Fox 19 meteorologist Frank Marzullo drops in on 'That's So Cincinnati' podcast
As Frank Marzullo celebrates his 15th year as a meteorologist at Fox 19 this month, he shared with The Enquirer where he found his love of weather reporting, how weather technology has changed the profession and just how accurate he thinks the Farmer's Almanac prediction of a cold and snowy winter for Cincinnati this year will be.
Marzullo, who grew up in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, said his interest in weather was sparked by a childhood trip to the grocery store with his grandparents. The sky was dark, but there was a rainbow, a funnel cloud and hail. He was curious.
He began watching the Cleveland meteorologists and a favorite pastime was to play newscaster, holding a hairbrush as a microphone, his brother running a makeshift teleprompter and a VHS-format video camera recording it all.
After college at Ohio University and Youngstown State University, Marzullo studied journalism, the climate and geology, making his way from West Virginia television stations to Youngtown, Ohio, and now Cincinnati.
It used to take hours to put a weathercast together. Now it can take minutes, which is important when it comes to severe weather, Marzullo told The Enquirer's "That's So Cincinnati" podcast.
He's had mornings where he has had to cover devastation from tornados, like the ones that hit western Kentucky last December, leveling communities, causing at least 74 confirmed deaths and untold destruction.
Then there have been the crazy nights, like on April 8, 2010, when Marzullo was on air and learned lightning had struck what many referred to as "Big Butter Jesus," a 62-foot statue of Jesus Christ at Solid Rock Church in Monroe.
The Farmers' Almanac predicted that this winter will be a doozy, warning us to be ready to "shake, shiver and shovel." What does Marzullo think?
"Farmers' Almanac forecasts are actually calculated about two years in advance," Marzullo said. "They study this a long time. They look at the tidal action of moons and sunspots and all that sort of stuff. Some of their predictions this year, and when you look at some of the stuff coming out of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and more traditional sources, it does look like we could be colder than average and wetter than average."
Listen to The Enquirer's "That's So Cincinnati" podcast on Apple, iHeart or your favorite podcast platform.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FOX19's Frank Marzullo agrees with Farmer's Almanac winter prediction
