Post by Scumhunter on Dec 26, 2014 17:57:03 GMT -5
I have recently came in touch with Tom Morris Jr., who those of us AMW loyal fans know was one of AMW's former correspondents. I suggested to him an idea "ask a former correspondent." that forum members ask him a few questions about his experience at AMW and he could answer at his own convenience. Thankfully Mr. Morris was open to this idea and said to just let him know. And so without out further undo is our questions and his answers!
P.S. Below is a vimeo compilation of Morris's AMW days for those newer viewers less familiar with his work.
vimeo.com/tommorrisjr
1. What was the first case you worked on for AMW?
The first case I ever worked on for AMW was a homicide case in East New York Brooklyn, after I was hired as a freelance segment producer by Lance Heflin in May 1993. At that time East New York was the most violent 5 square miles in all of NYC. The fugitive was Irving "Razor" Jones. Jones shot his wife and brother in law to death because his wife wanted to divorce him for being a coke head who refused to work. We caught him within a few days of the broadcast and I was so excited! The thrill of being involved in the hunt for a vicious killer and helping his victims get their shot at justice felt right. It was rewarding to use my skills and talents as a writer and field producer in such a manner. It was also the first story I ever produced in my T.V. career. Prior to that and joining AMW I had been a sound tech, cameraman and field producer. I had to figure out how to produce a full, film re-enacted prime time story on the fly with the Jones case.
2. When did you start working for AMW? Were you always a correspondent?
I was hired as a freelance segment producer by Lance Heflin in May 1993. I became an on-air correspondent full time in 2000 after he got a "hunch" that I might shine in front of the camera.
3. What's the farthest place you've ever had to travel for an AMW story?
The farthest distance I ever traveled for AMW was to Cairo in October 2001 to do a story on the history of Islamic Fundamentalist terrorism's roots in Egypt. I remember that it was just three weeks after the September 911 attacks and the plane leaving BWI was almost empty. The airport and parking lots were like a ghost town. It was an amazing trip and I got some incredible interviews and source footage from the Video Cairo Bureau from their archives of the Egyptian government's war on terror which they launched after the assassination of president Anwar Sadat. During my 19 years with AMW I traveled to 6 countries and 43 states. I loved the travel and the excitement of going somewhere new or somewhere familiar that I was returning to.
4. Is there a still unresolved case from your AMW days that still haunts you?
The case that is still unsolved that I think about often is the murder of "Biloxi" Mike Surber, a billiards player and gambler who was murdered by a mysterious drifter for his money. I have no doubt the the man who murdered him is an accomplished traveling killer and thief and I hope he gets caught.
5. AMW was credited in the media as being the direct result of a few more captures after they were cancelled by Lifetime. Among them fugitive child molester Kenneth Grant and the then unknown Kurt Levias Jr. killer who was identified as George Allen and captured in Las Vegas. Were you aware of any of these updates?
The Kurt Levias case was one that I had been aware of and had some amazing home videos of the rappers and their entourage who's bodyguard shot and killed Kurt after a concert at the Bluebird Theater in Denver. It was one of those cases that I knew we could solve with the help of our viewers, but it took me several years to get the green light to do the story and by that time the show was on LIFETIME. I did not appear that segment. AMW on LIFETIME did not feature any correspondents so I produced the entire shoot and story with John Walsh as the Host/Story teller. Kurt's family was an amazing group of people and his mother Sharie Landrum has stayed in touch with me over the past 2 years since the airing and I will never forget how pleased I was when she called me out of the blue last year and told me they had finally tracked down the mysterious "Simm Ryder" who gunned down her son. The trial is coming up soon in Denver. See article:
blogs.westword.com/latestword/2014/03/kurt_levias_murder_george_allen_simm_ryder.php
Here's a tribute video to Levias posted in 2012.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cwx2swMxTm4
6. Have you watched The Hunt, John Walsh's new show, and what do you think of it?
I have watched THE HUNT WITH JOHN WALSH and it is a very well shot and stylized show, in the popular style current of shows one might see on INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY. I was a bit surprised at how JW is involved in each episode sitting in a chair in a warehouse commentating as opposed to being out in the street among the vicitms and cops because that is what he loves to do and enjoys most. I predicted that his show would pull huge numbers and the first premier episode set a first run audience record for a CNN series of just under 1 million viewers. Which is huge on a cable news network.
THE HUNT is produced by Zero Point Zero Productions, which is Anthony Bourdain's production company in NYC. John actually did higher ratings than Bourdain's PARTS UNKNOWN premier on CNN by nearly 200,000 viewers.
The AMW brand and trust factor built up over three decades is still strong and trusted.
Now if I can just get my own show...life will be lovely AMW Fans. Since AMW ended I've been doing some freelance crime expert and reporting on various homicide shows like FATAL ATTRACTION on TV ONE, DEADLINE CRIME WITH TAMRON HALL on I.D. and SNAPPED: KILLER COUPLES on OXYGEN. My full time job right now involves Diplomatic Security and work as a Special Police Officer in some of D.C.'s most notorious projects. It's been an interesting and challenging road for me since AMW ended. I really miss my colleagues, the job, the mission and my AMW fam. Thank you all for supporting this fan page for our iconic show.
