Everyone knows Gene

On May 6, 2023, my fellow directors gave me the honor of inducting Gene Valicenti into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame, the most prestigious award that the state has to offer.

In my introduction of Gene, I told the hundreds in attendance, “if you haven’t heard of Gene Valicenti, you must be from the planet Saturn, or California – same thing.”

Everyone knows Gene.

He’s in our homes five days a week on either television or radio or both.

But not everyone knows his unique background and how he landed in our great state.   Here it is. 

He grew up six houses down from Frank Sinatra’s mother Dolly’s house, in a 17-room home overlooking Manhattan, across the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey.

His family was one of the first Italian-American families in the upscale neighborhood, the result of his late grandfather’s hard work and huge success in the garment manufacturing business.

The Sinatras came later. 

Gene and his mother Leslie (who worked in commodity sales for Mitsubishi in New York) and dad Genarro (an embroidery business owner) and brother Anthony lived on the first floor, while his grandparents, and Uncle Phil, lived on the second floor.

Aunt Gracie lived on the third. 

Gene laughed and remarked “I grew up with more sets of eyes on me than a potato,” but really relished the fact that his early years were full of family, including his grandparents. 

His journey from the cliffs of Weehawken to the televisions and radios in our homes started while in the sixth or seventh grade where he loved watching the news and decided then and there that “he would be a TV anchorman!” 

He did well in school and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Hackensack/Teaneck, New Jersey.

He wrote in the college newspaper, and while a senior in college in 1981, got his first significant paying job at WPIX – Channel 11 in New York City, which set up an office and studio at his college.

Gene described himself as a “gopher,” answering phones, running errands and “babysitting the office.”

He also got a taste of the business, helping reporters and doing some phone calls and research. 

Along the way he married his high school sweetheart and prom date at Weehawken High School, Diane Mandikian. 

Gene landed his first job in front of the camera via public television in Atlantic City, New Jersey, followed by a couple of opportunities in Connecticut.  

He landed his first anchor job at Channel 26 in New London, Connecticut doing the 10 p.m. news.

It was anything but a stable job.

The owner of the station decided that he didn’t want to do news anymore and Gene signed off one fateful night with the words “hope to see you tomorrow!” 

Luckily for him, long-time WJAR Assistant News Director Betty-Jo Cuggini’s father (who lived in Westerly), liked to watch Gene’s broadcasts, and suggested that she take a look at Gene’s skills.

Obviously, she liked what she saw and called Gene in the summer of ’92 and asked him if he would be interested in doing some “freelance” work on Channel 10.

The rest, as they say, is history. 

When he joined WJAR-10 during that fateful summer, he was unsure if he would last 32 days, never mind 32 years!

Over time, he would work every shift and every broadcast timeslot, and plenty of nights, weekends and holidays. 

Eventually, Gene rose through the ranks to become a full-time evening anchor enjoying success on the 5:30 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts, before settling into his longtime seat on NBC-10 News at 6, as Doug White’s successor on one of the highest rated broadcasts in the country. 

Through the years, Gene picked up several Emmy Awards for anchoring and reporting, multiple Edward R. Murrow awards, and the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences “Silver Circle” honor for 25 years of distinguished service.

He also racked up some other prestigious, local awards such as (as mentioned) induction into both the RI Heritage Hall of Fame and the RI Broadcasters Hall of Fame. Over the past 30 years, he’s been chosen more than a dozen times by the readers of RI Monthly as “Best Anchorman” and “Best Radio Host” for their “Best of Rhode Island” awards. This year, he picked up even more!                              

Not surprisingly, his radio show is rated #1 by listeners year after year. 

Additionally, with rare exception, Gene’s morning Newstalk ratings are unequaled nationwide, making him the ratings and revenue leader for one of the most respected legacy stations in the country. Accordingly, he was recently designated as one of the top news/talk top radio shows in the country by Talkers.com, the “bible” of talk radio.

 As Gene is fond of saying: “I’m just filling Salty’s seat and want to do right by him.   It will always be his seat, and I owe it to him to keep it at the top!”  The legendary Salty Brine must be smiling down. 

With all that notoriety and goodwill, it should again be no surprise to our readers that Gene has been approached by both political parties to consider running for public office.  Naturally, we had a few questions.

Asked if he ever thought about running for governor or some other state or federal office he said, “I’ve thought about it.  I remember the words of the late Governor Sundlun: “learn, earn and serve.”  I’m still in the earning stage.  I still have 2 weddings to pay for, so the earning stage has been extended.  I may never make it to the serve stage!” 

Asked which governor he thought most highly of, he said, “I have a lot of respect for Governor Sundlun.  He was a man of action.”

He then laughed and said, “he was also a sharp dresser with his double-breasted suits.   I enjoyed covering him.   He could give as good as take during an interview.” 

His most unusual story?

“The Emery case (the famous case of Adam and Elena Emery who allegedly jumped off the Newport bridge to their deaths).   I was in the courtroom when the guilty verdict came down.  There were so many twists and turns.”

“A year later, I was visiting a makeshift memorial for the two under the Newport Bridge pylon with the lead investigator for the State Police, Kevin Hopkins, when a fisherman radioed in that he found a human skull in a fishing net.   It was her.” 

The most heart-breaking story?

“The Station Nightclub fire.”

Gene was on the air on Channel 10 until about 4 in the morning.   He was also asked to MC the opening of the beautiful Memorial Park.

So, while politics might not be in the cards at the present time, he “likes politicians from both sides,” and especially likes interviewing them on radio.

He said, “it’s fun.  It’s also been good for my career.   Radio shows more of my personality.” 

No one could doubt that he’s been highly successful in an industry that has people coming and going faster than a hotel turnstile.  Gene has been at WJAR Channel 10 for 32 years and WPRO Radio for 14 years, first as a weekend host and then full-time on morning drive from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Recently he even picked up a new station to broadcast his morning show; WXLM (AM 980) in Groton, New London, Connecticut. 

He was quite circumspect about his career and his life in Rhode Island.

“Rhode Island has been very good to me”, said Gene, “I raised my three daughters here, love the state, and love bringing Rhode Islanders the news!”

When he took his turn at the mike during his Hall of Fame induction ceremony he told a heart-warming story about his family.

He said, “Let me close with my great-grandfather Genarro, from Calabria, Italy who made the crossing “one-way” to a new life at the turn of the century.   After working as an unskilled laborer, he lucked into a job as the “bar back” or “bar-boy” for the Essex House Hotel.   He was a man, but still referred to as the “bar boy” or “bar back” when called to stock the bar or to run splits of champagne and bottles of wine to the paying guests upstairs.”

“Fast forward 100 years to the week of 9/11, when his great-grandson was assigned to cover the WTC attacks and to the week when NBC put him up, in of all places, the Essex House Hotel, and to the night he ordered a bottle of wine up to his suite on NBC’s dime.  What would Genaro Valicenti have thought of his great-grandson answering the door … on the other side?” 

Little did the Valicenti family know (a family that practiced old-world traditions and where family always came first) that the kid who was born in Hoboken and raised in Weehawken would become arguably the most recognized face and voice in our great State.

Gene is always happy to shake hands.