- [Narrator] Funding for this edition of One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been provided by PSEG Foundation.

Holy Name.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Working for a more a healthier, more equitable New Jersey.

Newark Board of Education.

The North Ward Center.

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

Community FoodBank of New Jersey.

And by Seton Hall University.

Showing the world what great minds can do since 1856.

Promotional support provided by NJ.Com.

Keeping communities informed and connected.

And by ROI-NJ.

Informing and connecting businesses in New Jersey.

- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The way we change Presidents in this country is by voting.

- A quartet is already a jawn, it’s just The New Jawn.

- January 6th was not some sort of violent, crazy outlier.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I mean what other country sends comedians over to embedded military to make them feel better.

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

_ It’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) - Hi, everyone.

Steve Adubato, Jacqui Tricarico.

This is "Remember Them."

You may be seeing us on the "Remember Them" platform or also on "One-on-One."

Jacqui, we kick off honoring, recognizing Charles Osgood, one of the greatest broadcasters, communicators in the media of our time.

And we interview Rand Morrison, who is executive producer of the "CBS Sunday Morning" show, where in fact Charles did his great work.

What strikes you about Osgood?

- Osgood was one of those people whose work drove him in his everyday life, and he was so passionate about what he did in front of the camera and behind the camera.

And something that we didn't touch upon with Rand was the fact that he also hosted a long-running radio show called "The Osgood File," and he loved that and was just as passionate about that than he was with the "CBS Sunday Morning" show.

So that's just somewhere else that he put his artistic talent into and where he would talk about things that were super passionate to him, including a lot of things in the arts.

- Yeah, and one of the things that Rand Morrison, who knew Charles Osgood so well, said that he called him a Renaissance man, and that term gets thrown around a lot.

But we're talking about someone who wasn't just a great broadcaster.

He was a great journalist, a writer, a musician, a poet.

I mean, he did it all.

And in this interview with Rand, there's a part where he really got my interest, and I know you appreciate this too as an executive producer, Jacqui, as well as someone who's on camera.

Morrison said to him, he went and he said, "Listen, Charles, we have this big block in the program.

We don't have a guest, we have nothing.

You think you can write a poem?"

He wrote a poem, put it to music, and performed.

That got me, Jacqui, because not many of us in this business have the ability to pull that off.

We could talk, even if we're not making sense.

He wrote a poem, put it to music, and performed it.

Pretty special.

- Really special.

You're right.

(chuckles) - Yep, when Jacqui does that, it means we're out of time.

(Jacqui laughs) That's what we're going to Charles Osgood right now.

Enough of me filling time, let's talk about Charles Osgood.

(bright inspiring music) ♪ You leave the Pennsylvania... ♪ - [Narrator] Charles Osgood knew his was a storied life.

Born Charles Osgood Wood in the Bronx, he grew up in Baltimore.

He remembered it this way.

- [Charles] In 1942, milk was delivered in bottles.

The mail was delivered twice a day.

And that boy named Charlie Wood had a paper route.

- [Narrator] In the 1950s, he served three years as the Army Band's announcer.

♪ I'm dreaming of a white Christmas ♪ - [Narrator] He had a love of music.

- [Charles] You are only as old as you feel.

- Yah!

Yah!

- [Charles] Wanna see what Lucille is now able to do?

- [Narrator] Playful poetry.

- [Charles] These are one-inch pine boards.

Not just one board, but two.

- Yah!

(board holder groans) (watcher clapping) - [Narrator] And especially time spent chewing the fat with the likes of Julia Child.

- Did you imagine that you were a natural for television when you first started doing that show?

- I'm a natural ham, and it helps a lot.

- [Narrator] And many others.

- They come out fast, but, I mean, it's a fast world.

♪ We have actors and artists ♪ ♪ Not just politicians ♪ - [Narrator] His beloved "Sunday Morning" was the beneficiary of his passions.

♪ Our Sunday mornings are filled with such things ♪ ♪ We have ♪ - I cannot think of anything that has given me more pleasure professionally than "Sunday Morning," because, first of all, it feels great to be part of something that people love, and I know that they do.

- Now to remember the great Charles Osgood, we have Rand Morrison, executive producer of "CBS Sunday Morning."

Rand, great to have you with us.

- Thank you for inviting me.

- Listen, people can search out Charles Osgood and read about him on Wikipedia, other places, but what do we need to know about Charles Osgood that made him so special?

