Bill Stout
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William Job "Bill" Stout (September 4, 1927 – December 1, 1989) was an American journalist and sometime actor, known for his radio and television broadcasting career with
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio broadcaster CBS. It is headquartered in New York City. CBS News television programs include ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs ''CBS News Sunday Morn ...
.


Early life and education

Stout was born William Job Stout in
Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
on September 4, 1927. He attended the
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
(UCLA), majoring in English. He enrolled when he was 16, and started classes as he turned 17. In college he edited the college newspaper and was active politically, advocating other students to join the picket lines at
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...
following Hollywood Black Friday in October 1945. Stout advocated racial justice in a college newspaper editorial, and, in 1946, he represented UCLA in
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at the founding meeting of the International Union of Students.


Career


Newspaper

Stout left UCLA in June 1947 at the age of 19 and obtained work at the rival paper, '' The Minneapolis Times'', alongside freshman reporter
Harry Reasoner Harry Reasoner (April 17, 1923 – August 6, 1991) was an American journalist for CBS and American Broadcasting Company, ABC ABC News (United States), News, known for his adroit use of language as a television commentator and as one of the origin ...
who would later attain fame as a television commentator. Stout continued at the ''Times'', later shifting to work for the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
news agency. He married Helen Larson in 1949 and they moved to Los Angeles in 1950 with her son Craig, who he later adopted.


Broadcasting

Stout's first broadcast journalist work was for CBS-owned KNX (AM) radio in Los Angeles, working as a reporter starting in 1950. In 1953, he moved to the affiliated television station KNXT, taking the roles of reporter, researcher and writer. KNXT broadcast on channel 2, and Stout worked for the channel's investigative news show ''Special Assignment''. (In 1984, KNXT changed to
KCBS-TV KCBS-TV (channel 2), branded CBS Los Angeles, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast of the United States, West Coast flagship station of the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the n ...
.) Stout interviewed
Richard Feynman Richard Phillips Feynman (; May 11, 1918 – February 15, 1988) was an American theoretical physicist. He is best known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics, the physics of t ...
in 1959 for KNXT; the conversation, with its questions about the intersection of science, religion and society, is preserved as a chapter in Feynman's book, ''Perfectly Reasonable Deviations From The Beaten Track''. In 1960, Stout left CBS for three years to work for rival
KTLA KTLA (channel 5) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship station of The CW. It is the largest directly owned property of the network's majority owner, Nexstar Media Group, and is ...
inside an old Warner Bros. sound stage, under the same roof as
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
. Stout moderated
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
's press conference following his defeat in the California governor's race in 1962. Stout hosted a half-hour TV series, ''Line of Sight'', in which he aired his commentaries on current news topics. The series was produced by Irwin Rosten at KTLA for Paramount. In 1963, Stout returned to CBS as the Los Angeles correspondent of
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio broadcaster CBS. It is headquartered in New York City. CBS News television programs include ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs ''CBS News Sunday Morn ...
. The ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' later observed that Stout's changes of employment during his early years were probably due to the argumentative attitude he displayed to his superiors and peers. He wrote occasional newspaper articles, and he was a popular speaker at parties and fundraisers. In 1972, he rejoined Channel 2 KNXT. In 1978 on his ''Perspectives'' segment, he began delivering gruff commentaries with a rumpled, balding appearance akin to actor Ed Asner portraying Lou Grant. Stout was dismissive of newscasters chosen for their attractive appearance. At KNXT, he was known as a highly regarded investigative reporter and political commentator who preferred to ignore partisan ideologies and divisions. In 1978, Stout unwittingly contributed to the loss by Mervyn Dymally to
Mike Curb Michael Curb (born December 24, 1944) is an American politician, record executive, and philanthropist who served as the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of California, lieutenant governor of California from 1979 to 1983. He is the founder of Curb Recor ...
in the race for
Lieutenant Governor of California The lieutenant governor of California is the second highest Executive (government), executive officer of the government of the U.S. state of California. The Lieutenant governor (United States), lieutenant governor is elected to serve a four-yea ...
. A week before the election, Stout announced on the radio that Dymally was soon to be indicted for an unspecified crime. He said, "I have read it. You have heard it. Dymally knows it."Carr, Elston L. (1997). "Oral History Interview with Mervyn M. Dymally". California State Archives. State Government Oral History Program, Volume 1. Dymally had been leading by six points in polls, but this unanswerable accusation ruined his chances. The rumor was later traced to Bob Fairbanks, a political reporter from the ''Los Angeles Times'' who was hostile to Dymally. Fairbanks had inquired of the
California Attorney General The attorney general of California is the state attorney general of the government of California. The officer must ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" (Constitution of California, Article V, Section 13). The ...
's office about a rumored indictment of Dymally, and the deputy attorney general Michael Franchetti wrote a memo about the rumor inquiry. A version of the memo with the rumor part erased was given to Curb's office where Stout's wife Margaret worked. Margaret passed the memo to Stout and he read it aloud on the radio as if it were fact. Dymally heard the broadcast and immediately ceased campaigning, knowing his bid was shattered. As part of his commentary at KNXT, Stout regularly chose a person or entity as the winner of his "Golden Turkey of the Month." One of these was Judith Belushi, widow of TV-movie comic
John Belushi John Adam Belushi ( ; January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, singer and musician. He was one of seven ''Saturday Night Live'' cast members of the first season. He was arguably the most popular member of the ''Satur ...
; the subject was the 1984 biography '' Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi'' by
Bob Woodward Robert Upshur Woodward (born March 26, 1943) is an American investigative journalist. He started working for ''The Washington Post'' as a reporter in 1971 and now holds the honorific title of associate editor though the Post no longer employs ...
. Judith Belushi complained that Woodward's book was unfair in that it did not say that "drugs can be fun". Contrasting that sentiment with John Belushi's death by drug overdose, Stout awarded Judith the Golden Turkey, saying her comment was "an all-time low in widows' tributes". On February 3, 1988, Stout received a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
for his work in the television industry. In a ceremony conducted at the star's location (1500
Vine Street Vine Street is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, that runs north–south between Franklin Avenue, Los Angeles, and Melrose Avenue. The intersection of Hollywood and Vine being symbolic of Hollywood itself. The intersection has be ...
.), Police Chief Daryl Gates said that Stout was "one of the few remaining real reporters in the city".


Death

In 1987, Stout survived a serious heart attack. He spent six months off the air in recovery. Stout's final television appearance was November 28, 1989, on KCBS's ''Action News at 6''. Two nights later, Stout was admitted to
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, Tertiary referral hospital, tertiary, 915-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre, academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars ...
in Los Angeles, with flu-like symptoms. He died the next morning from
cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...
at the age of 62. Stout was survived by his wife, Margaret, her five children and three children from his second marriage. He was briefly married to a fellow UCLA student. He is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles.


Filmography


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stout, Bill 1927 births 1989 deaths American male journalists American anti-fascists 20th-century American writers 20th-century American journalists 20th-century American male writers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)