Warner Wolf Warner William Wolf ( born November 11 , 1937 ) is an American television and radio sports broadcaster , perhaps best known as a local news sports anchor in Washington , D . C . and New York City , and for his catchphrase " Let ' s go to the videotape ! " Early life and career . Wolf was born in Washington , D . C . , the son of Rosemary and Jack Wolf . His father was born Jewish and his mother converted to Judaism . His earliest experience in broadcasting was on the intercom system of Calvin Coolidge High School in Washington , D . C . in the 1950s . His upbeat , entertaining patter that was to become his trademark made his sports report a welcome treat for the kids . During this period he worked part time at Baker ' s Shoe Store downtown , as a salesman . Many customers must have been puzzled at the ball park hawker ' s refrain of , " Get your hot dogs , get your hot dogies here " coming from the back store room . He was simply entertaining the staff and the customers , something he was to continue throughout his long career . Wolf began as a radio broadcaster on April 1 , 1961 , doing news , weather , and sports for WLSI - AM in Pikeville , Kentucky under the name Ken Wolf . He then moved on to radio jobs in Martinsburg , West Virginia at WEPM , and Washington , D . C . at WTOP - AM before landing a sports television role in 1965 at WTOP - TV ( now WUSA ) in Washington . There he became very well known and popular as the news sports anchor ; he also did play - by - play announcing of local college and professional basketball , football , and baseball games . ABC Sports . In 1976 , Wolf gained an ABC Sports network role , working on " Monday Night Baseball " telecasts and as a host for coverage of football and the Olympics . Wolf ' s reception in those jobs was mixed , and he decided that he was best at the local news sports anchor role . WABC - TV and WCBS - TV . He returned to local sportscasting with a job at WABC - TV in New York in 1976 , and then in 1980 moved to rival New York station WCBS - TV . His move to WCBS resulted in a lawsuit , " American Broadcasting Co . v . Wolf " , in which ABC alleged that Wolf failed to negotiate in good faith and sought specific performance of their contract which would have kept Wolf off the air for two years . The New York Court of Appeals rejected ABC ' s argument , although they permitted ABC to seek relief in the form of monetary damages . He also broadcasted live sports reports for Israel i television during the 1991 Gulf War . Return to WUSA - TV and " Imus in the Morning " . He went back to WUSA - TV in Washington , D . C . as the sports anchor in June 1992 , succeeding the late Glenn Brenner . He was dismissed in August 1995 . Between November 1995 and December 1996 , Wolf was the guest host of " The Tony Kornheiser Show " on Thursdays on WTEM and sometimes he also flew to New York as a substitute sports anchor on " Imus in the Morning " when the regular sports anchor , Mike Breen , was away . Because of his work on " Imus in the Morning " and Don Imus ' recommendation on the air continuously , Wolf went back to WCBS - TV as the sports anchor on February 3 , 1997 . During this time he also continued to do some work in radio , giving sports reports on the nationally syndicated " Imus in the Morning " program . Wolf broke the news of the September 11 , 2001 attacks on the " Imus " show , when he saw the World Trade Center on fire from his Lower Manhattan apartment . Wolf also covered the story for WCBS - TV ( where he was working at the time ) . He stayed there until May 2004 , returning to WABC ( AM ) in 2006 as the sports reporter for Curtis and Kuby , and continuing , with a two - week hiatus , on the Imus in the Morning program following Don Imus ' s arrival at WABC ( AM ) . He continues to serve as Imus ' s sports contributor , where he can be heard on WABC ( AM ) and seen on the Imus simulcast on the Fox Business Network . In addition to the Imus in the Morning program , Mr . Wolf also is a frequent guest on Mark Simone ' s WABC ( AM ) Saturday morning show , where he gives his witty take on not only sports but other general issues of the day and occasional movie reviews . Departure from WCBS - TV . On May 27 , 2004 Wolf was fired by WCBS - TV general manager Lew Leone three months before his contract expired , and replaced by a much younger anchor , Chris Wragge . The day after his firing , his picture covered half the front page of the New York Daily News with the other half being covered by the headline " WOLF FANS RAISE A HOWL " . A few months after his firing , which generated much public outcry , Wolf was hired by radio station WABC and he appeared weekday mornings with Curtis Sliwa & Ron Kuby as well as Mark Simone ' s Saturday morning radio program . When " Imus in the Morning " returned to WABC in December 2007 , Wolf was not the sports anchor : Tony Powell took that position . But after several weeks Wolf returned to his old position and continues as the morning sports guy for the " Imus in the Morning " show , now on the Fox Business Network . Wolf also hosts a Saturday sports talk show on 1050 ESPN Radio . Wolf modified his trademark " Let ' s go to the videotape ! " to " Let ' s go to the audiotape ! " Other appearances . Wolf played himself in the film " Rocky IV " and has made several other cameo appearance s . He is the author of the books " Let ' s Go to the Videotape " and " Give Me a Break " .