- Well, as somebody who isn't on television, who, like, works with people who are on television, one of the joys of Charlie, and one of the joys of "Sunday Morning" generally, is that our correspondents and anchors, the person you see on television, is very much the person that I worked with in the real world, which is to say, delightful, charming, a Renaissance man, could not be more engaging or engaged, and indeed, an all-around delight.

- Hold on one sec.

The Renaissance man thing, we saw the clip coming in with him talking, and by the way, I want to disclose that one of the first books, I'm a student of public speaking, one of the first books that I got, you know what the book, you know this, it's this, it's "Osgood on Speaking."

How to Think On Your Feet Without Falling on Your Face."

He was, for those of us who studied public communication, he was a great teacher, loved public communication, but also loved music.

Renaissance man because, play that out for us, Rand.

- I mean, Charlie would walk by an old bookstore and then come out with five books that, like, he was thrilled to have just acquired, and then he'd take them home and read them.

He saw a work of art that, and not necessarily work of art that was, you know, an old master, just something that caught his eye, you walk into his apartment and there it would be.

And it would oftentimes, to me, what you were looking at had a sense of humor because Charlie had a sense of humor.

He sensed the, you know, about the irony of the world.

And he loved to write, he loved to talk, he loved to converse.

He was indeed a well-rounded, well-informed.

He was central casting for being a television host.

- What was he like... Again, I would never compare myself to the great Charles Osgood, but for those of us who are on camera, sometimes our off-camera personalities are not consistent with the smile on our face and what we're supposed to do on the air.

What was he like, and some of us lose our temper inappropriately.

What was Osgood like behind the scenes, Rand?

- He was accommodating and thoughtful.

He was indeed the person you saw on television was the person we worked with.

The bonus was he had indeed unique skills, which is to say, one of my great pleasures would be to wander into Charlie's office and say, "You know what?

We're a little light this week.

Why don't you write us a poem?"

And Charlie, on cue, would like joyously turn to, he would like immediately grab the keyboard, and I'd walk out of the office, and 10 minutes later, he would be coming into my office with a piece of paper and he'd go, "What do you think of this?"

And it was always topical and delightful and completely Charlie-esque, and it was like, "Great.

That's what we'll put that in the show in like the second half hour," and we were all set.

And Charlie- - Hold on one second, Rand.

I'm sorry for interrupting.

He could just create content on his own.

- Absolutely.

Absolutely, and he could do it, truly, this is a true story.

I walked into him and said, "Charlie, it's income taxes.

It's April 15th.

Got anything you wanna say about that?"

And Charlie would immediately go to work on, like, an amusing little verse of, like, what it means to prepare for, like, tax day in America.

And it was always sweet and thoughtful and not mean-spirited.

- So, Rand, now I have to ask you since you mentioned sweet and not mean-spirited, what do you think your friend and colleague Charles Osgood would think about the nasty, negative, divisive, polarizing tone, not just in our country politically, but in the media?

- Charlie every once in a while would say, when we'd have a staff meeting or something, it was Charlie who first turned to me and said, "When you tell people that you do 'Sunday Morning,' what they say to you is, 'I love that show.'"

And he went on to say, "How many news broadcasts on American television do you hear people say, 'I love that show'?

Do you think anyone ever said that about the evening news?

Not a chance."

And- - But was he a political person?

Meaning, was he strong in his political views or was that not part of who he was on the air?

- That really wasn't part of who he was on the air.

And he was much more indeed a bridge builder than someone who tore things down.

And, but every once in a while, if something particularly distressed him, he would take it on for sure.

But even when it was that sort of thing, it would be done in a very Charlie-esque way, which is to say, with kindness and understanding and an appreciation that there are many, that, you know, our universe is comprised of many differing points of view.

- Did he leave the show on his own?

- Charlie was in his 80s when he left the show.

And candidly, and I see all sides of this, he did not wanna leave.

He loved being part of the show.

He did not wanna leave the show.

But it was getting harder and harder for him both physically, just in terms of what you had to do to get to the studio.

The various rigors of television were becoming harder and harder for him.

And so, but we had a wonderful send-off for him, which we re-ran when he passed away.

And even with that, he ultimately, he left graciously and in good humor.

And yes, without a doubt, reluctantly.

- He had a Jersey connection.

- Yes, he loved New Jersey.

He, like, he raised his kids in New Jersey, and then later in his life, he lived in Manhattan when he was doing the show.

And then after he retired, he moved back to New Jersey in a big house that he loved to call home, and it was filled with "Sunday Morning" memorabilia from decades of doing his various ventures.

