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Showtime Being Sean Again in the Valley Sean McLaughlin grew up in Iowa, became a local TV star here in Phoenix, got great national face time on NBC, and is now back at CBS 5 where he feels at home. |
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Sometimes you have to leave someplace you really like to realize just how much you really love it. CBS 5 Chief Meteorologist and news anchor Sean McLaughlin can definitely relate to that. For years he was recognized as one of the most talented local broadcasters in the country when he was delivering the weather with his subtle humor, certifiable charm, and professionalism each night for KPNX Channel 12. In a day and age when it seems local newscasters are more intent on scaring you to sleep at 10:00, Sean's genuineness blazes through a television set. He's just very good at what he does, and network executives took notice. He was offered a primo weather gig on MSNBC, the primary forecaster for the 24-hour cable network, and he didn't exactly ease into the job. He blew into the homes of Americans around the country like a hurricane. Well, actually, it was a series of hurricanes in the U.S. back in 2004 that found Sean on the air constantly his first weeks on the job, alerting viewers of where they'd hit next and who was in danger. Think about it - after some pretty predictable and safe weather that he had to forecast and cover for over a decade, here he was, trying to get used to a new job, a new city and life on the East Coast away from his family, as major hurricanes pounded Florida. Yes, a lot of people throughout the country saw him on MSNBC and NBC. But the real thrill for Sean's fans in the Valley who missed him (and of course Sean himself) came when he found himself on the TODAY Show, right there with Katie (Couric) and Matt (Lauer), filling in for Al (Roker). His recognition on the number-one network morning show in the country was off the charts. "I actually heard from and saw a lot of people from high school and college who surprised me right on the Plaza," Sean told POST. "It was amazing! When you fill in for Al, you do the first weather hit on the desk sitting right next to Katie and Matt. There was always a moment that I sat there for a second and thought, how did all of this happen to me? It was surreal and incredible at the same time…then I snapped out of it because when the red light went on, I was talking to nearly 10 million people. No pressure…but I loved every minute of it." The part that was extremely difficult, however, was going back to an empty apartment after being in front of millions of people. Yeah, the life of a network television personality sounds and looks glamorous, and it sure isn't bad. But Sean and his family made some serious sacrifices when he left the Valley four years ago. "I actually started by filling in for Al on Memorial Day '04...less than a week after I resigned from 12 News after 12 years. I spent the next few weeks flying back and forth from NYC in meetings with MSNBC of what was needed to 'start' a weather department. I had told them back in February of '04 on my first interview that they needed a weather computer and they said they were on it. I should have been leery. I started full-time just after July 4th, with my first six months housed in a corporate, one-bedroom apartment in lovely Jersey City, New Jersey. The plan at the time was that I would spend the first six months getting used to my new job and search for the best place to live in the city, knowing that I spent five days in Secaucus, New Jersey, at MSNBC, and then each Sunday at 30 Rock for the TODAY Show. Then the hurricanes hit. Five hurricanes hit Florida out of the 15 named storms. The only time in recorded history that five hit one single state in one season. Bonnie, Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. As the only meteorologist on staff...I would start at 4:30 a.m. for the "Early TODAY" Show and go all day long until the end of prime time...and this went on and on until the season was over in December. And by the way...no weather computer until October! I was covering the first handful of storms by myself, using radar loops and images from the Internet! Who says a major network is always organized! But ratings were through the roof and I was on my way. In December, I leased a 3-level brownstone on a tree-lined street in Hoboken, New Jersey, for a year and told my wife Emily to come on out!" The Big Apple was one big adventure. And no doubt, it was a totally different life and lifestyle for the whole family. "The non-stop travel and six-day work weeks definitely made it hard on them, but New York was an amazing experience. We have some classic pictures of our then 8-month-old daughter Mia sitting in Katie's chair on the TODAY Show set, and then riding the subway over to Central Park to play on the swings. She would often visit me on set, and showing her the city after work are some priceless memories. My favorite is when all of us were in the upstairs TODAY Show studio by ourselves, watching the lighting of the 30 Rockefeller Plaza Christmas tree as a couple hundred thousand people cheered on the street below. But my wife won't miss walking up and down three flights of stairs pregnant every day!" Looking back on it all now though, it was a perfect blueprint. The challenges were met on every turn by exciting moments. And no doubt about it, Sean was in the Big Leagues, in a way that he might never choose to do again. (Well, even though he's back on local Phoenix TV full time, he has been called back to NBC to fill in several times on the CBS Early Show on Saturdays last year. And how about this for a little déjà vu, when the monsoon hit last summer, Sean appeared on the CBS Evening News with his old friend Katie Couric.) But forever he will have the tapes of the shows, the photos, and of course, for the rest of his life, some amazing memories. Almost all of them pretty darn good. "Well…there was the time I almost dropped Matt Lauer's birthday cake on live TV…that one was special," Sean said. "You don't mess with a morning show icon's sugar buzz that early in the day. Arguing with Katie over how to pronounce my name on live TV was another good one. (For Valley newcomers, his name is pronounced like this-'Seen', not 'Shawn') Good thing the crew laughed at my comeback! Reporting on the record-breaking hurricane seasons of '04 and '05 was a career highlight. I'll never forget bringing "Katrina" on shore hour by hour. Or reporting live from the President's Inauguration and the return to flight for the Space Shuttle from Florida were most special to me." And it goes without saying that making those TODAY Show appearances had to be intoxicating. But that's another thing about Sean that makes him so likeable to viewers. He's real. And realistic. To put it nicely, TV personalities are some of the most ambitious and cutthroat people you'll ever meet. Most would be secretly hoping, and some praying, that Roker overslept every morning and got fired. But Sean never saw a scenario where what he was doing was anything but a chance to hold down the fort and have some fun. He never looked at it like he was being groomed to take over. "No chance…no way on that one. Again, I came in right when all those hurricanes hit, so I was getting a huge amount of airtime as the ONLY weather anchor at MSNBC. There was literally no one else! I was a one-person department as they reorganized the entire network. Al was also taking lots of vacation time! He loves the job and let's face it, there's only one Al. Anybody that comes in after Al will really have to redefine that role because there's nobody works a crowd and has more fun on TV than Al Roker." Sean and Emily, along with now four-year-old Mia, two-and-a-half-year-old Jack, and 14-month-old Peter, know that Phoenix is home. And if they ever momentarily forget, they get reminded. "I think it's a daily thing. Something reminds me each day why I love the Valley and Arizona so much. From a sunset seen all the way across the horizon instead of behind some tall building…seeing grass and trees EVERY DAY…to no more dodging potholes and trash in the street…actually pulling into a garage instead of circling the block FOREVER to park my car… it's great to be back!" And he's back not only in his familiar weather role, but he's getting a chance to spend even more time on the set anchoring news at 5PM every day and on Sundays. "That was one of the biggest reasons I came back…CBS 5 was offering me a chance to grow as a journalist. I had not anchored since the very beginning of my broadcasting career in Phoenix. Plus a chance to sit next to and learn from the best there is in the market…Kent Dana…who could turn that down?" Before he left, Sean was the PA announcer for the Arizona Cardinals. You may hear his voice at University of Phoenix Stadium again. He filled in for a pre-season game last year and of course the D-Backs still call now for some weather advice on whether to keep the roof open or closed. No matter what he does, Sean and his family have found out you can still get a good slice of pizza here in Phoenix, and the sun tends to shine a little more in the Valley of the Sun than in Hoboken. In life, it's not so much the destination but the journey, and the trip from Phoenix back to Phoenix that veered through Gotham City is one Sean and his family will cherish forever. |
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