Hal Fishman
Encyclopedia
Hal Fishman was the longest-running news anchor in the history of American
television, having served on-air for Los Angeles
television stations continuously between 1960 and his death in 2007. He was also a record-holding aviator
.
native, he received his Bachelor's degree from Cornell University
where he worked at the campus radio station. He also received a master's degree
in political science
from UCLA in 1956, and planned for a career in academia (he actually worked as an assistant political science professor at California State University, Los Angeles
for two years). However, after KCOP Channel 13 approached him to teach an on-air course, the station invited him to anchor his own segment. Fishman had been on the air continuously since June 20, 1960, moving from KCOP to KTLA
in 1965. That same year, Fishman had major exposure as a field reporter for KTLA when he helped cover the Watts Riots
live from the Los Angeles Police Department
command center. He had anchored KTLA's "News At Ten" since January 8, 1975. Prior to anchoring at KTLA, Fishman had worked at other Los Angeles
independent stations KTTV
and KHJ
(now KCAL) during the early 1970s.
, to the Sylmar and Northridge earthquake
s, to Pope John Paul II
's 1987 visit to Southern California
. He, along with KTLA, was credited for being the first to air footage of the police beating of Rodney King
in 1991, an event that sparked riots
a year later when the officers were acquitted. In 2000, KTLA dedicated its newsroom in Fishman's honor, commemorating his 40 years in television and his years of service and commitment to the region.
.
On July 31, 2007, the night before Hal became ill and after his last broadcast, KTLA celebrated Hal's 47 years in television with a special gala at the Autry National Museum in Los Angeles
, an event attended by such dignitaries as Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
and Los Angeles County sheriff Lee Baca
. The event was emceed by Morning Show anchor Michaela Pereira
. During the gala, Hal spoke to the audience about his time in television. Fishman appeared somewhat fatigued but little would be known about his health until the day after.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television, having served on-air for Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
television stations continuously between 1960 and his death in 2007. He was also a record-holding aviator
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
.
Biography
A BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
native, he received his Bachelor's degree from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
where he worked at the campus radio station. He also received a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
from UCLA in 1956, and planned for a career in academia (he actually worked as an assistant political science professor at California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles is a public comprehensive university, part of the California State University system...
for two years). However, after KCOP Channel 13 approached him to teach an on-air course, the station invited him to anchor his own segment. Fishman had been on the air continuously since June 20, 1960, moving from KCOP to KTLA
KTLA
KTLA, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, USA. Owned by the Tribune Company, KTLA is an affiliate of the CW Television Network. KTLA's studios are on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson...
in 1965. That same year, Fishman had major exposure as a field reporter for KTLA when he helped cover the Watts Riots
Watts Riots
The Watts Riots or the Watts Rebellion was a civil disturbance in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, California from August 11 to August 15, 1965. The 5-day riot resulted in 34 deaths, 1,032 injuries, and 3,438 arrests...
live from the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
command center. He had anchored KTLA's "News At Ten" since January 8, 1975. Prior to anchoring at KTLA, Fishman had worked at other Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
independent stations KTTV
KTTV
KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...
and KHJ
KCAL-TV
KCAL-TV, channel 9, is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, USA, owned by the CBS Corporation. KCAL-TV shares its studio facilities with KCBS-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson.-Digital...
(now KCAL) during the early 1970s.
Notable events covered
As a news anchor, Fishman covered numerous events in Los Angeles and the world, ranging from the assassination of presidential candidate Robert F. KennedyRobert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
, to the Sylmar and Northridge earthquake
Northridge earthquake
The Northridge earthquake was a massive earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 04:31 Pacific Standard Time in Reseda, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, lasting for about 10–20 seconds...
s, to Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
's 1987 visit to Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
. He, along with KTLA, was credited for being the first to air footage of the police beating of Rodney King
Rodney King
Rodney Glen King is an American best known for his involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department on March 3, 1991...
in 1991, an event that sparked riots
1992 Los Angeles riots
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
a year later when the officers were acquitted. In 2000, KTLA dedicated its newsroom in Fishman's honor, commemorating his 40 years in television and his years of service and commitment to the region.
Honors
Fishman had won numerous awards, including the Associated Press Television-Radio Association's first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award. He received a "star" on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame," and KTLA named its television news studio after Fishman. He also authored two novels, Flight 902 is Down (co-authored with aviation writer Barry J. Schiff) and The Vatican Target. Hal was also an accomplished pilot and set 13 records for speed and altitude. In 1969, he was awarded the Louis Blériot medal by the Fédération Aéronautique InternationaleFédération Aéronautique Internationale
The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale is the world governing body for air sports and aeronautics and astronautics world records. Its head office is in Lausanne, Switzerland. This includes man-carrying aerospace vehicles from balloons to spacecraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles...
.
