ABC News anchor Peter Jennings dies at 67

updated 2:47 p.m. ET Aug. 8, 2005

NEW YORK - Peter Jennings was the face of ABC News.

The urbane Canadian-born broadcaster delivered the nightly news to Americans over five decades. He was there for every big story, be it war or weather.

Jennings, who announced in April that he had lung cancer, died Sunday at his New York home, ABC News President David Westin said in a statement. He was 67.

“Peter has been our colleague, our friend, and our leader in so many ways,” Westin said. “None of us will be the same without him.”

With Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather, Jennings was part of a triumvirate that dominated network news for more than two decades, through the birth of cable news and the Internet. His smooth delivery and years of international reporting made him particularly popular among urban dwellers.

“Peter was born to be an anchor,” Brokaw said Monday on NBC’s “Today.” He said he met Jennings in 1966 covering Ronald Reagan’s campaign for California governor and “we had an instant friendship.”

“Peter, of the three of us, was our prince. He seemed so timeless. He had such elan and style,” Brokaw said.

Rather, appearing on ABC’s “Good Morning America” tribute to Jennings, noted that beneath Jennings’ polished exterior was a fierce competitor.

“If Peter was in the area code, I didn’t sleep,” Rather said.

‘He knew every detail’
Jennings dominated the ratings from the late 1980s to the mid-’90s, when Brokaw surpassed him. He remained a Canadian until 2003, when he became a U.S. citizen, saying it had nothing to do with his politics — he did it for his family.

“He was a warm and loving and surprisingly sentimental man,” said fellow ABC anchor Ted Koppel.

Jennings deeply regretted dropping out of high school, and he would have wanted that lesson passed along, Koppel said. He made up for it by becoming a student of the world, studying cultures and their people for the rest of his life.

“No one could ad lib like Peter,” said Barbara Walters. “Sometimes he drove me crazy because he knew every detail. ... He just died much too young.”

Jennings was wherever the big story was. He logged more than 60 hours on the air during the week of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, offering a soothing sense of continuity during a troubled time.

“There are a lot of people who think our job is to reassure the public every night that their home, their community and their nation is safe,” he told author Jeff Alan. “I don’t subscribe to that at all. I subscribe to leaving people with essentially — sorry it’s a cliche — a rough draft of history. Some days it’s reassuring, some days it’s absolutely destructive.”

Jennings’ announcement four months ago that the longtime smoker would begin treatment for lung cancer came as a shock.

“I will continue to do the broadcast,” he said, his voice husky, in a taped message that night. “On good days, my voice will not always be like this.”

Although Jennings occasionally came to the office between chemotherapy treatments, he never again appeared on air.

“He knew that it was an uphill struggle. But he faced it with realism, courage, and a firm hope that he would be one of the fortunate ones,” Westin said. “In the end, he was not.”

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