As the world of 24-hour news cycles continues to grow in a political landscape that shows no signs of losing people's interests, one of the more recognizable voices of that world is now quiet, as Fox News vet and news radio stalwart Alan Colmes has passed away. He was 66 years old.
At the time of this writing, Alan Colmes' cause of death hasn't been revealed. It was first announced in a statement from his wife Jocelyn, who stated he'd suffered from a brief illness, which is what he succumbed to in the end. According to TVLine, she claimed the only thing the liberal commentator loved more than his work was her, which is a lovely and understandable sentiment for anyone who's heard or seen Colmes at work over the decades.
Born in Manhattan on September 24, 1950, Alan Colmes sought out an education that put him directly in the communications biz, and his early career had him taking on gigs with a variety of radio station in the northeast. Perhaps most notably, he began working for the legendary station WNBC just a year before it was taken off the air for good in 1988, and Colmes was the last person whose voice was heard just prior to the iconic NBC chimes closed things out. His final message:
I'm Alan Colmes. Thank you, God bless you, and for the last time, this is 66 WNBC New York. Let's do the countdown.
Following that, Alan Colmes started up his own radio show and was eventually hired into the Fox News family in 1996, where he became the longtime co-host of Hannity & Colmes with conservative pundit Sean Hannity. The project that made him a household name, Hannity & Colmes aired for 12 years, ending in 2008 when Colmes decided to leave the show, which later became Hannity.
Below you'll see the first thing that Sean Hannity took to social media with upon learning of Alan Colmes' death, which was a nice quiet touch for someone known for his words.
Beyond that extended stint, Fox News remained a home for Alan Colmes, if not one that he visited every day. His later career saw him make frequent visits to The O'Reilly Factor, Fox News Watch and Red Eye w/Greg Gutfeld. He also published a book in 2003 called Red, White & Liberal: How Left Is Right and Right Is Wrong. And, of course, he remained a dedicated host of The Alan Colmes Show until the very end, with its final radio broadcast coming just yesterday, February 22.
We at CinemaBlend send our thoughts and condolences to the family and friends of Alan Colmes during their time of mourning.
