Name: Tar Heel Traveler: Revisiting 'Fat Boy' Billy Stewart's tragic death in Smithfield
Uploaded: 2021-02-24T18:25:11-0500
Duration: 191108
Description: Scott tells the story of 'Fat Boy' Billy Stewart, who tragically lost his life in Smithfield in 1970.

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Scott tells the story of 'Fat Boy' Billy Stewart, who tragically lost his life in Smithfield in 1970.

GENTLEMAN DURING BLACK HISTORY MONTH, OUR TAR HEEL TRAVELERS, SOME, THOUGH WLITTLE KNOWN HISTORIES. >> AND TONIGHT WE FIND SCOTT MASON IN JOHNSTON COUNTY WITH A MUSICAL GREAT WHOSE LIFE AND TALENT CAME TO AN UNEXPECTED END IN SMITHFIELD. [ BELL TOLLS ]           >> Reporter: LIFE CAN TURN IN AN INSTANT. IN 1970 ON A WINTER DAY IN SMITHFIELD, IT VEERED TRAGICALLY FOR BILLY STEWART. [ MUSIC ] >> A VERY POPULAR SOUL SINGER, AND HE WAS RISING IN THE CHARTS. [ SINGING. IN. [           & YOU'RE GOING TO RISE, RISE UP SINGING &&. >> HE WAS KNOWN AS FAT BOY. >> WELL, HE WAS A BIG GUY. >> EVERYBODY LOVES ME. >> Reporter: FAT BOY BILLY STEWART. >> I THINK HE WAS MOST WELL KNOWN FOR HIS VOICE AND HIS CHARISMA. >> Reporter: AND HIS TONGUE. [ MUSIC ] >> YEAH. HE COULD ROLL HIS TONGUE. [ ROLLING TONGUE ] >> THE LEAD INTO THE SONG "SUMMERTIME" HE WOULD DO THAT. & SUMMERTIME AND THE LIVING EASY &&. >> IT WAS IN JANUARY AND THE RIVER WAS PROBABLY SWOLLEN. I THINK THEY HAD BEEN PLAYING SOMEWHERE. >> HE HAD TO BE IN SOUTH CAROLINA THAT NIGHT FOR ALTHOUGH GIG, SO THEY WERE DRIVING. HE SAID HE JUST KIND OF VEERED OFF INTO THE MEDIAN AN DOWN THE EMBANKMENT INTO THE RIVER. THE SURMISE WAS HE FELL ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL AND JUST DRIFTED OFF. [ MUSIC ] >> AND THE CAR WAS SUBMERGED IN THE RIVER. >> HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE IN THE CAR? >> THERE WERE THREE OTHER BAND MEMBERS WITH HIM. >> I WAS ON AMBULANCE DUTY THAT DAY, DAY, AND WE WERE DISPATCHED BY THE SMITHFIELD POLICE DEPARTMENT. THEY SAID THEY NEEDED THE AMBULANCE OUT AT I-95 AT THE BRIDGE. THEY STARTED WRENCHING THE CAR OUT OF THE RIVER. THEY BROUGHT THEM ON UP AND, OF COURSE, THEY WERE ALL DECEASED. >> THE CAUSE OF DEATH WAS DROWNING FOR ALL FOUR. >> THEY JUST COULDN'T GET OUT. >> THEY COULDN'T GET OUT. >> DID YOU KNOW WHO BILLY STEWART WAS? >> I DID. HIS NUMBER ONE HIT WAS "SUMMERTIME." >> THE PIECE OF MUSE THAT I CAN YOU COULD TAP YOUR FEET TO. IT HAD A BEAT. & SUMMERTIME &&. >> HE WAS AN AMAZING TALENT. HE WAS JUST IN HIS EARLY 30S. [ MUSIC ] >> ALL OF THESE YEARS LATER, DO PEOPLE IN SMITHFIELD REALIZE THAT THIS HAPPENED? >> NOT MANY. >> WHAT AN AMAZING TALENT. WOW. WOW. [ MUSIC ] >> OH, MY GOODNESS. WHAT A SAD STORY. WOW. THIS MONTH A DOCUMENTARY ON BILLY STEWART'S LIFE AND DEATH IS AIRING ON PUBLIC TELEVISION

