10-05-2008 Says Award Should Really Go to Wife FOX4 METEOROLOGIST MIKE THOMPSON HONORED Veteran WDAF-FOX4 Meteorologist was inducted into the prestigious Silver Circle of the Mid-America Chapter of the National Academy of Arts & Sciences (NATAS) at the 32nd Annual Emmy Awards on Saturday (10/4) at the Four Seasons Hotel in St. Louis. Thompson was one of just four 2008 inductees into the Silver Circle, which recognizes television professionals with 25 or more years of outstanding service in television. (See box below.) Other Silver winners include anchor Larry Conners of KMOV-TV; Michael Dorman of Charter Communications; and Spencer Koch of KTVI-TV, all from St. Louis. "Actually I was a bit surprised when I found out I was nominated," says Thompson. "It's not something I sit around and think about. But after it sunk in, and I looked at the list of those who have preceded me in this honor, I felt pretty humbled. "There are some pretty lofty names on the list... so it is astonishing to me to be recognized with that group." Ironically, Thompson says he never intended to go into TV weather. While in the Navy he worked in the weather office aboard the USS Lexington in 1978, but never considered making weather forecasting a career. "It's my wife's (LeAnne) fault I ended up on TV!" he jokes. "Two days after I got out of the NAVY she asked me what I intended to do...and I told her I wasn't sure...so she told me to go find a job! "So I went to Oklahoma City and applied for a job with a private weather firm...as a forecaster...and the rest is history." They say behind every great man is a woman. In Thompson's case that is very true. "Whenever my wife complains about the long hours...the public appearances...the projects...the constant interruptions in our personal lives...I remind her how I got into this gig," he says with a chuckle. "Actually, she's a saint...and the one who truly deserves the award. This job is not family friendly, and she's put up with the demands, and the downside of this career that most people don't understand unless they've had to live it. "And she's done it with grace," he adds. "As far as I'm concerned this one is for her!"
STATION BIOGRAPHY
Mike Thompson is the chief meteorologist for FOX 4 and provides weather for the 5, 6, 9, and 10 PM newscasts. Before joining FOX 4 in 1992, Mike was chief meteorologist at KCTV in Kansas City for nine years. Mike was born in Wichita, Kansas, grew up in Burlington, KS, and graduated from Burlington High School. He studied meteorology in the United States Navy, where he was a weather forecaster on the U.S.S. Lexington until 1979. He began his television career in Oklahoma City, at KOKH-TV and KWTV. He then moved to WPCQ-TV in Charlotte, North Carolina. Mike is a holder of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) Seal of Approval. The seal is given to those broadcast meteorologists who display an excellence in presenting their weather program to viewers in a manner that enhances the science of meteorology. In 2006, he became the first Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) in Kansas City. The CBM program certifies that the holder meets specific educational and experience criteria, and has passed rigorous testing in their knowledge and communication of meteorology and related sciences, needed to be an effective broadcast meteorologist.The CBM seal is awarded by the AMS. Mike was one of the first three weather forecasters in the United States to use Doppler radar on air. Between 2006 and 2007, he has won four Emmy Awards for his meteorological work on-air and in the community. He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2005 for Best Weathercaster, and in 2000 for a weather special on the Oklahoma City tornado. In 1997, he was one of 100 meteorologists from across the United States to be personally invited by President Clinton to attend a Global Warming conference in Washington, D.C. During that same year, he received an Emmy nomination in the category of “Weathercaster.” In 1994, Mike was recognized in a national publication, as one of the “top 15 best local weathercasters” in the country. Thompson ranked among other weathercasters from markets as large as Boston, Washington, D.C., Dallas, San Francisco, and Chicago. Mike was a recipient of the Kansas City Media Professional’s “Best TV Reporter-Weather” for 1988, 1991, 1993 and inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994. Mike has been writing and producing “Weathering the Storm” an educational weather show designed for school children, since 1995. Tens of thousands of children have attended this program. Off camera, Mike enjoys water sports, volleyball, music, playing the guitar, running, and BBQ! Mike and LeAnne live in Shawnee, Kan. They have three grown children – all in the Kansas City area.
Mike Thompson, WDAF-TVKansas City. "Mr. Thompson has more than 25 years of experience as a television meteorologist. His on-air work and his involvement in the community have made him a great mentor, teacher, leader and innovator. He is Chief Meteorologist at WDAF-TV. "Over the past 10 years, he developed “School Day at the K,” a weather program to educate the masses in a fun way concerning safety during times of severe weather.
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