Alan "Al" Kaprielian is a

meteorologist A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmospheric phenomena including the weather. Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists in research, while t ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. He is best known for the 20+ years he has spent at Channel 50, a broadcast television station in

Derry, New Hampshire Derry is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 34,317 at the 2020 census. Although it is a town and not a city, Derry is the most populous community in Rockingham County and the fourth most populous in the ...

. One journalist described him as a ''Kult of Kaprielian'' due to his distinctive voice and eccentric mannerisms, which included squeaky, high-pitched exclamations of "high pressure!" and "good evening!"; a distinct

New England accent New England English is, collectively, the various distinct dialects and varieties of American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the U ...

; sound effects reminiscent of

Curly Howard Jerome Lester Horwitz (; October 22, 1903 – January 18, 1952), known professionally as Curly Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He was best known as a member of the American comedy team the Three Stooges, which also featured his elder ...

; swinging his arms in circles rapidly and performing

jumping jacks ''Jumping Jacks'' is a 1952 American semi- musical comedy film starring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis. The film was directed by Norman Taurog, and released by Paramount Pictures. It was one of the military comedies that marked the duo's ea ...

on camera. At one point during the Christmas season of 1999 the station even offered up Al Kaprielian tree ornaments. Kaprielian's run at the station began in 1983 and survived several changes in station ownership. The run was interrupted on December 31, 2009 when, as part of many changes at the station, Kaprielian as well as most other on-air talent at the station was let go. Kaprielian found employment doing forecasts for Manchester Public Television Service (local access), the online site of the

Nashua Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', for most of its existence known as the ''Nashua Telegraph'', is a daily newspaper in Nashua, New Hampshire. It was founded as the ''Nashua Daily Telegraph'' in 1869, although a weekly version dates back to 1832. Through the 20 ...

newspaper, and radio station WCAP-AM (980) in

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

. After yet another change in ownership at the station, Kaprielian returned to Channel 50 in August 2012, doing hourly updates from 2pm to 9pm. As of 2015, Kaprielian is no longer with WBIN-TV; he currently forecasts for WLMW radio in

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 115,644. Manchester is, along with Nashua, one of two seats of New Hamp ...

. When not broadcasting weather information he tours local schools. During these visits, he teaches students about science and meteorology. He can also be found at local community events such as the

Lowell Folk Festival The Lowell Folk Festival is the longest-running, and second-largest, free folk festival in the United States. Only Seattle's Northwest Folklife is larger, both in attendance and number of performance stages. It is made up of three days of tradition ...

, the Dracut Scholarship Foundation's Telethon, and the Derry News Cookie Eating Contest. He was also a feature celebrity judge at the 2009 Hampton Beach Seafood Festival, and attends the festival each year.

Biography

Kaprielian, born July 7, 1961, is a native of

Natick, Massachusetts Natick ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 37,006 at the 2020 census. west of Boston, Natick is part of the Greater Boston area. ...

. He graduated from

Lyndon State College Lyndon State College was a public liberal arts college at Lyndon, Vermont. In 2018, it merged with Johnson State College to create Northern Vermont University; the former campus of Lyndon State College is now the university's Lyndon campus. I ...

Lyndonville, Vermont Lyndonville is a village in the town of Lyndon, in Caledonia County, Vermont, United States. Lyndonville's population was 1,136 at the 2020 census. It is the closest community to the Lyndon campus of Northern Vermont University. History In 1883 ...

. He currently resides in Merrimack, New Hampshire. Kaprielian was awarded the "Best Weather Forecaster" in the Nashua Telegraph's 2004 Reader's Choice Awards. He has also been voted Best Media Personality and Best Weatherperson in New Hampshire Magazine's, The Very Best of New Hampshire Reader Choice Awards.

References

External links

Good Eeeevening!: A Perspective on New Hampshire Meteorologist Al KaprielianThe Kult of Al Kaprielian - The Boston Phoenix
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaprielian, Al 1961 births Living people Lyndon State College alumni American people of Armenian descent American television meteorologists