Editor’s note: Remembering John Daniel, ‘the voice of the Daily News’

Watching old black and white movies about tabloids and reporters, and becoming a journalist myself, I couldn’t help myself wanting to someday proclaim those famous words. Thanks to the Daily News and John Daniel, who operated the switchboard on the metro desk while I was there in the 1990s and early 2000s, I finally got to say them: “Get me rewrite!” Daniel, with his soft-spoken voice, would always put me through, acknowledging, “Your wish is my command.”

Battling health issues in his later years, Daniel died at age 72 from an infection on New Year’s Day. He started at the Daily News in 1970 and retired in 2015. Former News colleagues – dozens of journalists from across the city – mourned his death this past week. “He was the rock for a lot of people up there who were professionals panicking on deadline,” said Jared McCallister, another former News colleague who continues doing freelance work for the paper as its Caribbeat columnist. Daniel also was a fixer for any staffer calling into the paper with a need or crisis from the scene of a story, and he also took complaints. Sitting on the metro desk, you could hear him calmly speaking with readers at a time when you could still call a newspaper with feedback and, more importantly, tips. He was known for his calm demeanor, a requirement for handling such calls. Many, even Daniel himself, referred to him as “the voice of the Daily News.” It’s one that won’t easily be forgotten by many in the New York City press corps – and by his friends.