Harry Reasoner

Profession: Journalist

Nationality:

Biography: Harry Reasoner was an American journalist best known for his work as a television commentator and as one of the original hosts of the news magazine 60 Minutes. He was awarded three Emmy Awards and a George Foster Peabody Award.

Reasoner served in the Army during World War II, during which he also wrote a novel. After the war, he resumed his journalism career and began working in radio, joining CBS in 1948 before moving into television with station KEYD in Minneapolis.

In 1956, Reasoner joined CBS News in New York, hosting a morning news program and assuming commentary and narration duties. He played a significant role in the coverage of the John F. Kennedy assassination, taking over the broadcast from colleagues Walter Cronkite and Charles Collingwood and later anchoring a special program about Kennedy's life and death.

In 1968, Reasoner and Mike Wallace launched the pioneering newsmagazine series 60 Minutes. During this time, he collaborated with producer Andy Rooney. Reasoner briefly departed CBS for ABC in 1970, co-anchoring the ABC Evening News.

He had a notably troubled partnership with Barbara Walters, becoming sole anchor in 1975 before reuniting with Walters as his co-anchor the following year. After eight years at ABC, he returned to CBS in 1978 to resume his role on 60 Minutes until his retirement in 1991.

Reasoner was married twice, first to Kathleen Carroll Reasoner, with whom he had seven children, and then to Lois Harriett Weber after Kathleen's death. He also had six grandchildren. Reasoner underwent two surgeries for lung cancer in the late 1980s.

Reasoner passed away in 1991 from a blood clot in the brain caused by a fall that he suffered shortly after retiring. His contributions to journalism are chronicled in his autobiography and a biography by Douglass K. Daniel.

Born: April 17, 1923
Birthplace: Dakota City, Iowa

Generation: Greatest Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Pig
Star Sign: Aries

Died: August 6, 1991 (aged 68)
Cause of Death: Stroke