CLEVELAND — It’s a distant memory, but King Charles III was once the center of attention in Cleveland.
His 1977 tour throughout the city is a fond memory for those who were there.
On a bookshelf in his Cleveland Heights home are printed copies of Joe Mosbrook’s reports throughout his over 30-year broadcast journalism career in Cleveland.
“This is a list of the ones I did,” he explained as he flipped through a binder.
Among the reports is a whirlwind 24-hour visit from a young man who was known as Prince Charles at the time.
“I think a lot of people have forgotten it,” Mosbrook said. He remembers it just as WKYC archived video captured on an October day in 1977.
“It was sort of like, uh, oh, I don't know, a rock star or a movie star in a way for a lot of people who came to see this guy,” he said.
In what many called a “glamorous” tour of all the city’s must-sees, Charles journeyed through a steel mill, toured Cleveland Clinic, enjoyed a special performance by the Cleveland Orchestra and spoked to scholars and students at Cleveland State University.
He ventured through it all without missing any opportunity for a speech.
“You may not be aware of it, but I am constantly required to speak in many parts of the world, on subjects about which I know absolutely nothing. Today is no exception,” Charles can be heard saying during a speech at CSU.
The assignment for Mosbrook is bookmarked with specific details that shape that day.
“Here is royalty within touching distance and is sort of fascinating,” Mosbrook said. “He was a young prince and my memory was that he wasn't as tall as I thought he would be. For some reason, I thought he'd be taller.”
Though Mosbrook never got to interview him, just a mere hello he shared, the day was enough to create a memory that’s now history.
“When I see Prince Charles on tv today, I think back to that day in Cleveland,” he said.
You can see images of Prince Charles' 1977 visit to Cleveland in the gallery below:
PHOTOS: A look back at Prince Charles' visit to Cleveland in 1977
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