Charles Apple

Here’s wishing the happiest of VizEds birthdays to my good friend Teresa Kriegsman, design director of The (Raleigh, N.C.) News & Observer.

Her friends call her TK. However, you can call her Ms. Kriegsman.

TK is one of my best friends in the world. She’s always quick to lend an ear or a supportive comment whenever I’m down. Which is about every other day or so.

I wouldn’t have made it through the last decade if it hadn’t been for her.

When I first went to Raleigh in 1993, TK was the sports designer. I found it easy to collaborate with her on projects both big and small. She had a good eye for displaying data; unlike some of the designers who worked there in the early 90s, TK loved her graphics. She was always looking for a way to do something graphically; I was always happy to accomodate an eager accomplace.

Those were some of the happiest days of my career. What I’d give to work with TK again.

I left Raleigh after only three years when the Chicago Tribune beckoned. I watched with pleasure as TK was promoted and then promoted again. She’s a fine manager and a tremendous mentor for all sorts of young people. A lot of fabulous designers out there got a boost while under Teresa’s watch.

TK posts no pages, so I have no link to which to send you. If you’ve ever seen The News & Observer, though, you’ve seen her work. Or the work of her wonderful staff.

Have a good vacation, TK. Give me a shout when you get back. And happy birthday to you just the same.

TK shares a birthday with actors Zac (High School Musical) Efron and Dawn (Mary Ann from Gilligan’s Island) Wells, musicians Wynton Marsalis and Chuck Berry, JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald and former N.C. Senator Jesse Helms.

Plus, today is No Beard Day. Seriously. Someone call The Indianapolis Star and tell Stephen Beard to lay low.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 18th, 2007 at 8:17 am and is filed under Happy birthday, News design, VizEds Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.