Jim O'Brien (reporter)
Jim O'Brien | |
|---|---|
| Born | James Franklin Oldham November 20, 1939 Belmont, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | September 25, 1983 (aged 43) near Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| 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.
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.
Following his death during a skydiving accident in 1983, O'Brien was described by Clark DeLeon of The Philadelphia Inquirer as follows:
"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."