TV pioneer dies at 93

A West Texas television trailblazer, George Duesler, died Thursday night at the age of 93.

Duesler, who was the last-surviving founding crew member of KOSA-TV Channel 7, was best known for being the host of “High Noon” for 18 years.

He actually was hired to be the station’s film director, a role he filled for 30 years until his retirement — but he began his tenure on “High Noon” when he was asked to fill in for a couple of weeks.

Instead, Duesler became a mainstay and, with a succession of women co-hosts, made the program one of the highest rated daytime shows.

His son, Gary, said Duesler developed several trademarks that made him a fan favorite, including a down-home style of chatting with guests.

“He called himself a poor man’s Johnny Carson,” the younger Duesler, who also worked at Channel 7 behind the cameras until starting a career in law enforcement, said.

Gary Duesler said his father had a colorful way of dressing. “We’d start out the show by focusing on the socks of the day or the tie of the day.”

Duesler also was known for his goatee, which he wore for the rest of his life, and the cigar that he wielded during the show.

“But he never lit the cigar while he was on the air,” Gary Duesler recalled, “because even in those days, he didn’t think that was the right thing to do on camera.”

Duesler joined Ed Costello, Jay Mehaffey and Lucio Orozco when Channel 7 was introduced to the airwaves in January 1956. He came to Odessa from Monahans, where he’d built and operated the Texan Theater after serving in World War II.

A native of Ohio, Duesler joined the Navy as a gyro technician after his early days in the film business. But once commanders of his ships found out he had contacts that allowed him to acquire all sorts of movies, he became the projectionist.

A couple of Channel 7 cohorts recalled that Duesler was a calming influence during the early days of television.

Dan Kalenak, who joined KOSA-TV a couple of years after it opened, said “he never got ruffled.”

And Kay Gaddy, who was his “High Noon” co-host for seven years, said, “In all those years, I never saw him lose his temper,” adding that was a remarkable accomplishment in a high-stress job where most all of the telecasting, including commercials, was done live.

In addition to covering the local scene, “High Noon” attracted a lot of personalities coming through town. “I remember he had some pretty powerful stars,” Kalenak said. “He interviewed Johnny Cash and a lot of others. It was a well-watched program.”

Gaddy said there were times when scheduled guests had to cancel, so they kept some “regulars” on call, including an Odessa High student named Larry Gatlin who would come over to the station and play and sing on short notice.

Gary Duesler said his dad never lost his affinity for his first love, film. He said it was always “cool” as a kid to have his father showing Popeye cartoons or Bozo the Clown clips at parties and other occasions. The younger Duesler said his father assembled an impressive collection of classic movies that he loved to watch and share with others. “We had projection TV 30 years ago.”

Duesler was preceded in death by his first wife, Ida Mary, and two sons, Billy and Lloyd.

He later met and married second wife Georgia and they traveled extensively. Gary Duesler said his father shot a lot of 16 mm film on trips, remaining true to the medium that he had known for so long.

The younger Duesler said his father’s influence on career choice extended to a third generation. Jed Duesler, Gary’s son, is a photojournalist at Channel 7. And Gary’s stepson, Paul, graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in cinematography and has worked with some of the more well-known filmmakers.

No services are planned in accordance with Duesler’s wishes.

“He’d just want people to get some popcorn and sit back and watch a movie,” Gary Duesler said.