My first encounter with Mr. Cronkite was in the mid-80s when he and an entourage were visiting Boothbay Harbor during a Windjammer Days event. He was selling and signing a book he co-authored titled “North by Northeast” regarding sailing to Maine from New Jersey.

He, and I think Thorny Hooper and a Cronkite assistant, handled curiosity seekers.

Mr. Cronkite was quite a sailing enthusiast. He and his family made frequent summer trips up this way and I think, at the time, a Cronkite daughter lived in Maine. There were additional local connections with then-Boothbay Register owner Howard Cowan and “60 Minutes” contributing commentator Andy Rooney. Howard and Mr. Rooney were World War II war correspondents in Europe and made connections through CBS with Mr. Cronkite. In fact, for many years, Andy Rooney had a featured column in the Boothbay Register. I’m not sure how much of a sailor Mr. Rooney was but he and Howard Cowan were good friends. 

The CBS connection expanded for me when Charles Kuralt asked me to photograph for his last book, “Charles Kuralt’s America” which included a variety of images from coastal Maine. 

Charles visited Maine and Boothbay Harbor fairly regularly over the years staying at Brown’s Wharf on the east side. Like many quests of the Brown family, Mr. Ken Brown was a featured attraction as he sat quietly in his favorite corner chair watching guests sign in. There was often a waiting line to greet Ken and share stories. People from all over the world stayed at Brown’s, and an audience with Ken was icing on the cake. Charles Kuralt was no exception and could be seen chatting with Ken frequently during his visits.

That’s how I got the job photographing with Charles. He needed some photos for his book chapter on Boothbay Harbor and asked Ken for a recommendation. Lucky for me! Eventually, when Simon & Schuster published Charles’ book, they used a photo I had made with him at Pemaquid Point for the cover. Lucky times two! We had fun times here in Maine and eventually in New York for publicity photos at his magnificent office on West 57th Street. 

On the day of the photo shown with this week’s adventure, Charles, Ken and I were just setting out from a family slip at the marina for a brief reconnaissance mission. As we pulled away from the dock, Charles spotted Mr. Cronkite, his wife and some family fueling their sailboat at Carousel Marina. In totally uncharacteristic fashion, Charles hollered, “Hey, what are you doing?! You need to wait your turn!” Mr. Cronkite, who’s hearing wasn’t great, seemed to flinch as if not knowing who could be addressing him or from where. But, once he saw Charles and recognized him, the fun began. They had several lighthearted exchanges and Charles introduced Ken and me. I then proposed a photograph which is shared today. Pretty darned lucky I’d say!