LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Sue Wylie was fearless, smart, and always in charge.
For 30 years at WLEX, Sue Wylie grilled presidents, governors, and anyone daring enough to sit down with her on "Your Government."
Sue was never one who shied away from asking the elephant-in-the-room question.
“You sort of enjoyed it while you were doing it and when you got through you realized Sue had put one over on you before you knew what had happened to you,” former governor Julian Carroll once said of Wylie.
Those lucky enough to work with Wylie have their own stories. LEX 18’s Leigh Searcy caught up with Alan Cutler on the Alan Cutler Shown on ESPN Sports Radio today.
In particular, he recalled when he was called into Wylie’s office at the station, only to end up laughing so hard he fell from his chair.
“As you know, in the old building Sue had an office – sound proof glass – and if you whispered you could hear it,” Cutler said. “Sue's loud, I'm louder.”
Leigh Searcy recalled one guest to the station who would one day be president – Ronald Reagan.
His handlers insisted on a green room and makeup artist which the station didn't have. Wylie got creative.
At the station’s old building, the women’s bathroom was significantly larger than the men’s, which was no bigger than a closet. So she had someone switch the men’s and women’s signs. But she forgot one thing – the Kotex machine.
The Wylie everyone knew was more than a trailblazer; she was funny and feisty. And she taught the best of the best – including former WLEX anchor and NBC Sports announcer Tom Hammond.
Hammond told Leigh Searcy that he learned so much from watching Wylie in action. More than that, they had to share a typewriter at the station.
A lot of things have changed since then, but Wylie never did.
“She never ducked issues, never kissed anyone to get something done,” Cutler said. “She was tough; she was fair and honest and a pioneer and she was spectacular and we all learned from her.”
