Thomas J. Ryan

San Diego - December 25, 1932 - June 12, 2025

Tom Ryan's more than 40-year career in radio and television was the fulfillment of an elementary school prophecy in Albany, New York when he was 11 years old that he would become a radio newscaster.

He started by winning a radio disc jockey contest at 15. After high school graduation in 1950, he was chosen by competitive audition to join the announcing staff of WSNY in Schenectady, New York. Wanting to do more than spin records and host game shows, Ryan pursued the path of his sixth grade prophecy - news. He was named News Director of the station and at 21 was delivering the major newscast of the day sponsored by General Electric in Schenectady.

He left the Capital District of New York State after seven years to get into television news with WKBN Television and radio in Youngstown, Ohio. He left the mid-West city and moved to Rochester to become News Director of the number one "rock n' roll" radio station at the time, WBBF.

After leaving WBBF, Ryan joined Rochester broadcast legends Tom Decker, Bob Mills and Anne Keefe at the WROC stations, Channel 8, WROC and WPXY. He anchored the morning news on Channel 8 and the two radio stations and wrote all the TV station's editorials on the controversial issues at the time. He teamed with the late Ms. Keefe as co-host of a morning news interview program Crossfire. The program was highly regarded and attracted a wide variety of guests such as New York Governor Hugh Carey, State Comptroller Mario Cuomo, Georgia's governor, Jimmy Carter, the Dali Lama, and numerous actors and authors.

Ryan came to see his years of covering government and politics, crime, arts and entertainment as somewhat similar to what Moby Dick author Herman Melville said of his sea-going experience that "A whale ship was my Yale college and my Harvard".

He was predeceased by his wife of 55 years, Frances P. Osborn, and is survived by Constance Ryan Van Alstyne, Jo Ann Boulis. Susan Ryan, Karyn Ryan-Jones, Paul Ryan, Scott Osborn, Pamela Osborn, numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren.