In Honor of Los Angeles Television News Legend Stan Chambers

by Xavier Becerra

IN HONOR OF LOS ANGELES TELEVISION NEWS LEGEND STAN CHAMBERS

        ______

   HON. XAVIER BECERRA

     OF CALIFORNIA

    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

       Monday, July 25, 2005

Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate the distinguished career of Los Angeles television news legend Stan Chambers. Mr. Chambers is a mainstay of Los Angeles broadcast television who has reported the news for the same station, KTLA/WB, for 58 years. In those nearly six decades, Stan has covered every major news event in and around Los Angeles including the assassination of Robert Kennedy, earthquakes, the Los Angeles riots, and the 1984 Olympics. On Saturday, July 30, 2005, the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists will pay tribute to Stan Chambers for his outstanding work and illustrious career in news journalism. It is with great pride that I congratulate Stan on receiving this honor that recognizes his illustrious body of work. And though his career journey is as impressive as it is unprecedented, perhaps most laudable has been Stan's commitment to family--and I am quite sure that his wife, Gege, his 11 children, his 33 grandchildren and his 4 great grandchildren would wholeheartedly agree.

A lifelong Angeleno, Stan was born in the City of Angels on August 11, 1923. He attended Loyola University and transferred to the University of Southern California following orders from the Naval Officers Training Corps, which he had joined during World War II. The seeds of Stan's journalistic passions were planted in college while working at the university's radio station.

Stan began his long and prestigious career with KTLA, the first commercially-licensed television station in the Western United States, in December 1947. At the time, only 300 or so Angelenos had television sets. He remembers fondly a time early in KTLA's existence when the station would consult every television viewer in Los Angeles on the quality of its programming.

In 1949, during a precedent-setting moment in television broadcasting, Stan helped build KTLA's reputation for on-the-spot news coverage. The tragedy of Kathy Fiscus, a four-year-old girl who fell into an abandoned well near her home, would be considered by many the most memorable story of his career. Stan began coverage of the rescue operation within minutes of its commencement. A career in television journalism was born.

Stan has reported a record 20,000 plus stories in his career. Think back, from every major natural disaster in Los Angeles since 1947, to tragic, high profile stories like the Manson Family murders and the case of the Hillside Strangler, Stan Chambers was there. When amateur photographer George Holiday filmed the beating of Rodney King in March of 1991, he turned to Stan Chambers to report what would be a seminal moment in Los Angeles history.

In addition to his coverage of breaking news in Los Angeles, Stan has been the face for the KTLA/WB signature broadcast of the Tournament of Roses Parade since 1949. Interviewing parade luminaries, capturing the reactions of parade enthusiasts, Stan has kept Angelenos entertained as we have watched procession after procession for over half a century. In 2002, the prestigious Tournament of Roses Association presented Stan with a special award for over 50 years of dedication to Rose Parade broadcast excellence on KTLA/WB.

Stan has been honored with several Emmy awards, a Golden Mike award, the "Governor's Award" from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and a coveted star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In January of 1998, the Stan Chambers Building at KTLA was dedicated as a tribute to Stan's 50 years of dedicated service to the station and community. The Mayor of Los Angeles at that time, Richard Riordan, even presented him with a street sign featuring his name that was posted just outside the KTLA studios, at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I ask my colleagues to join me today in recognizing Stan Chambers for his distinguished career in news broadcasting. His contributions to the world of news reporting and to the City of Los Angeles have been extraordinary and unforgettable. As Mr. Chambers' family, friends and colleagues gather with the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists to honor his lifetime of achievement, I wish to add my voice and salute a true pillar of Los Angeles.

---