Paul Harvey Aurandt, better known as Paul Harvey, was a legendary conservative radio broadcaster for ABC Radio Networks. From the 1950s through the 1990s, Harvey’s programs reached as many as 24 million people a week. Paul Harvey News was carried on 1,200 radio stations, 400 Armed Forces Network stations and 300 newspapers.
Harvey was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the son of a policeman who was killed in 1921. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund relates the story:
On December 19, 1921—in the midst of a crime spree that had all of Tulsa’s officers on the lookout—Officer Aurandt and Tulsa’s chief detective, Ike Wilkinson, were driving on a road five miles from the city when they spotted a suspicious vehicle and stopped to investigate. Without warning, they were ambushed by four desperadoes, all with criminal records and all out on bond. Although Harry raised his arms as he was directed to do by the bandits, they shot him anyway, one bullet piercing his liver, another his lung. Detective Wilkinson fired back, but he was also seriously wounded. Despite his critical injuries, Harry held courageously to the wheel of the car and managed to drive himself and Ike to a farm house about a mile away.
Ike Wilkinson survived the shooting, but permanently lost the use of his legs. Harry Aurandt, at the age of 48, was not so lucky. He died the day after the attack with his wife, Anna, by his side. Son Paul was just 3 years old.
You can listen to Paul Harvey reciting “What Are Policemen Made Of?” below in the style of that wonderful SUPER BOWL commercial “God Made A Framer” narrated by Paul Harvey.
TRANSCRIPT:
By Paul Harvey
Don’t credit me with the mongrel prose: It has many parents-at least 420,000 of them: Policemen.
A policeman is a composite of what all men are, mingling of a saint and sinner, dust and deity.
Gulled statistics wave the fan over the stinkers; underscore instances of dishonesty and brutality because they are “new”. What they really mean is that they are exceptional, unusual, and not commonplace.
Buried under the frost is the fact: less than one-half of one percent of policemen misfit the uniform. That’s a better average than you would find among clergy!
What is a policeman made of? He, of all men, is once the most needed and the most unwanted. He’s a strangely nameless creature while it is “sir” to his face and “pig” or worse to his back.
He must be such a diplomat that he can settle differences between individuals so that each will think he won.
But…If the policeman is neat, he is conceited; If he’s careless, he’s a bum. If he’s pleasant, he’s flirting; If not, he’s a grouch.
He must make an instant decision which would require months for a lawyer to make.
But…if he hurries, he’s careless; If he’s deliberate, he’s lazy. He must be the first to an accident and be infallible with his diagnosis. He must start breathing, stop bleeding, tie splints and above all, be sure the victim goes home without a limp, or expect to get sued.
The police officer must know every type of gun, draw on the run, and hit where it doesn’t hurt. He must be able to whip two men twice his size and half his age without damaging his uniform and without being “brutal”. If you hit him…he’s a coward. If he hits you…he’s a bully.
A policeman must know everything-and not tell. He must know where the sin is and not partake.
A policeman must from a single strand of hair, be able to describe the crime, the weapon and tell you who the criminal is and where he is hiding.
But…if he catches the criminal, he’s lucky; if he doesn’t, he is a dunce. If he gets promoted, he has political pull; If he doesn’t, he is a dullard. The policeman must chase a bum lead to a dead-end, stake out ten nights to tag one witness who saw it happen-but refused to remember.
The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy and a gentleman.
And of course, he’d have to be a genius…for he will have to feed a family on a policeman’s salary.
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