Ukee Washington

Ulysses Samuel "Ukee" Washington III (born August 20, 1958) is an American news co-anchor for the weekday morning newscast on KYW-TV in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He anchors Eyewitness News This Morning on CBS 3 and The CW Philly with co-anchor Erika Von Tiehl, and co-hosts Talk Philly with Pat Ciarrocchi weekdays at noon.^[1] Washington is also the son of Ulysses S. Washington, a noted professor and former football coach at Delaware State University. He is also the Godfather of Philadelphia Eagles safety Nate Allen, as stated in a radio interview by Nate Allen. He attended University of Richmond,^[1] and is an openly-avid fan of that school's Spiders basketball team.

Career at KYW-TV

He joined the station in 1986 as a weekend sportscaster and eventually become the station's primary sportscaster. In 1996, he took on his current assignment as co-anchor.^[1] In addition to his daily anchor duties, he provides viewers with "Keepin' It Reel," a special segment of the morning newscast during which he previews one of the week's theatrical releases and interviews the releases' stars and directors. He is credited with being one of the first African American newscasters to have a shape-up. Washington also hosted the local teen issues discussion show "Rap Around," which dealt with topics such as race, prom fashions, and having a brother. In 2004, he put together a special report on the still controversial Philadelphia Experiment.

On November 11, 2011, a performance was aired on KYW-TV where Washington joined the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale, of which he is a former member, and the "Facebook Volunteer Choir" at the Zion Baptist Church in north Philadelphia in singing God Bless America, in tribute to America's military veterans.^[2] He had been asked by the Philadelphia Phillies to sing God Bless America at a seventh-inning stretch at Citizens Bank Park during the 2011 National League Championship Series, but because the Phillies had been eliminated from the playoffs in the previous round by the St. Louis Cardinals (who went on to win the 2011 World Series), he could not perform for the Phillies. Instead, he chose to film a performance for Veterans Day.

The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia^[3] inducted Washington into their Hall of Fame in 2008.

Other television appearances

Washington is the second cousin of actor Denzel Washington and has had small parts in such movies as Unbreakable (2000), Signs (2002), Shooter (2007), and the 2004 remake of The Manchurian Candidate. He appeared in an episode of the short-lived CBS drama series Hack. He also appeared on The Happening (2008) portraying a television news anchor, his real life profession. He had a minor, non-speaking part in the film Live Free or Die Hard (2007).

References