And I think he loved the space.

It was home.

It was his home.

- Last question.

What do you think the lasting legacy, which is redundant, the legacy of Charles Osgood will be not just in media but in American culture?

- I recall when Charles Kuralt passed away, at his memorial, one of his producers observed that, in a way, television doesn't get the respect that, say, Mark Twain got when he was a crusading journalist in the 1800s.

But some of the people on TV, Charlie Osgood being an example of that, Charles Kuralt being an example of that, Jane Pauley being an example of that, are people who are indeed, they are in that realm of, they're more than just television personalities.

They're part of the American culture.

People think back to the time of Charlie Osgood with incredible appreciation and respect.

And he was uniquely talented.

And when he did leave, at one point I was talking to possible successor who said to me, "No one can replace Charles Osgood."

And that's true.

There are people in this world, certainly some of the people we work with on television, they are unique to this medium, and their skills and their gifts are really one of a kind.

And he was that person.

- Hey, Rand, thank you- - Thank you.

- for helping us appreciate and understand and remember Charles Osgood.

And for those of us who attempt to understand and appreciate words and communication and language and connecting with people, you said it right about your colleague.

We can try our best, but they'll never be another Charles Osgood.

Thank you so much, Rand Morrison.

Appreciate it.

- Thank you.

It's been a pleasure.

I hope it works out for you.

- Well, it already did, just listening to you.

Stay with us, this is "Remember Them" on "One-on-One."

Stay with us, we'll be right back.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

- We continue remembering really important people who made meaningful contributions in the State of New Jersey and the nation.

Jacqui, you're up here, set it up.

- Yeah, I have the privilege of talking to Dr. Eugene Cheslock who started the Parker Family Health Center down in Red Bank, New Jersey.

And he created that center to help the most vulnerable with free healthcare down there in the Red Bank area.

And the reason he started it was because of his direct connection and his appreciation of a father and son duo, Dr. James Parker Sr. and Dr. James Parker Jr., who for 80 years served that community, doing exactly that, offering free healthcare to their community members and to those who really needed it.

So, we get to learn more about these unsung heroes from Red Bank, New Jersey.

- Every time Jacqui does one of these interviews on Remember Them, I know I learn an awful lot about people who need to be remembered, and I know you will as well.

Let's check out Jacqui's conversation.

(bright music) - Joining us now is Dr. Eugene Cheslock, who is the Founder and Board Member of Parker Family Health Center here with us today to help us remember two incredible, a father and son duo doctors from Red Bank, New Jersey.

Dr. Cheslock, so great to have you with us.

- Oh, it's a pleasure and a privilege, thank you.

- Well, I wanna start back with Dr. Parker Sr. who was born in 1888 in South Carolina and made his way to Red Bank, New Jersey in 1919.

First, can you tell us a little bit about him and the challenges he faced being a physician here in New Jersey during that time?

- Well, I think the biggest challenge for him was being black at the time.

You can imagine society as it was.

And I think the most telling story, and as it was related to me in 1919 during the influenza, in order to make ends meet, Dr. Parker waited on tables in a restaurant that still exists, Bahrs Restaurant in the Highlands.

And a prominent lady took ill, and someone said, "Is there a doctor in the house?"

And Dr. Parker changed venues, if you will, and became a doctor instead of a waiter.

The lady recovered and subsequently helped him get his practice started, and she sort of broke the ice for him.

- That's really incredible.

And Dr. Parker's reputation within the community at that time, talk about that and kind of how it grew from that point on, that he was there to help patients no matter what their background was.

- Oh, definitely.

The stories are Legion, he made house calls in a horse and buggy, and he went as far west as Bordentown.

Dr. Parker did not have privileges at hospitals, so his practice was carried out in the home and in the office.

And so deliveries, whatever, all took place in those two settings.

And to my knowledge, Dr. Parker Sr. never practiced in a hospital, which is a sad commentary on our profession and really on the country and all of our prejudices.

But that's why I think the Parkers are so important.

They broke a lot of ice.

They established themselves as respectful physicians, very skilled, who demanded respect on so many counts.

- So, why do you think his son, Dr. Parker Jr. followed in his father's footsteps, seeing so many obstacles that his dad had to face and, you know, just so much that he had to overcome to just do the amazing work that he wanted to do to help the community as a physician?

What was it that really drove his son to wanna follow in his father's footsteps?

- I think what drove Jim was to see the passion his father had, regardless of obstacles and how much he cared for his patients.

