Kelly Lange
Encyclopedia
Kelly Lange is an American
journalist, most notable for being the first woman to be a nightly news anchor in Los Angeles
. Lange is a radio and TV news reporter, talk show host, former Tournament of Roses parade
co-host, longtime southern California local news anchor, and a best-selling mystery author.
said Lange was the first local newscaster to be paid $1 million per year.
; was the regular guest host of Tomorrow
, with Tom Snyder
; and a regular guest host of NBC
's Today show. In Southern California, she served as co-anchor for nightly newscasts at KNBC-TV from 1971-1999. She won several Emmy Awards as well as once serving as the award program host.
She began writing fiction and mysteries while still a news anchor, partially to relieve insomnia from working on the 11 pm newscast. After a two-year talk show stint with KCBS-TV
, she left broadcasting and has since been a full-time mystery novelist. The popular mystery fiction books include The Reporter, Dead File, and Graveyard Shift, featuring fictional TV news anchor Maxi Poole, plus Trophy Wife and Gossip.
In 2010, Lange was presented with the Golden Mike's Lifetime Achievement Award by the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California.
(1987–1990) and has one daughter
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist, most notable for being the first woman to be a nightly news anchor 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...
. Lange is a radio and TV news reporter, talk show host, former Tournament of Roses parade
Tournament of Roses Parade
The Tournament of Roses Parade, better known as the Rose Parade, is "America's New Year Celebration", a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and a college football game on New Year's Day , produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association.The annual...
co-host, longtime southern California local news anchor, and a best-selling mystery author.
Early career
One day in 1967, Lange, a model at the time, got into a line at a Buena Park shopping mall, because it appeared "they were giving something away." The something they were giving away turned out to be applications for two positions as "Ladybirds" on KABC (790) radio. The lucky duo would become the first female traffic/weather reporters in this area to patrol in helicopters. Lange was one of two chosen. She got the 6 a.m.-to-9 a.m. segment and she was re-christened Dawn O'Day. Another applicant, a film studio secretary named Lori Ross, got the afternoon shift as Eve O'Day. "The two women in their tight-fitting, silver-lamé jumpsuits paved the way for today's less-exploited women deejays and announcers," thus began Kelly Lange's career as a news reporter, spotting news and reporting traffic for KABC, later joining NBC-4 in 1971. NBC News refers to Lange as the first woman to anchor a nightly newscast at an NBC owned station. TV GuideTV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
said Lange was the first local newscaster to be paid $1 million per year.
Career
Lange served as Rose Parade co-host with Michael LandonMichael Landon
Michael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is widely known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza , Charles Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie , and Jonathan Smith in Highway to Heaven...
; was the regular guest host of Tomorrow
Tomorrow (TV series)
Tomorrow was an American late-night television talk show hosted by Tom Snyder...
, with Tom Snyder
Tom Snyder
Thomas James "Tom" Snyder was an American television personality, news anchor and radio personality best known for his late night talk shows The Tomorrow Show, on the NBC television network in the 1970s and 1980s, and The Late Late Show, on the CBS Television Network in the 1990s...
; and a regular guest host of NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Today show. In Southern California, she served as co-anchor for nightly newscasts at KNBC-TV from 1971-1999. She won several Emmy Awards as well as once serving as the award program host.
She began writing fiction and mysteries while still a news anchor, partially to relieve insomnia from working on the 11 pm newscast. After a two-year talk show stint with KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV, channel 2, is an owned-and-operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Los Angeles, California. KCBS-TV shares its offices and studio facilities with sister station KCAL-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter...
, she left broadcasting and has since been a full-time mystery novelist. The popular mystery fiction books include The Reporter, Dead File, and Graveyard Shift, featuring fictional TV news anchor Maxi Poole, plus Trophy Wife and Gossip.
In 2010, Lange was presented with the Golden Mike's Lifetime Achievement Award by the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California.
Personal life
She was married to film director William FriedkinWilliam Friedkin
William Friedkin is an American film director, producer and screenwriter best known for directing The French Connection in 1971 and The Exorcist in 1973; for the former, he won the Academy Award for Best Director...
(1987–1990) and has one daughter