Background
Frank, Reuven was born on December 7, 1920 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Came to United States, 1940, naturalized, 1943. Son of Moses Zebi Reichenstein and Anna (Rivenovich) Frank.
Frank, Reuven was born on December 7, 1920 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Came to United States, 1940, naturalized, 1943. Son of Moses Zebi Reichenstein and Anna (Rivenovich) Frank.
Student, University College, University Toronto, 1940. Bachelor of Science in Social Scis, College City New York, 1942. Master of Science in Journalism, Columbia, 1947.
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Israel Reuven Frank (he later dropped his first name) earned a bachelor"s degree in social science at City College of New New York He served four years in the United States Army during World World War II, rising to the rank of sergeant. After completing his studies at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, he worked for three years at the Newark Evening News as a reporter, rewrite man and night city editors
At the insistence of Gerald Green, he joined National Broadcasting Company News as a writer for the Camel News Caravan in 1950.
Frank was a key figure in bringing television news out of the shadow of radio news by emphasizing the importance of visuals in telling stories. He paired Chet Huntley and David Brinkley for the first time to co-anchor National Broadcasting Company"s coverage of the 1956 Democratic and Republican National Conventions.
Later that same year, he created the groundbreaking Huntley-Brinkley Report, and was its producer until 1964. The national catchphrase "Good night, David" "Good night, Chet" was credited to Frank.
In the 1970s, he created and was executive producer of Weekend, a news magazine hosted by Lloyd Dobyns that originally aired one Saturday a month from 11:30 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.
The program received a Peabody award. Linda Ellerbee later joined as co-host. Frank served two tenures as president of National Broadcasting Company News, from 1968 to 1974 and from 1982 to 1984, and mentored such journalists as Tom Brokaw, John Chancellor, Linda Ellerbee, and Andrea Mitchell.
His memoir, Out of Thin Air: The Brief Wonderful Life of Network News, was published in 1991.
Frank was a resident of Tenafly, New Jersey. He died of pneumonia on February 4, 2006 at the age of 85.
"Sunshine is a weather report, a flood is news." Frank to Floyd Abrams. "The highest power of television journalism is not in the transmission of information but in the transmission of experience." Collins, Scott (February 7, 2006).
Quotations:
"Sunshine is a weather report, a flood is news." Frank to Floyd Abrams.
"The highest power of television journalism is not in the transmission of information but in the transmission of experience.".
Trustee Edwin E. Aldrin Fund State of New Jersey, 1970-1973. Member Writers Guild American (organizing committee 1954-1956), American Newspaper Guild (Newark News organizing committee 1948-1950).
Married Bernice Kaplow, June 9, 1946. Children: Peter Solomon, James Aaron.