Bud Kraehling (1919-2015): Minnesota's Weather Oracle

Bud Kraehling, who died at age 96 this week, was best known as the man who did weather forecasts from the 1950s to the mid-90s at WCCO-TV (Channel 4).  To many of his viewers, he was the oracle of weather in Minnesota long before anyone had ever heard of Doppler radar or meteorology, or of dewpoints and wind chills.

Like many others in the early days of television, Kraehling did his weathercasts the old fashioned way relying on information and equipment that we would consider primitive today.  An on-air presentation back then might look something like this:  Stand in front of a series of maps.  Use a pointer or a marker like a high school teacher would to highlight fronts and storms affecting our weather, and to show temperatures from across the region.  Relay the current conditions, which usually came from the airport.  Deliver the forecast for today and tomorrow, and maybe a couple of days after that.  Throw it to the news anchor or to a commercial when you're done.

After a few years in radio following World War II, Kraehling joined Channel 4 in 1949 when the station went on the air as WTCN (it became WCCO in 1952).  He did a little bit of everything on the air besides the weather, which included live commercials, station breaks and announced for other shows.

Unlike most others in TV weather, Kraehling had a way of communicating with his audience when he was delivering his forecast, or warning of a possible storm, in a calm and personable manner.  His unscripted banter during newscasts with 'CCO icon Dave Moore were, to put it mildly, legendary.

Kraehling left WCCO in 1996, just as a new generation of meteorologists came to TV with millions of dollars in satellite technology, and a newfound importance on weather at local news stations as the reason people watch. 

Today, you can get the latest forecast anytime you want with whatever technology you've got on hand.  Or you can turn on the TV to hear about the latest "Top Ten Weather Day", or live coverage of a storm happening miles away from your home.  But it is the rare chief meteorologist or weekend weather person who can relay that to viewers in a calm and professional manner the way Bud Kraehling did, and wish others did too.  For that, we thank him.