By the early 1970s, local TV programming was about to undergo a major change that mirrored changes on a national level.
At the CBS network, a youth movement was launched to target a new demographic. Suddenly cancelled were long-running national programs that appealed to older and rural viewers.
Locally, fast-paced, youth-oriented news formats like "Action News" and "Eyewitness News" were introduced, moving WCAU's more traditional, journalistically oriented news programming into third place.
At WCAU, the network brought in two younger anchors with blow-dried hair to work on air with John Facenda: Judd Hambrick and Mike Tuck.
Hambrick had a short stay in Philadelphia, while Tuck came in as Facenda's last on-air partner.
By 1973, Facenda, 61, announced it was his decision to step down from his anchor's chair. His replacement would be the pair of Tuck and Facenda's protégé, young African-American reporter Jack Jones.
Facenda had interviewed Jones on TV as a high school student in 1968 and Jones was soon brought into the station by Facenda to learn the business.
In his last week on the air, Facenda was lauded on set by CBS executives, with an emotional farewell in 1973. He moved to the station's community affairs department, to concentrate on the kind of programming he helped pioneer a decade earlier.
Of course, by that time, Facenda has his "other gig" as the voice of NFL Films. Back in 1964, filmmaker Ed Sabol was traveling the Philadelphia area previewing his NFL highlights documentary to get feedback from viewers.
One stop was at the San Marco, a popular night spot frequented by WCAU employees, where Facenda reportedly lauded the film within earshot of Sabol. Later, NFL Films first feature, "They Call It Pro Football," was released in 1965, with Facenda supplying the narration.
While at still anchoring at WCAU, Facenda would take a midweek trip across the river to New Jersey to narrate weekly football highlights for Sabol, after he finished his evening newscast.
So by 1973, when Facenda left the anchoring chair, he had become a beloved local institution and national celebrity, which made his departure a tough pill to swallow for WCAU.
Local viewers and the media didn't exactly believe Facenda was leaving on his own terms, and the station was deluged with complaints. The media was even harsher.
The new anchor team of Tuck and Jones struggled in the ratings, only to be replaced by several more teams through the decade.
Facenda was still a presence at the station until his death in September 1984, working on community-related programming, the annual Mummers parade and special events, like the Pope's visit to Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, childrens shows like "Pixanne" and Gene London died out as public TV took on more of an educational role for children. By 1971, "Pixanne" was off the air. Star Jane Norman briefly took the show to New York and then changed careers.
London remained at WCAU until the late 1970s, and also changed careers to become a successful designer in New York.
By the time of John Facenda's death in 1984, the station has kept its strong legacy in community programming, but it was out of the children's broadcasting business.
Facenda With Jack Jones (1968)
