Jim O'Brien | |
---|---|
Born | James Franklin Oldham November 20, 1939 Belmont, Texas, U.S. |
Died | September 25, 1983 near Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, U.S. | (aged 43)
Education | Baylor University |
Occupation(s) | Television newscaster, weather reporter and presenter, Disc jockey |
Years active |
|
Spouse |
Sandra Jo Hauck (div. 1969) |
Children | 2, including Peri Gilpin |
Awards | Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame (posthumous, 1997) |
James Franklin Oldham, better known as Jim O'Brien (November 20, 1939 – September 25, 1983), was an American newscaster. He was a member of the WPVI-TV Channel 6 Action News team, which became the highest-rated television news team in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley region during the late 1970s and early 1980s.[1][2][3]
Employed initially as the sports anchor and then the weather anchor at WPVI, he was subsequently chosen to co-anchor the 12:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. newscasts, and also hosted the local edition of Dialing for Dollars and the weekend magazine show Primetime.[4]
Following his death during a skydiving accident in 1983, O'Brien was described by Clark DeLeon of The Philadelphia Inquirer as follows:[5]
"In 10 years on local television, Jim O'Brien redefined the word 'personality.' He was without a doubt the most-liked man in Philadelphia. There's no one else even in the running. He took the intimate medium of television and made it even more intimate, while remaining a professional the entire time."