| Issue #26, September 22, 2006 |
Neighbor:
Anderson Cooper - TV Anchor
By Kirk Cassels
His face is famous to so many television viewers by now. But for how long, exactly, has this face been a familiar one to the rest of the world? When he squints his eyes, there is something in Anderson Cooper’s sleek and distinguished face that makes you trust his experience in reporting the story. Maybe it is that full head of gray hair or perhaps it is something similar to what you once felt or thought while watching Peter Jennings or Walter Cronkite? Agree or not, when you do watch Anderson Cooper you do know what’s on his mind because it shows in his face. While he dispatches from the frontlines of any location, the gravity of the story always manages to emerge somewhere in his grimace.
Cooper never wastes time with a story nor does he shy away from a challenge, but you would think he takes time to escape from his work at some point or another. At least, that may be a reason he has a pleasantly private spot to call his own in Quogue. While away from the monitors, the mikes and the mayhem, and among sand and seas, who knows what story shows on in his face?
When you consider the number of towns, states, countries and islands Cooper has visited in his career and private life, it is quite flattering that he chooses the East End as his solace spot. Working and living out of New York City may have something to do with it as well. Of course, when you are a descendant of the Vanderbilts, this neck of the woods must be inherently attractive.
For those of you that are actually not familiar with the man, Anderson — or “Andy” as his friends know him— has his own show titled “Anderson Cooper 360,” which airs weeknights on CNN. His first primetime gig with CNN began during the early stages of the conflict in Iraq in March 2003. However, the story that he reported which made him most recognized remains his unforgettable coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Cooper’s immediate presence during and after the storm moved some viewers and colleagues to refer to him as a “first responder.” His poise earned him his two-hour primetime slot shortly thereafter.
Cooper looks comfortable behind his desk in New York City, and he should. He was born in the city almost 40 years ago, and graduated from high school at the Dalton School, eighteen years later. He continued his education at Yale University until he graduated in 1989 with a Bachelor’s Degree in political science. For two summers, he interned for the Central Intelligence Agency at its home base in Langley, VA. A brief academic extension took place when, a few years later, he took a class in Vietnamese at the University of Hanoi.
As fascinated as Cooper may have been by classified intelligence or an exotic language, apparently neither could lure him like the bait of a good story—although travel may have had something to do with it. Cooper’s first stint in journalism began with a small network called Channel One News that broadcast stories to high schools and junior high schools across the country. The market for such news may have been neither saturated nor well-paying, yet the man managed to report, produce and package stories from Russia, Israel, Iran, Rwanda, Bosnia, Somalia, and South Africa as the chief international correspondent.
His credentials landed him a job at ABC News where he provided stories for World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, 20/20 and several interactive World News Now programs. Rumor has it Cooper first sought a receptionist job with ABC during the time between his graduation from Yale and teaming up with Channel One News. Apparently, the company wanted him to get some more experience first. In 2000, Cooper toyed with semi-stardom away from the news desk as a one-time host of the now defunct reality show “The Mole.” Luckily, he followed the advice of close friends to avoid the entertainment branch of the general media.
Cooper arrived at CNN in late 2001 and served as the weekend anchor until the conflict in Iraq began. Ever since, he has shown up with increasing frequency in the average American home and has become synonymous with names like Larry King, Bill O’Reilly and Chris Matthews. Just like them, he will bring you his take on the news whether you like it his way or not. So far, it has done him well and cleared space for a National Headliners Award he won for covering the 2004 tsunami as well as an Emmy for his part in covering Princess Diana’s funeral.
You probably will not see much of Andy while he is out on the East End. He does not headline the latest benefit gala nor does he go on party rampages in public. But he is out here, and some rumors whisper he’s thinking of moving… just down the shore to East Hampton. Whichever corner of the Hamptons he chooses, however, he’ll likely be reporting his own story for quite the smaller audience, but perhaps for quite some time.
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