[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 93 (Tuesday, June 19, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1068]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF GIL NOBLE, PRODUCER AND HOST OF WABC TV'S 
                             ``LIKE IT IS''

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 19, 2012

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of my dear longtime 
friend and Harlem native, Gil Noble, who made his transition on Holy 
Thursday, April 5, 2012 at the age of eighty. Born to Jamaican 
immigrants Gilbert and Iris Noble in Harlem on February 22, 1932, Gil 
Noble was a pioneering anchorman and journalist who spent his career 
giving voice to Black Power and the African Diasporic experience. For 
over forty years he was perhaps the nation's most important black 
journalist, bringing the struggle for civil rights and equality into 
the homes of millions of Americans in black and white and in color.
  Growing up influenced by jazz pianist Erroll Garner, a young Gil 
Noble took up the piano and decided as a teen to pursue a career in 
music. He formed the Gil Noble Trio, playing in New York clubs while 
attending City College. Later in life his love of jazz would later lead 
him to become a strong supporter of the Jazz Foundation of America and 
join its board of directors. After graduating, he went on to work for 
Union Carbide and modeled part time, where he met his wife, Jean, also 
a model at that time.
  Gil Noble began his fifty years career in television and programming, 
when he got his first break in broadcast media in 1962, as a part-time 
announcer for Harlem's radio station WLIB. Gil began reporting and 
reading newscasts as well as servicing the Associated Press teletype 
machine and tracking interview tapes. In 1967, he joined WABC TV as a 
reporter and served as anchor for the station's Saturday and Sunday 
night newscast in 1968. Gil's career surged when he was named host of 
WABC TV's ``Like It Is.'' During his numerous decades hosting his 
iconic television program, Like It Is, Gil acquainted the country with 
the story and the culture of Black America.
  The show was truly groundbreaking. It engaged black leaders in 
sports, journalism, film, education, civil rights, politics and 
business, like Bill Cosby, Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne, Sarah Vaughan, 
Sammy Davis, Jr., Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, 
Carmen McRae, Aretha Franklin, Dr. Billy Taylor, Nancy Wilson, Sidney 
Poitier, Imhotep Gary Byrd, (Dr. Ben) Yosef Ben-Jochannan, Muhammad 
Ali, Arthur Ashe, Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson and Minister Louis 
Farrakhan to name a few.
  Gil told it like it is and interviewed national and international 
historic figures like President Nelson Mandela of South Africa and 
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. He interviewed controversial and 
uncontroversial with profound discussions of the world's most important 
issues. I was greatly honored to appear on Like It Is, with Reverend 
Dr. Calvin A. Butts of the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church, where we 
gather to say farewell to our dear friend and legend.
  The program also featured insightful documentaries that delved into 
the lives of Paul Robeson, Martin Luther King, Jr., W.E.B. DuBois, 
Malcolm X, Charlie Parker, Jack Johnson, Fannie Lou Hamer, Adam Clayton 
Powell, Jr., Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture), Justice Bruce Wright and 
countless other prominent figures of the African and Urban Diaspora. 
Perhaps most importantly, it provided an intelligent and progressive 
forum for black Americans that changed the way the nation viewed its 
black citizens. Gil's legacy will continue as a trailblazer for African 
Americans in journalism.
  Mr. Speaker, you would be hard pressed to find anyone in Harlem who 
does not have memories of gathering with friends and family to watch 
Gil Noble eloquently discuss the issues of the day. The death of Gil, a 
son of Harlem, is especially saddening for the Village of Harlem, but 
also our nation and the world. We will all miss this intellectually 
passionate man and the inspiration he gave to our nation.
  On Thursday, April 12, hundreds of Harlemites, New Yorkers and world 
visitors convened at Harlem's historic Abyssinian Baptist Church to pay 
final tribute, respect and honor to a man who was larger than height. 
May our spirit be filled with light and progress and may the light 
guide us through the fear and ignorance of our times in remembrance of 
my dear beloved Gil Noble.

                          ____________________