This awful business, again.
RIP Marvin Zindler, consumer reporter extraordinaire, Chicken Ranch squawker, man whose yelling his sign-off scared the bejeezus out of me for the first five years of my life...laid to rest today at Beth Israel Cemetery in southwest Houston.
And what a story Marvin's is. His name probably means little to those of you not in Houston - but Marvin is most certainly a local legend, and say what anyone will, he got a lot of things done in the 35 years he was on the air. His weekly "Rat and Roach Reports" exposed health violations at restaurants all over Houston (say it with me: "Sliiiiime in the ice machine!"), and his Blue Ribbon is still the local gold standard for restaurant cleanliness.
Aside from helping hundreds who'd been swindled or otherwise cheated, he recruited Marvin's Angels (local businesses who stepped in to assist those in need) and earned nearly as much attention for his charity as he did for his love of cosmetic improvements. Marvin was a character in many senses - one of a fast-disappearing breed of old-fashioned colorful local broadcasters, and a fixture in the life of millions of Texans.
You'll be missed, Marvin. I'm sure I'm not alone in wishing you an afterlife filled with good golf, good tennis, or whatever makes you happy.
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5 comments:
I remember when we first moved to Texas and were watching the local news broadcasts for the first time -- Marvin definitely grabbed my attention!
Thanks for the links too -- I had no idea of his background.
He was definitely a Houston original. Dave Ward said it best, "Thank you, Marvin.
Go Marvin!
Found your link from Knotty Generation and was trying to put the name to a face and realized Duh, I knew who Marvin was. I went to A&M in Galveston for college and remember watching him on the local news. Sorry to hear he died. :(
I hope Marvin is feeling all this love in the Great Hereafter!
Hi Misti - OK, so I looked for myself on Knotty Generation and couldn't find me! Where was I? (I have such a paltry readership that I'm always bouncy when someone says they found me in a link-type way...)
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