Frank Field ( Franklyn Feld; March 30, 1923 – July 1, 2023) was an American television

meteorologist A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric phenomena including the weather. Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

for five decades, reporting on the weather and science and health topics. He was instrumental in publicizing the

Heimlich Maneuver Heimlich maneuver, also known as abdominal thrusts or Heimlich manoeuvre, is a first-aid procedure used to treat upper-airway obstructions (or choking) by foreign objects. American doctor Henry Heimlich is often credited for its discovery. ...

. Field carried the Seal of Approval of the

American Meteorological Society The American Meteorological Society (AMS) is a scientific and professional organization in the United States promoting and disseminating information about the atmospheric, oceanic, and hydrologic sciences. Its mission is to advance the atmosph ...

. Field was a resident of

Montclair, New Jersey Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...

, before retiring to

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

Biography

Field was born Franklyn Feld on March 30, 1923, in

Queens, New York Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

, of

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

heritage. His parents immigrated to America in 1909 and his last name was later Americanized to Field. His extended family that remained in Europe was murdered in

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. He was a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

and meteorologist with the

8th Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces S ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the

European Theater The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main Theater (warfare), theatres of combat during World War II, taking place from September 1939 to May 1945. The Allies of World War II, Allied powers (including the United Kingdom, the ...

. After the war, he worked in optometry (earning a doctorate in the practice) before switching back to weather forecasting. Field attended

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

before the war, but did not complete his degree. He held a B.S. in optometry from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

and an O.D. from the Massachusetts College of Optometry. He was on the faculty of the

Albert Einstein College of Medicine The Albert Einstein College of Medicine is a Private university, private medical school in New York City. Founded in 1953, Einstein is an independent degree-granting institution within the Montefiore Einstein Health System. Einstein hosts Doc ...

in the Department of Community Health. While there, he published some of the first air pollution studies.

Career

Field began his career in 1958 at WRCA-TV (renamed

WNBC-TV WNBC (channel 4) is a television station in New York City that serves as the flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Linden, New Jersey–licensed Telemundo s ...

in 1960), remaining there for over 25 years. He was a doctor of optometry (O.D.) before he became a meteorologist. On August 12, 1984, Field moved to rival

WCBS-TV WCBS-TV (channel 2), branded CBS New York, is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside Riverhead, New York–lic ...

, where he worked for 11 years. Later, he moved to

WNYW-TV WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagship WWOR ...

for two years before ending his weather forecasting career at

WWOR-TV WWOR-TV (channel 9) is a television station licensed to Secaucus, New Jersey, United States, serving the New York metropolitan area as the flagship of the MyNetworkTV programming service. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alon ...

. Field was noted for his science reports on new technology and medicines. In the 1970s and 1980s, he hosted a nationally syndicated program on health originating from WNBC, called ''Health Field'', and anchored a similar health news program on

WLNY WLNY-TV (channel 55), branded on-air as New York 55, is an independent television station licensed to Riverhead, New York, United States, serving the New York City television market. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS ...

for the North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System, called ''Medical Update''. In 1988, Field hosted an educational video on fire safety and prevention, ''Plan to Get Out Alive'', produced by WCBS in association with

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...

and

First Alert First Alert is the retail brand of American safety equipment manufacturer BRK Brands, Inc., established in 1976 and based in Aurora, Illinois, with a production plant in Juarez, Mexico. Products sold with the brand include carbon monoxide detecto ...

Personal life and death

Field's wife, Joan Kaplan Field, died earlier in 2023 before her husband, after 75 years of marriage. The couple had three children: son Storm and daughters Allison and Pamela. Storm Field (born 1948) is a retired meteorologist who appeared on

WABC-TV WABC-TV (channel 7) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, WABC-TV maintains studios in the Hudson Square neighborhood ...

from 1976 to 1991. His daughter, Allison Field, is a meteorologist as well and appeared for a time on WCBS-TV. Frank Field died in Florida on July 1, 2023, at the age of 100.

Notes

External links

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Obituary
abc7ny.com. Accessed July 3, 2023. {{DEFAULTSORT:Field, Frank 1923 births 2023 deaths American men centenarians Jewish American military personnel United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Television meteorologists from New York City Television anchors from New York City People from Boca Raton, Florida Mass media people from Montclair, New Jersey Brooklyn College alumni Brown University alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Columbia University alumni Yeshiva University faculty Scientists from New York (state) American people of German-Jewish descent United States Army Air Forces officers 21st-century American Jews Military personnel from Montclair, New Jersey Jewish centenarians