Kevin Kuzminski

Scott Mason

Robert Meikle

Tar Heel Traveler: Revisiting 'Fat Boy' Billy Stewart's tragic death in Smithfield 

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Hi, everyone. Meteorologist Anthony Baglione here. I hope you had a great weekend. Of course, like we were talking about yesterday on our shows, we had some rainfall to close it out. What we are looking at here as we get into tonight. And really probably the next couple of days, some often on rain chances, maybe a few thunderstorms, warmer temperatures as well. That's kind of our big focus. The next couple of days, there's no day. That's gonna be a total washout, total drench for us, I don't think, but it's just gonna be more of an unsettled pattern than what we have been used to here over the past couple of weeks. Here's a look at rain chances. So most of the day on Monday should be pretty quiet. I left it there at a 40% chance for us. Just a quick hit or miss shower, maybe a thunderstorm into the evening as let's say 6789 o'clock even. That is when I think we will have a better chance for rainfall pushing through. It could be a little bit wet for Monday evening plans. Tuesday morning could also be a bit unsettled. We get a break during the majority of the day itself on Tuesday and then another chance Tuesday night. So you kind of get that picture there where it's gonna be a little bit just kind of back and forth for us as far as rain chances we go into tonight. Futurecast really starts to lighten up. I do not think we're going to see much in the way of coverage overnight tonight. A lingering shower or two, even as we head into our Monday morning commute, we could see a few, there is eight o'clock in the morning. Just a lot of cloud cover hanging with us. I think we will see some peaks of sunshine tomorrow though, not straight sunshine, but I don't think it'll be straight cloud cover either. Lunchtime. We're still looking relatively calm. We go into the afternoon, a few bubble up showers and storms and then especially tomorrow evening, that coverage starts to fill in a bit and then we'll watch this kind of taper off late tomorrow night over the next seven days though. That is not our only rain chance. So we're looking at potentially an inch and a quarter there around the triangle to inches for some of our eastern counties. We're just looking at kind of continued rain chances along with some warmer temperatures. We're at 90 by Wednesday and that is a couple degrees cooler cooler than our forecast was calling for the past couple of days. I don't think we're going to quite get to the 9495 that we had originally and a little bit more cloud cover, a little bit more rain chances this week still going to be hot though for us. On Wednesday, 90 we go to 84 tomorrow, 87 Tuesday. By the time we get into Mother's Day of next weekend, 76. So a little bit cooler at this point, it looks like we could see a few isolated showers and storms into the afternoon. I'm optimistic about morning plans, brunch plans, things like that. But we will keep you covered here as we get closer to next weekend. Hard to believe. Are you gonna be Mother's Day?

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>> ACROSS AMERICA WITH MEGA JACKPOTS, IT'S MEGA MILLIONS. >> GOOD EVENING. A MAJOR WOFFORD IS FRIDAY MAY 3RD AND TONIGHT'S MEGA MILLIONS JACKPOT IS AN ESTIMATED AT NEAR TICE 284 MILLION DOLLARS TO WIN THE JACKPOT. YOU MUST MATCH ALL 5 WHITE PLUS THE GOLD MEGA BALL. SO GET YOUR TICKETS. OUR FIRST NUMBER TONIGHT IS 13 AFTER THAT. YOU HAVE 53. THAT'S ALL MY 15 UP NEXT IS 56. AND FINALLY, 6 ENOUGH YOU'RE MAKING. YOU'RE MAKING ALL NUMBER IS 11 OR 13. 53 15, 56 6. AND THE MEGA BALL IS 11 NOW FEELING MATCHES ALL 6 NUMBERS. TUESDAY'S JACKPOT COULD BE MORE

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Tar Heel Traveler: Revisiting 'Fat Boy' Billy Stewart's tragic death in Smithfield

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