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Ambassador of Exploration award, American, anchorman, And that's the way it is, CBS Evening News, Celebrity, cerebrovascular disease, Dan Rather, journalist, KCMO, Mary Elizabeth Maxwell, most trusted man in America, Walter Cronkite, Walter Leland Cronkite
Walter Cronkite (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009)
Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. was an American broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years (1962–1981). During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as “the most trusted man in America.” Cronkite reported many events from 1937 to 1981, including bombings in World War II; the Nuremberg trials; combat in the Vietnam War; the Dawson’s Field hijackings; Watergate; the Iran Hostage Crisis; and the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, civil rights pioneer Martin Luther King Jr., and Beatles musician John Lennon. He was also known for his extensive coverage of the U.S. space program, from Project Mercury to the Moon landings to the Space Shuttle. He was the only non-NASA recipient of an Ambassador of Exploration award. Cronkite is known for his departing catchphrase, “And that’s the way it is”, followed by the date of the broadcast. Cronkite attended the University of Texas at Austin in 1933. He dropped out in the fall term during his junior year in 1935 after starting a series of newspaper reporting jobs covering news and sports. He then took on broadcasting job as a radio announcer for WKY in Oklahoma City. In 1936, he was in Kansas City as the sports announcer for KCMO (here he also met his future wife). The next year he joined the United Press International and became one of the top American reporters of World War II. With his name established, he joined the team at CBS News in 1950. In 1980 (at the age of 65), Cronkite announced his retirement. His final day in the anchor chair was March 6, 1981. (He was succeeded by Dan Rather.)
Cronkite was married for almost 65 years to Mary Elizabeth Maxwell from March 30, 1940 until her death from cancer on March 15, 2005. They had three children. In June 2009, Cronkite was reported to be terminally ill. He died on July 17, 2009, at his home in New York City aged 92. He is believed to have died from cerebrovascular disease.