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.[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."
- ^ Preston, David Lee, Paul Horvitz and William W. Sutton Jr. "O'Brien's colleagues 'devastated': 'He was the best friend many of us had'." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 26, 1983, p. 10A (subscription required).
- ^ Logan, Joe. "Family and friends gather in Texas to bid farewell to Jim O'Brien." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 30, 1983, p. 12C (subscription required).
- ^ Wilkinson, Gerry. "Jim O'Brien" (biography). Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia, retrieved online August 30, 2023.
- ^ Fox, Tom. "Jim O'Brien was a winner by the numbers, too." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 2, 1983, p. 1 (subscription required).
- ^ DeLeon, Clark. "The Scene: In Philadelphia and its suburbs: People: A city without Jim O'Brien." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 27, 1983, p. 2B (subscription required).
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