And Jim Jr. inherited every single bit of that.

If he had an opportunity to see Jim Jr. practice, it was Jim Sr. practicing.

I was in Jim Jr.'s office one day, and a patient of his came in who had a substance issue well known to Jim.

And he reached in his pocket, and while he gave the woman the money to travel to Florida to attend a funeral of her brother, Jim said to her, "I know how much it costs to go to and fro, and you better make it to and get back here because that's every penny I know and is accounted for."

But this is the kind of people they were, they gave of themselves.

There was a lot of bartering, I'm sure that went on, payment always did not take place.

And Jim had that same communal feeling, that connection to people that his father had.

When we opened Parker, a woman came in shortly after we opened and she said, "I have to tell you a story about Dr. Parker Sr.," and she rattled off a tale about the Second World War.

She was living on the West Side with three children, and her husband was in the Navy for four years in the Pacific Theater.

And she said, "For that entire time, Dr. Parker Sr. took care of us at no cost."

And she said, "Dr. Parker, I can't pay you.

We don't have enough money."

And he said, "Your payment is your husband's service."

- Well, that just shows what kind of people both of them were.

And you knowing Dr. Parker Jr. on a personal level, talk about that.

He gave us one story, but talk about your personal relationship with him and when and why you knew you had to create the Parker Family Health Center in their honor to keep serving the most vulnerable residents in Red Bank, New Jersey.

- Jim and I had a very good professional relationship.

I was a hematologist-oncologist.

So, Jim would lean on me for a consult for one of his patients.

And I was privileged and happy that he did refer to me.

I took that as a real compliment that he would entrust his patients to me.

And through the years, for about 25 years, we worked together.

I had a little trouble getting on staff at Riverview myself because of issues with a partner.

But we got on staff and quickly established a friendship with Jim.

He had a way about him, which was a winning way.

I call him a gentle giant.

He was tall, imposing, soft spoken, but a delight.

Everything about him was professional.

And when it came time to start the clinic or the center, I could think of no one else better than the Parkers because they had about, when you think about it, 100-year history in the healthcare landscape of Red Bank.

Not always reimbursed as they should have been, but always respected, very involved in other community organizations like what is now the Visiting Nurse Association, the Regional School Board, the YMCA, you name it.

And they had their fingers in the pie, both of them.

- Now, was Jim still alive when the Parker Family Health Center was created?

- Yes.

- So, what did he think about that?

What was his reaction when you told him?

- Well, Jim and his father both preached self-discipline, independence, pride.

They were not free lunch guys, they were quid pro quos.

And they tried to inculcate this in their patients and in their encounters in the community, they tried to teach people to be dependent on themselves.

And Jim was a little resistant to free care.

But we knew of Dr. Jack McConnell, who had started the first free center like ours in South Carolina.

We brought Dr. McConnell up, and he and Dr. Parker powwowed.

And after a powwow of about four hours with Dr. McConnell, Jim said, "Let's do it."

And my end joined, Jim was, I said, "Jim, when you go, who's gonna take care of your people the way you take care of them?"

And I think he thought about that because he was beginning to experience some infirmities.

And being a very realistic guy, I think Jim, in a sober moment, very sober moment, said, "You know, the guy's got something valid here about it, and I do want my folks to have access to care."

And so it was a natural to name it after the Parkers.

His office was two blocks north of where we are, so it's like he's still here.

- Well, yeah, his dedication, his dad's dedication to the Red Bank community, to those who just couldn't afford the care, but they figured out how to give it to them.

And you're doing the same now with the center there in Red Bank.

Thank you so much, Dr. Cheslock for shining a light on these two incredible unsung heroes that you know, still live through that Parker Family Health Center down there in Red Bank, New Jersey.

Thank you so much.

- Thank you, Jacqui.

- It was great to have you with us.

For Steve Adubato and myself, thanks for watching.

We'll see you next time.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Funding has been provided by PSEG Foundation.

Holy Name.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Newark Board of Education.

The North Ward Center.

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

Community FoodBank of New Jersey.

And by Seton Hall University.

Promotional support provided by NJ.Com.

And by ROI-NJ.

- (Inspirational Music) - (Narrator) Great drive fuels the leaders of tomorrow and today.

Great vision paves the way for a brighter future.

Great ambition goes places, moving onward and upward.

Great empathy finds strength in kindness and in each other, working together to create something bigger than they ever imagined.

Great minds can change the world and great minds start at Seton Hall.