WISH meteorologist Ollis rides off into retirement his way
There was a roller coaster of emotions at WISH-TV Channel 8 Thursday, what with friends, family and colleagues feting meteorologist Randy Ollis in studio as he did his last broadcast as an employee there.
This after him logging almost 40 years at the station.
The final broadcast of one of the area’s most endeared meteorologists had him reuniting with former WISH anchorman David Burris, who retired in 2017.
“He’s one of my best friends. We’re going to just have goofiness on the air. That’s what we’re known for,” Ollis said. “We used to do the morning news together and we’d just clown around and be two bozos out there.
“It’s our final stint of goofing off together as I ride off into the sunset after our programming.”
Ollis, with his bachelor’s degree in meteorology from Northern Illinois University, joined WISH in 1984 as meteorologist for he groundbreaking “Daybreak” after stints in Dayton, Ohio; Wausau, Wisconsin; and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
“It was a half-hour show. We were the first station in the market to start a morning newscast. And the rumor was that nobody would watch morning TV and the show would be canceled in a year,” he said. “But here we are, almost 40 years later; and it’s grown to a sixhour show in the morning.”
Not without a hiccup though.
Fans fought to keep Ollis on the air in the 1980s
He was fired in early 1989, by thennew general manager, Peter K. Orne, who “said Ollis’ on-air performance, particularly bearing and demeanor, was ‘less than what we needed,’ “The Indianapolis Star reported.
The station received about 600 letters blasting the decision. By mid-August 1989, Orne had left the station, and Ollis returned.
It’s hard to leave the people there, he said.
“I enjoy the weather. I’m a weather geek. But I’m a people person; and I really enjoyed the coworkers down there. We all fit in.”
But he won’t miss the super early risings to get to the studio.
“’I’m not going to miss getting up at 2:40 in the morning,” Ollis said.
Ollis, who in 2021 began a shorter schedule at WISH, had been diagnosed with stage 1 cancer in 2017.
He’s cancer-free now.
And his fans will continue to see and hear him around the region.
‘This is our forever home’
He and his wife, Alison, live in Carmel, a few houses away from two of their six grandchildren. The couple, who have four adult daughters, moved there from the northeast side of Indy about two years ago.
“So this is our forever home” he said. “Indy’s home to us. We love it here now as much as we did the first day we moved in.”
Ollis, 67, will keep busy with speaking engagements, and some radio from home in the mornings. He does WGNR, a Christian station out of Anderson, and WTRE out of Greensburg.
“I’ve been doing both of those stations for years. It’s fun to do. I love the banter, and we really have a great time on the air. And I love forecasting. I still get to keep my foot in the door of broadcasting and still do some weather forecasting.”
The new schedule will allow him to sleep in – until about 5:30 a.m. most days.
He’ll also volunteer with the Child Evangelism Fellowship children’s ministry.
“That’s where my heart is. I got saved at the age of six through Child Evangelism, so that’s why I feel led to give back to them now that I’m fully retiring.”