Departing Univision 40 general manager channels Carol Burnett

In a farewell e-mail, the now-common way for workers to sign off in the modern age, some employees use famous quotes or literary references. So it's not a shock that a Raleigh TV executive borrowed from Carol Burnett.

Michael Munoz has been general manager of TV station Univision 40-WUVC in Raleigh for the past two years. He was recently promoted to vice president of client development for Univision Corp. and will be based out of Dallas.

This is his last week at the local station. Univision 40 and its low-power sister channel WTNC TeleFutura are still looking for a new GM to replace Munoz.

In a note he sent today to "colleagues, partners and friends of Univision 40," Munoz wrote about his accomplishments and thanked the TV station's staff -- all standard stuff for a classy farewell e-mail.

He even acknowledges, very subtly, the tough economic times that have hit all broadcasters and the businesses that advertise with them.

"We're not recession proof by any means," he said in a telephone interview. "But we are still a growth station in a growth market. We're still a young station. This is an emerging market for the Hispanic community, but it has a lot of potential."

The best part of Munoz's farewell note is the kicker, where he quotes the first verse of the "Carol Burnett Show" theme song:

I’m so glad we had this time together
Just to have a laugh or sing a song.
Seems we just got started and before you know it
Comes the time we have to say “so long.”

Munoz, who has been with Univision for 15 years, thought the song perfectly summed up his feelings after a short stint with a strong team in Raleigh.

The Los Angeles Times in February ran an interesting story about farewell e-mail. The piece pointed out the best ones can be funny, poignant, poetic and short. A few blast coworkers or the boss, a risky strategy to build good will with a future employer.

The LA Times story also mentions what's become a classic sign-off from a Google employee when he left the tech company: "So long, suckers! I'm out!"