Of all the crazy things that happened in âMichael Collins' World,â the one most people remember is his rendition of â âTwas The Night Before Christmasâ in 1992 on WLWT-TV.
Collins â who died April 4 of cancer in Palm Springs, California, at age 77 â began brightening Channel 5 newscasts with his feature stories in the late 1980s when Jerry Springer and Norma Rashid anchored the news.
Along with Springerâs nightly commentaries, one of the unique elements of Channel 5âs newscasts after they went from worst to first in the ratings was Collinsâ four-minute âMichael Collins' Worldâ features. (Yes, four minutes devoted to soft news features!)
One of the most talented features reporters in Cincinnati TV history did everything from being an extra in Eight Men Out, filmed here with Charlie Sheen and John Cusack in 1988, to interviewing Frischâs customers during the local restaurantâs promotional stunt about possibly dropping itâs iconic Big Boy logo.
But Collinsâ most enterprising â and enduring â segment was a recitation of the epic 19th century Christmas classic by more than 50 Greater Cincinnati familiar faces. His all-star cast included the Reds Johnny Bench, Tom Browning, Lou Piniella, and Marge Schott; businessmen Buddy LaRosa, Ted Gregory, Doc Rusk, Gene Elkus, and Buddyâs Carpet Barn owner Buddy Kallick; Bengals Boomer Esiason, Sam Wyche, and Ickey Woods; retired kiddie TV hosts Wanda âCaptain Windyâ and âUncle Al Lewis; radio personalities Gary Burbank, Dusty Rhodes, Robin Wood, Marty Brennaman, Joe Nuxhall, Bill Cunningham, Andy Furman, and Wildman Walker; the Enquirerâs Jim Borgman and Jim Knippenberg; Cincinnati Pops conductor Erich Kunzel; two adult dancers; lots of politicians; and the Kwik Brothers.
It was, well, epic. .
"He was just the best. A great writer and friend and one of the funniest people Iâve ever known," says Rashid, Channel 5âs primary co-anchor in the 1980s and 1990s. "He was one of a kind."
Channel 5 reporter John London, who worked with Collins, called him a âterrific, fun guy and a superlative storyteller.â Former WLWT-TV news producer Rob Dauber called him âa smart and creative reporter, and a wonderful friend.â
Born Michael Adamski in Detroit, he attended Ferris State University in Grand Rapids and worked in radio in Cleveland and Detroit before going into television.
Retired WGRR-FM morning host Chris OâBrien first met Collins at Clevelandâs WHK in 1973.
âI did nights and Michael did afternoons. We were both night owls. After I got off at midnight, we'd usually meet at an all-night diner or somewhere, staying up until probably 4 a.m. We lived in the same apartment building in Berea and had many great adventures. Later, we reunited when he came to Channel 5 and I was at Q102,â OâBrien says.
Bill Kubota, who worked with Collins at WLNS-TV in Lansing, Michigan, says the Michigan native worked at WJIM-TV in Lansing before WLWT-TV, and at Detroitâs WJBK-TV after Cincinnati. Collinsâ death was announced April 6 on Collinsâ Facebook page by a friend, Dominic Jr. Lopez.
Collins loved broadcasting history. He did stories on the early days of both Cincinnati and Detroit TV. for WLWT-TVâs 40th anniversary on Feb. 9, 1988 with Nick Clooney:
You can see more of Collinsâ videos on his
