Special to The Real Deal Press
Leon Bibb speaks as his cousin — Cleveland mayor Justin Bibb — listens, at street-naming ceremony, March 25, 2022 in Glenville.
Iconic news anchor and journalist Leon Bibb was honored last Friday, March 25 when a portion of the street he grew up on was renamed in his honor.
A portion of Parkgate Ave between East 99 and East 105 will be now known as Leon Bibb Way in celebration of one of the city’s native sons.
Bibb has distinguished himself as a journalist and broadcaster in Cleveland and around the state for 51 years and counting. Now semi-retired at 77, Bibb is still accumulating accolades. He was recently inducted into the Midwest National Academy of Arts and Science gold circle.
The seemingly indefatigable Bibb has worked continuously in journalism since 1971. He has never been without a job in a span of more than half a century in a sometimes-turbulent industry of musical chairs and ratings dances.
Little did Leon know when he received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Bowling Green State University that he was embarking on a career that would see him interview both the convicted killer of Dr Martin Luther King and the first black President of the United States.
Bibb was presented with replicas of the Parkgate Avenue street sign by Glenville area Cleveland city Councilman, Kevin Conwell, who co-hosted the sign-unveiling with his wife, Cuyahoga County Council member, Yvonne Conwell. The event was attended by members of the Greater Cleveland Association of Black Journalists, multimedia colleagues from WKYC and WEWS, Glenville HS cheerleaders from his alma mater, his cousin Justin Bibb — the city’s new mayor who may still be less known, and certainly less seen — along with other family, friends, and community well-wishers.
The mayor offered remarks noting the Bibb family legacy of service. The fathers of both the broadcaster and the mayor were Vietnam veterans. The mayor noted the legacy of service continues as both he and cousin Leon are brothers through their membership in Alpha Phi Alpha, the first college fraternity established by and for black men.
Leon gave tribute in his remarks to his Glenville upbringing. He recalled traveling at 3 years old in a taxicab with his mother to the new family home at 9922 Parkgate as his dad drove the moving van to “their street of dreams” not long after the end of World War II. Bibb said his upbringing gave him a “foundation of family values”. While his father emphasized following the rules, his mother always said, “be kind to others.”
The Bibb house was a stone’s throw across the street from Myles Standish Elementary School, which he attended along with his younger sister. His called his buddies and cousins around his age “the Parkgate 8 or sometimes 9”. They played pick up sports games — baseball, football, track — in neighborhood streets. Every house in the neighborhood had a porch. Those porches were their gateways to their world.
Leon’s career in journalism began right after his graduation from Bowling Green. He worked even as an undergrad at BG’s campus radio station and newspaper. He interned with Cleveland’s Call and Post weekly during the summer 1965 and briefly worked as a reporter at the Cleveland Plain Dealer the following year before serving in the Army during 1966-1968. He returned to Bowling Green after his army service to obtain a master’s degree in broadcast Journalism.
Bibb’s television broadcast career began in Toledo at WTOL in 1971. In 1972, he became a weekend news anchor in Columbus WCMH, staying there until 1977, when he became the first black primetime news anchor in the state of Ohio.
He came back to Cleveland 1979 to work at WKYC as the weekend news anchor. In 1986, thanks in part to community support and public agitation, Leon became Cleveland’s first African American primetime weekday news anchor.
Leon Bibb, surrounded by fellow journalists and friends, at street naming ceremony, March 25, 2022 in Glenville.
In 1995 he was recruited to WEWS to anchor multiple news programs. He became primarily the noon and primetime news anchor from 2002 to 2017. He hosted the Kaleidoscope public affairs program during this time.
In 2018, Bibb returned to WKYC-TV3 with part time status as a senior reporter and commentator. Leon is a member of several Halls of Fame, including those at Glenville High, Bowling Green State University, The Press Club of Cleveland, and the Cleveland Association of Broadcasters.
Bibb has been married to his college sweetheart Marguerite for 50 years. They have two daughters — Jennifer and Alison — and four grandchildren.
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