Remembering Calstate's Own Hal Fishman

August 8, 2007
Hal Fishman, the longtime news anchor for KTLA-TV Los Angeles, died at his home Tuesday morning, less than a week after being diagnosed with colon cancer. He was 75.

Fishman had been hospitalized for a serious bacterial infection after collapsing at his home Aug. 1. While undergoing treatment for his infection, doctors discovered that Fishman had colon cancer, which had spread to his liver.

The Tribune-owned station said Monday that Fishman had returned to his home, where died at 3 a.m. Tuesday with his family.

"We're deeply saddened at the loss of Hal Fishman," KTLA vp and GM Vinnie Malcolm said. "We are thankful for his unparalleled service and years of dedication to KTLA and the greater Los Angeles community."

Fishman, a 47-year news veteran, had anchored KTLA's 10 p.m. newscast since 1975 and also served as the show's managing editor. He recently was inducted in the Guinness World Records for being the world's longest-running television newscaster. Fishman also was known for his signature nightly commentaries, which earned him several Golden Mike, AP and Press Club Awards.

"He'd wake up with the news; he went to sleep with the news; the news was his life," said Jeff Wald, Fishman's longtime friend and news director. "He took it very seriously because he felt that imparting the news to the public is one of most important things you could possibly do."

"KTLA Morning News" anchor Carlos Amezcua will continue to serve as interim anchor of KTLA's "Prime News" for the remainder of the week, but no decisions have been made about Fishman's replacement beyond that point.

Fishman started his career in broadcasting while working as an assistant professor of political science at California State University, Los Angeles, teaching a course on American political parties. In 1960, he was approached by local TV station KCOP asking him to teach an on-air class in politics. The class, "American Political Parties in Politics," was a success, and KCOP asked Fishman to anchor his own news segment.

Gene Autry, then owner of KTLA, hired Fishman as a news anchorman in 1965. At KTLA, he covered such stories as the 1965 Watts riots, the 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, the 1987 visit by Pope John Paul II to Los Angeles, the 1994 Northridge, Calif., earthquake, the 1991 Rodney King beating and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger released a statement saying that he was "deeply saddened" by Fishman's death.

"I remember Hal giving me the news when I first came to California in 1968,"