Death
Fishman died August 7, 2007 at home, just eighteen days before he would have turned 76, following recent treatment for a liver infection, which had detected cancer in his liver and colon. That morning the station interrupted its regular news schedule and dedicated much of the Morning Show and Prime News broadcasts to Fishman. The reporters on Prime News did not break for commercials that evening. Hal Fishman's last broadcast was on July 30, 2007, eight days before his death.On July 31, 2007, the night before Hal became ill and after his last broadcast, KTLA celebrated Hal's 47 years in television with a special gala at the Autry National Museum in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, an event attended by such dignitaries as Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa , born Antonio Ramón Villar, Jr., is the 41st and current Mayor of Los Angeles, California, the third Mexican American to have ever held office in the city of Los Angeles and the first in over 130 years. He is also the current president of the United States Conference of...
and Los Angeles County sheriff Lee Baca
Lee Baca
Leroy David "Lee" Baca is the Sheriff of Los Angeles County, California. Baca holds a Doctorate of Public Administration from the University of Southern California....
. The event was emceed by Morning Show anchor Michaela Pereira
Michaela Pereira
Michaela Pereira is a Canadian television personality best known as being an anchor for KTLA in Los Angeles.- Biography :...
. During the gala, Hal spoke to the audience about his time in television. Fishman appeared somewhat fatigued but little would be known about his health until the day after.
Filmography
Fishman played a television news anchor or reporter in numerous films during his career:- Black SundayBlack Sunday (1977 film)Black Sunday is a 1977 American thriller film directed by John Frankenheimer and based on the novel by Thomas Harris. The film starred Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern, and Marthe Keller and was nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture in 1978...
(1977) - Reporter - When Hell was in SessionWhen Hell was in SessionWhen Hell was in Session is a memoir by Jeremiah Denton, recounting his experiences as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. A United States Naval Aviator, Denton was shot down and captured, spending the next seven years and seven months as a POW. The book was later made into a television movie...
(1979) - Maximum OverdriveMaximum OverdriveMaximum Overdrive is a 1986 American action-horror-science fiction film written and directed by novelist Stephen King. The screenplay was inspired by and loosely based on King's short story, Trucks, which was included in King's first collection of short stories, Night Shift.Maximum Overdrive is...
(1986) - Anchorman Voice (voice)(uncredited) - WisdomWisdom (film)Wisdom is a 1986 American crime film. It was written by its star, Emilio Estevez, who co-directed with executive producer Robert Wise. The film also stars Demi Moore, along with Tom Skeritt and Veronica Cartwright as Estevez's parents. Emilio dedicated the film to the memory of his friend Henry...
(1986) - Forrest GumpForrest GumpForrest Gump is a 1994 American epic comedy-drama romance film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Gary Sinise...
(1994) - Jimmy HollywoodJimmy HollywoodJimmy Hollywood is an American comedy film written and directed by Barry Levinson and starring Joe Pesci and Christian Slater.- Plot :Jimmy Alto is a failing actor living in Los Angeles. After increasing frustration with crime in the city Jimmy, along with his 'spaced-out' best friend William ,...
(1994) - Joe DirtJoe DirtJoe Dirt is a 2001 American comedy film starring David Spade, Dennis Miller, Christopher Walken, Brian Thompson, Brittany Daniel, Jaime Pressly, Erik Per Sullivan, Adam Beach and Kid Rock. The film was written by Spade and Fred Wolf.-Plot:...
(2001) - Crocodile Dundee in Los AngelesCrocodile Dundee in Los AngelesCrocodile Dundee in Los Angeles is a 2001 Australian-American comedy film, directed by Simon Wincer and starring Paul Hogan. It is the sequel to the 1988 film Crocodile Dundee II, which itself was the sequel to 1986's Crocodile Dundee and the third and final film of the trilogy...
(2001) - National SecurityNational Security (film)National Security is a 2003 action comedy film, directed by Dennis Dugan, starring Martin Lawrence and Steve Zahn. In addition to Lawrence and Zahn, National Security boasts an additional cast of Bill Duke, Eric Roberts, Colm Feore, Matt McCoy, and others.The film was released in January 2003 and...
(2003) - Malibu's Most WantedMalibu's Most WantedMalibu's Most Wanted is a 2003 comedic feature film written by and starring Jamie Kennedy and co-starring Taye Diggs, Anthony Anderson, and Regina Hall....
(2003) - One Six RightOne Six RightOne Six Right: The Romance of Flying is an independent film about the general aviation industry as seen through a local airport. Within a short period of time, it has achieved a passionate following and presence among pilots and aviation enthusiasts worldwide who see the film as being able to...
(2005) - Spider-Man 3Spider-Man 3Spider-Man 3 is a 2007 American superhero film written and directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent. It is the third film in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man...
(2007)
Sources/Links
- In Loving Memory - Hal Fishman (URL last accessed July 5, 2007)
- Hal Fishman, Newsman / UCLA Spotlight