All The Best,
Tom Morris Jr.
P.S. Below is a vimeo compilation of Morris's AMW days for those newer viewers less familiar with his work.
vimeo.com/tommorrisjr
1. What was the first case you worked on for AMW?
The first case I ever worked on for AMW was a homicide case in East New York Brooklyn, after I was hired as a freelance segment producer by Lance Heflin in May 1993. At that time East New York was the most violent 5 square miles in all of NYC. The fugitive was Irving "Razor" Jones. Jones shot his wife and brother in law to death because his wife wanted to divorce him for being a coke head who refused to work. We caught him within a few days of the broadcast and I was so excited! The thrill of being involved in the hunt for a vicious killer and helping his victims get their shot at justice felt right. It was rewarding to use my skills and talents as a writer and field producer in such a manner. It was also the first story I ever produced in my T.V. career. Prior to that and joining AMW I had been a sound tech, cameraman and field producer. I had to figure out how to produce a full, film re-enacted prime time story on the fly with the Jones case.
2. When did you start working for AMW? Were you always a correspondent?
I was hired as a freelance segment producer by Lance Heflin in May 1993. I became an on-air correspondent full time in 2000 after he got a "hunch" that I might shine in front of the camera.
3. What's the farthest place you've ever had to travel for an AMW story?
The farthest distance I ever traveled for AMW was to Cairo in October 2001 to do a story on the history of Islamic Fundamentalist terrorism's roots in Egypt. I remember that it was just three weeks after the September 911 attacks and the plane leaving BWI was almost empty. The airport and parking lots were like a ghost town. It was an amazing trip and I got some incredible interviews and source footage from the Video Cairo Bureau from their archives of the Egyptian government's war on terror which they launched after the assassination of president Anwar Sadat. During my 19 years with AMW I traveled to 6 countries and 43 states. I loved the travel and the excitement of going somewhere new or somewhere familiar that I was returning to.
4. Is there a still unresolved case from your AMW days that still haunts you?
The case that is still unsolved that I think about often is the murder of "Biloxi" Mike Surber, a billiards player and gambler who was murdered by a mysterious drifter for his money. I have no doubt the the man who murdered him is an accomplished traveling killer and thief and I hope he gets caught.
5. AMW was credited in the media as being the direct result of a few more captures after they were cancelled by Lifetime. Among them fugitive child molester Kenneth Grant and the then unknown Kurt Levias Jr. killer who was identified as George Allen and captured in Las Vegas. Were you aware of any of these updates?
The Kurt Levias case was one that I had been aware of and had some amazing home videos of the rappers and their entourage who's bodyguard shot and killed Kurt after a concert at the Bluebird Theater in Denver. It was one of those cases that I knew we could solve with the help of our viewers, but it took me several years to get the green light to do the story and by that time the show was on LIFETIME. I did not appear that segment. AMW on LIFETIME did not feature any correspondents so I produced the entire shoot and story with John Walsh as the Host/Story teller. Kurt's family was an amazing group of people and his mother Sharie Landrum has stayed in touch with me over the past 2 years since the airing and I will never forget how pleased I was when she called me out of the blue last year and told me they had finally tracked down the mysterious "Simm Ryder" who gunned down her son. The trial is coming up soon in Denver. See article:
blogs.westword.com/latestword/2014/03/kurt_levias_murder_george_allen_simm_ryder.php
Here's a tribute video to Levias posted in 2012.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cwx2swMxTm4
6. Have you watched The Hunt, John Walsh's new show, and what do you think of it?
I have watched THE HUNT WITH JOHN WALSH and it is a very well shot and stylized show, in the popular style current of shows one might see on INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY. I was a bit surprised at how JW is involved in each episode sitting in a chair in a warehouse commentating as opposed to being out in the street among the vicitms and cops because that is what he loves to do and enjoys most. I predicted that his show would pull huge numbers and the first premier episode set a first run audience record for a CNN series of just under 1 million viewers. Which is huge on a cable news network.
THE HUNT is produced by Zero Point Zero Productions, which is Anthony Bourdain's production company in NYC. John actually did higher ratings than Bourdain's PARTS UNKNOWN premier on CNN by nearly 200,000 viewers.
The AMW brand and trust factor built up over three decades is still strong and trusted.
Now if I can just get my own show...life will be lovely AMW Fans. Since AMW ended I've been doing some freelance crime expert and reporting on various homicide shows like FATAL ATTRACTION on TV ONE, DEADLINE CRIME WITH TAMRON HALL on I.D. and SNAPPED: KILLER COUPLES on OXYGEN. My full time job right now involves Diplomatic Security and work as a Special Police Officer in some of D.C.'s most notorious projects. It's been an interesting and challenging road for me since AMW ended. I really miss my colleagues, the job, the mission and my AMW fam. Thank you all for supporting this fan page for our iconic show.
All The Best,
Tom Morris Jr.
