[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 138 (Wednesday, September 28, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 28, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          HONORING JACK HORNER

 Mr. DURENBERGER. Mr. President, I rise today to honor one of 
the preeminent figures in the history of Minnesota broadcasting.
  Next week, my friend Jack Horner will receive the 1994 Pioneer 
Broadcaster Award from the Minnesota Broadcasters Association. This 
award could not be more appropriate, because in the State of Minnesota, 
Jack Horner was the pioneer broadcaster.
  The history of American broadcasting in this century has exactly two 
parts--before TV and after. In Minnesota, Jack Horner was the man who 
first scouted this Continental Divide.
  On December 7, 1947, Jack became the first person ever to appear on 
television, not just in Minnesota but in the entire midwestern United 
States. His broadcast lasted 25 minutes--during which he introduced 
film clips of football games and the marriage of England's then-
Princess Elizabeth.
  If Jack's sole lifetime achievement had been standing in front of the 
camera that day, his name would still be remembered today. But his 
historic broadcast in 1947 was just one episode in a breathtaking 
career that has spanned nearly five decades.
  When Jack Horner started out in broadcasting, the New Deal was still 
new. It was 1935 when a 22-year-old Jack joined KGFK radio in Moorhead, 
MN--and he was already doing play-by-play coverage of basketball the 
following year. After a number of broadcasting jobs around the Midwest, 
Jack came to the Twin Cities in 1944--and prepared to inaugurate the 
age of television.
  Since 1947, Jack has put together a monumental record of Minnesota 
broadcasting firsts. First baseball game televised in Minnesota (1947). 
First University of Minnesota football telecast (1948). First ever TV 
appearance by the internationally renowned Harlem Globetrotters (1949). 
The list goes on.
  For four decades, Jack Horner has been welcomed into hundreds of 
thousands of living rooms. Countless families welcome his voice--and I 
speak on their behalf when I say ``Thank you, Jack, for giving us your 
work over the last forty years.''
  I myself grew up in rural Minnesota, with a dad who was athletic 
director at St. John's University. My window on sports outside of SJU 
was ``Jack Horner's Corner''--and I thank Jack for the memories.
  Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to join me in wishing this 
historic broadcaster--this good friend--and his wife Cel our warmest 
congratulations on this richly deserved award.

                          ____________________