Frank Reynolds
Encyclopedia
Frank James Reynolds was an American television journalist
for ABC
and CBS
News.
He was a New York
-based anchor of the ABC Evening News from 1968 to 1970 and later as the Washington D.C.-based co-anchor of World News Tonight from 1978 until his death in 1983. During the Iran hostage crisis
, he began the 30-minute late-night program America Held Hostage, which later was renamed Nightline.
. Reynolds attended Bishop Noll Institute
in Hammond, Indiana
and then attended Wabash College
, from which he graduated in 1946. Reynolds served in the United States Army during the Second World War; he was a Staff Sergeant
and was awarded the Purple Heart
.
in 1949, which would become WBBM-TV, the CBS
owned-and-operated station (where he also served as Chicago
correspondent for CBS News
), and later on the second WBKB-TV
, the ABC
owned-and-operated station (now known as WLS-TV). He joined ABC in 1965 as a field correspondent, after serving as lead anchor at WBKB from 1963 to 1965. http://www.depauw.edu/library/archives/ijhof/inductees/reynoldsf.htm.
, who remained as co-anchor after Harry Reasoner
was hired from CBS
to replace Reynolds in December 1970. After the demotion, Reynolds returned to the field as a correspondent for the network. After Reasoner and Barbara Walters
ceased their anchor duties in 1978, Reynolds returned to the anchor chair as the Washington, D.C. anchor for the now-revamped World News Tonight newscast, with co-anchors Max Robinson
and Peter Jennings
, who became the show's sole anchor after Reynolds' death. All three original anchors of World News Tonight are now deceased.
Reynolds was also the original anchor of "America Held Hostage", a series of special reports seen weeknights at 11:30 p.m./10:30 Central on the Iran hostage crisis in November 1979 that evolved into the newsmagazine Nightline in 1980. Shortly after the special reports began, Reynolds was replaced by Ted Koppel
.
. Early reports received by his newsroom had indicated that James Brady and others had been shot but that Reagan himself was uninjured. He became upset when a report arrived indicating that Reagan had been struck and at one point can be heard shouting at an individual off-screen to "speak up" as more information arrived.
Later, White House Press Secretary James Brady
, a close friend of Reynolds, was erroneously reported by all three networks as having died from the head wound he suffered in the incident, and, further, a report arrived that Reagan had died. Upon learning that the information regarding Brady was incorrect, Reynolds suddenly appeared noticeably upset and, looking around at staffers in the background, angrily burst out:
correspondent Dean Reynolds. Coincidentally, it was a report from the younger Reynolds while he was a correspondent for UPI
which first revealed that James Brady
was still alive, leading to the aforementioned outburst from the elder Reynolds. http://about.upi.com/AboutUs/index.php?ContentID=20051018144741-7609
Reynolds died from hepatitis
-induced liver failure
on July 20, 1983, at the age of 59. He was diagnosed with multiple myeloma
while he was being treated for acute hepatitis
in the spring of 1978, just as he was beginning as chief anchorman for World News Tonight. Three months before his death, he presented his last newscast.
Reynolds, who served in the United States Army
, is interred in Arlington National Cemetery
. On May 23, 1985 he was presented, posthumously, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom
by President Reagan. Reagan and wife Nancy
attended the funeral.
A few years after Reynolds' death, musician Paul Hardcastle recorded a section of an ABC documentary about the Vietnam War
, that included narration by Reynolds, and later used it as part of his 1985 U.S. Top 40 and U.K. #1 (5 weeks) hit, 19. Hardcastle had a video made of the song that included footage from that documentary that ABC later demanded be removed. The ABC footage was later replaced with stock footage, but Reynolds' voice remained on the recording.
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
for ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
and CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
News.
He was a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
-based anchor of the ABC Evening News from 1968 to 1970 and later as the Washington D.C.-based co-anchor of World News Tonight from 1978 until his death in 1983. During the Iran hostage crisis
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
, he began the 30-minute late-night program America Held Hostage, which later was renamed Nightline.
Background
Reynolds was born on November 29, 1923 in East Chicago, IndianaEast Chicago, Indiana
East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census.-Geography:East Chicago is located at ....
. Reynolds attended Bishop Noll Institute
Bishop Noll Institute
Bishop Noll Institute is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Hammond, Indiana. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary.-Background:...
in Hammond, Indiana
Hammond, Indiana
Hammond is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 80,830 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hammond is located at ....
and then attended Wabash College
Wabash College
Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded...
, from which he graduated in 1946. Reynolds served in the United States Army during the Second World War; he was a Staff Sergeant
Staff Sergeant
Staff sergeant is a rank of non-commissioned officer used in several countries.The origin of the name is that they were part of the staff of a British army regiment and paid at that level rather than as a member of a battalion or company.-Australia:...
and was awarded the Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
.
Early career
After the war, Reynolds began his broadcast career with WWCA-AM in Gary, Indiana. Reynolds was a television anchor in Chicago, first on the original WBKB-TVWBBM-TV
WBBM-TV, virtual channel 2 , is the CBS owned-and-operated television station in Chicago, Illinois. WBBM-TV's main studios and offices are located in The Loop section of Chicago, as part of the development at Block 37, and its transmitter is atop the Willis Tower.-History:WBBM-TV traces its history...
in 1949, which would become WBBM-TV, the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
owned-and-operated station (where he also served as Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
correspondent for CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
), and later on the second WBKB-TV
WLS-TV
WLS-TV, virtual channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The station operates their full power digital operations on UHF channel 44, with their digital fill-in translator on VHF channel...
