Wednesday, August 11th, 2004 was the last day folks in Mobile and areas near receive "Paul Harvey News and Comment" and "The Rest of the Story" from a local radio station because WNTM-AM (710) would stop broadcasting all programming from the ABC Radio Network, including those two programs, on the next day. The station became WPMI-AM and an affiliate of FOX News Radio on the next day (the station became WNTM-AM again on Monday, June 28th, 2007).
During the last few years of the programs, "News and Comment" was usually broadcast twice a day Monday through Friday and "The Rest of the Story" was usually broadcast once a day Monday through Friday. Paul Harvey Aurandt (Senior) usually hosted the "News and Comment" segments broadcast after noon. His son, Paul Harvey Aurandt Junior, usually hosted the morning editions of "News and Comment" and occasionally presented "The Rest of the Story".
Even though folks in Mobile could no longer receive the programs from a local radio station, the Mobile Press-Register published a local newspaper article on Tuesday, June 6th. 2006 about the history of "The Rest of the Story", which was part of "News and Comment" when it was a local radio program in Chicago, Illinois before it became a national program on Sunday, April 1st, 1951 ("The Rest of the Story" became a separate national segment on Monday, May 10th, 1976). The article included parts of an interview with Paul Harvey Aurandt Jr. conducted for the Mobile Press-Register by telephone.
Paul Harvey Aurandt Jr. told the interviewer he and his parents visited Bellingrath Gardens southwest of Mobile around 1956, when he was around eight years of age. He said they were accompanied by hosts and when they were traveling a road by automobile, the hosts said they had to pull their automobile to the side of the road. After the automobile pulled over, a motorcade came up toward the family and stopped. The limousine in the motorcade opened for Walter (Walt) Disney, a movie producer, and other persons to step out.
Paul Harvey Aurandt Jr. told the interviewer Walter Disney was visiting Bellingrath Gardens and he wanted to meet his papa. He said this was one of the things he remembered strongly from childhood and he admitted to having a terrible feeling every time he hears about about a storm involving Mobile because he thought it was a beautiful area.
After Paul Harvey Aurandt Sr. died on Saturday, February 28th, 2009, Gil Gross began presenting both daily editions of "News and Comment" and Doug Limerick began presenting "The Rest of the Story". The "News and Comment" segments were cancelled two weeks later and "The Rest of the Story" was cancelled three weeks later.
More information about the history of "News and Comment", "The Rest of the Story", and its hosts is available at the Paul Harvey Archives on the World Wide Web.
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