warmed up with one of his parody songs, based on Barry Manillow’s “Oh Mandy.” You gave it your best, your heart and soul, but most of us never got past that mole. Oh Randy, every night you just wouldn’t stop talking, nearly drove us insane. Oh Randy…. Local comedian Ken Martin said fellow roaster Jane McCarthy, Shaw’s co-anchor, “was brought in to help Randy sound out the big words.” When it came her turn at the podium, McCarthy compared Shaw to Ron Burgundy, the superficial and pretentious news anchor portrayed in two Will Ferrell films. Then she threw out this one-liner: “I never thought he drank until he came to work sober one day.” Several presenters mocked Shaw’s boating skills. “If Randy ever calls and says let’s go boating, bring a spare,” said Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich. Having gone out on Shaw’s boat on Lake Coeur d’Alene, Knezovich said he was grateful for the rescue services of the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office. KXLY radio show host Rick Rydell had some of the sharpest barbs of the program, even bringing up Rachel Dolezal, the former Spokane NAACP president discredited for lying about her race. “You may remember Rachel. She was the gal who self-identified as black, but wasn’t,” Rydell said. “Well Randy has self-identified as a competent news anchor.” “Randy is gassy,” KREM chief meteorologist Tom Sherry started off his segment. “And I know this better than anyone else.” But Sherry couldn’t refrain from praising his longtime coworker. “It’s no secret that I love Randy. I like being his friend. I will be his friend forever,” he said. “…Professionally he is by far and away the best broadcaster and newsman that has ever worked in Spokane.” Several also commended Shaw for championing the cause of Inland Northwest Honor Flight, which has taken more than 1,000 local war veterans to visit memorials in Washington, D.C. Proceeds from ticket sales to the roast will benefit Honor Flight. “You have inspired thousands of people to donate and raise funds for our cause,” said Tony Lamanna, the director of Honor Flight. Shaw and his wife Suki are moving to Arizona, where they opened a barbecue restaurant south of Phoenix earlier this year. “It’s hard for me to believe that I’ve been paid to be a town crier,” Shaw said to close the roast. He paraphrased an adage from the French author André Gide, saying he made it his code in his work and his life: “Trust in those who seek the truth and doubt everybody who claims to have found it.”