, the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
owned-and-operated station (now known as WLS-TV). He joined ABC in 1965 as a field correspondent, after serving as lead anchor at WBKB from 1963 to 1965. http://www.depauw.edu/library/archives/ijhof/inductees/reynoldsf.htm.
Anchor, ABC News
By 1968, he became co-anchor of the ABC evening newscast with Howard K. SmithHoward K. Smith
Howard Kingsbury Smith was an American journalist, radio reporter, television anchorman, political commentator, and film actor. He was one of the original Edward R. Murrow boys.-Early life:...
, who remained as co-anchor after Harry Reasoner
Harry Reasoner
Harry Truman Reasoner was an American journalist for ABC and CBS News, known for his inventive use of language as a television commentator, and as a founder of the 60 Minutes program.-Biography:...
was hired from CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
to replace Reynolds in December 1970. After the demotion, Reynolds returned to the field as a correspondent for the network. After Reasoner and Barbara Walters
Barbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
ceased their anchor duties in 1978, Reynolds returned to the anchor chair as the Washington, D.C. anchor for the now-revamped World News Tonight newscast, with co-anchors Max Robinson
Max Robinson
Max Robinson was an American broadcast journalist, and ABC News World News Tonight co-anchor. He was the first African American broadcast network news anchor in the United States and one of the first television journalists to die of AIDS...
and Peter Jennings
Peter Jennings
Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings, CM was a Canadian American journalist and news anchor. He was the sole anchor of ABC's World News Tonight from 1983 until his death in 2005 of complications from lung cancer...
, who became the show's sole anchor after Reynolds' death. All three original anchors of World News Tonight are now deceased.
Reynolds was also the original anchor of "America Held Hostage", a series of special reports seen weeknights at 11:30 p.m./10:30 Central on the Iran hostage crisis in November 1979 that evolved into the newsmagazine Nightline in 1980. Shortly after the special reports began, Reynolds was replaced by Ted Koppel
Ted Koppel
Edward James "Ted" Koppel is an English-born American broadcast journalist, best known as the anchor for Nightline from the program's inception in 1980 until his retirement in late 2005. After leaving Nightline, Koppel worked as managing editor for the Discovery Channel before resigning in 2008...
.
Reagan Assassination Attempt Coverage Episode, 1981
One famous moment in Reynolds' career occurred on March 30, 1981 during live news coverage of the assassination attempt on U.S. President Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
. Early reports received by his newsroom had indicated that James Brady and others had been shot but that Reagan himself was uninjured. He became upset when a report arrived indicating that Reagan had been struck and at one point can be heard shouting at an individual off-screen to "speak up" as more information arrived.
Later, White House Press Secretary James Brady
James Brady
James Scott "Jim" Brady is a former Assistant to the President and White House Press Secretary under U.S. President Ronald Reagan...
, a close friend of Reynolds, was erroneously reported by all three networks as having died from the head wound he suffered in the incident, and, further, a report arrived that Reagan had died. Upon learning that the information regarding Brady was incorrect, Reynolds suddenly appeared noticeably upset and, looking around at staffers in the background, angrily burst out:
"Let's get it nailed down...somebody...let's find out! Let's get it straight so we can report this thing accurately!"
Legacy
Reynolds is the father of CBS NewsCBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
correspondent Dean Reynolds. Coincidentally, it was a report from the younger Reynolds while he was a correspondent for UPI
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
which first revealed that James Brady
James Brady
James Scott "Jim" Brady is a former Assistant to the President and White House Press Secretary under U.S. President Ronald Reagan...
was still alive, leading to the aforementioned outburst from the elder Reynolds. http://about.upi.com/AboutUs/index.php?ContentID=20051018144741-7609
Reynolds died from hepatitis
Hepatitis
Hepatitis is a medical condition defined by the inflammation of the liver and characterized by the presence of inflammatory cells in the tissue of the organ. The name is from the Greek hepar , the root being hepat- , meaning liver, and suffix -itis, meaning "inflammation"...
-induced liver failure
Liver failure
Acute liver failure is the appearance of severe complications rapidly after the first signs of liver disease , and indicates that the liver has sustained severe damage . The complications are hepatic encephalopathy and impaired protein synthesis...
on July 20, 1983, at the age of 59. He was diagnosed with multiple myeloma
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
while he was being treated for acute hepatitis
Hepatitis
Hepatitis is a medical condition defined by the inflammation of the liver and characterized by the presence of inflammatory cells in the tissue of the organ. The name is from the Greek hepar , the root being hepat- , meaning liver, and suffix -itis, meaning "inflammation"...
in the spring of 1978, just as he was beginning as chief anchorman for World News Tonight. Three months before his death, he presented his last newscast.
Reynolds, who served in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, is interred in Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
. On May 23, 1985 he was presented, posthumously, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Presidential Medal of Freedom
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
by President Reagan. Reagan and wife Nancy
Nancy Reagan
Nancy Davis Reagan is the widow of former United States President Ronald Reagan and was First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989....
attended the funeral.
A few years after Reynolds' death, musician Paul Hardcastle recorded a section of an ABC documentary about the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, that included narration by Reynolds, and later used it as part of his 1985 U.S. Top 40 and U.K. #1 (5 weeks) hit, 19. Hardcastle had a video made of the song that included footage from that documentary that ABC later demanded be removed. The ABC footage was later replaced with stock footage, but Reynolds' voice remained on the recording.