"Choose something you like to do. I know it's a cliche, and you've heard it over and over. But the reason is, you're going to have to work long and hard to achieve any success. You better like it or life is going to be terrible." -- Bill Kurtis
Bill Kurtis (born William Horton Kuretich; September 21, 1940) is an American television journalist, producer, and Chicago news anchor. He is also the current host of A&E crime and news documentary shows, including Investigative Reports, American Justice, and Cold Case Files. Previously, he anchored CBS Morning News.
"I never wanted to retire. I wanted to kind of shift my work pattern so I could stay fresh and invigorated, and use the experience that I had gained in 30 years, but in a slightly different direction.""I think I'm so old I'm in. We call it the 'Tony Bennett Syndrome.' For some reason, young people think I'm cool.""If you're a producer, you always spend too much money because you want that shot - and you're willing to spend a bundle to get it.""My personal philosophy is I'm running a 100-yard dash, and I haven't reached the end.""The one important thing you do as boss is you set the standard. The minute you go in and say 'we'll let it go this time,' you set a new standard, which is lower. So you cannot do that.""There's something magical about putting yourself into life. You've got to stand up and take responsibility for your own life and you cannot abandon that.""You know, in the beginning when your first payroll comes up and you have to borrow money to meet the payroll, you lose sleep the night before, and you say to yourself real fast, 'Well, maybe I should keep working a couple more years. It's sobering.""You need a very good financial person to keep you honest, and to keep track of income and outgo."
Kurtis was born in Pensacola, Florida to Wilma Mary (Horton; 1911—2002) and William A. Kuretich, of Croatian origin (1914—2001), Bill Kurtis Biography (1940-) a Marine Corps general and decorated veteran of World War II. His father's military career resulted in extensive travel for the family. When they settled down, he was raised in Independence, Kansas.
At 16, Kurtis began working as an announcer for KIND-AM, a commercial station in Independence of which he is currently a part owner. He graduated from The University of Kansas with a B.S. in journalism in 1962 and went on to earn his J.D. from the Washburn University School of Law in 1966. While in law school he did the evening news for Stauffer Publications TV station WIBW in Topeka and clerked for the law firm of Colmery and Russell. After passing the Kansas bar examination and winning a job with a Wichita law firm, Kurtis discussed his options with Harry Colmery and Bob McClure, of Colmery and Russell, and decided on a career in journalism.
Kurtis began his television career as a full time anchor at WIBW-TV in Topeka, Kansas. On the evening of June 8, 1966, a severe thunderstorm 20 miles (32 km) southwest of town generated a tornado that headed straight towards Topeka. Kurtis warned: "For God's sake, take cover." This warning became synonymous with the 1966 Topeka tornado that left 16 dead and injured hundreds more. Kurtis remained on the air for 24 straight hours to cover the destruction. His performance during this disaster proved to be his big break.
He moved to Chicago in 1966 to work at WBBM-TV, first as a reporter and then as an anchorman. In 1982, he moved to New York to anchor the CBS Morning News, but returned to Chicago three years later to produce documentaries for the television show The New Explorers. Kurtis also returned to WBBM-TV at that time and worked as an anchorman there until 1996. He started his own production company, Kurtis Productions, in 1990 and joined the A&E cable television network the following year. He frequently appears on A&E as the host and narrator of Cold Case Files and American Justice.
Kurtis has received numerous awards for his television work, including over twenty Emmy and the Illinois Broadcasters Association 1998 Hall of Fame Award and the Kansas Association of Broadcasters 2003 Hall of Fame Award.
He was the narrator in the Will Ferrell comedy film The Legend of Ron Burgundy, and also contributed a spoken-word intro to the Dandy Warhols' 2005 album Odditorium or Warlords of Mars. Other narration work includes his introduction to various news clips on the CD portion of the multimedia book, We Interrupt This Broadcast.
Most recently, Kurtis was featured in a series of commercials for AT&T Mobility which poke fun at his serious investigative journalist persona. He appears on a tropical island or in a similarly desolate place and, after explaining the AT&T Laptop Connect Card, states "I'm Bill Kurtis, and I've just found [trademark pause] the Internet." He appears oblivious to the background, which features mythical things such as the fuselage of Amelia Earhart's long-lost aircraft in one instance, the Fountain of Youth in another, a yeti in a third, and a leprechaun with a pot of gold in a fourth.
A second group of ads in the series took a different approach and featured Kurtis "racing" figures such as Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps, undefeated professional boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr., and record-fast serving tennis player Andy Roddick (amongst other historically "fast" individuals) in Internet speed-surfing contests, allowing himself access to AT&T technology, inevitably winning each time. He concluded each contest by announcing his victory, for example, "I'm Bill Kurtis [pause], and I'm faster than Michael Phelps."
In a third group of promotions, Kurtis appears in various locations with a netbook to demonstrate the coverage of AT&T's wireless data network. He has been seen riding in a motorcycle sidecar, aboard a passenger airplane, and in a small diner, among other places, and ends by saying something that lampoons his serious-reporter personality (e.g., "I'll have a cherry lime rickey and a hard-boiled egg" to the waitress in the diner).
On November 13, 2009, Kurtis reunited for one evening with his co-anchor of 20 years earlier, Walter Jacobson, to anchor the WBBM 10 PM news in Chicago while the usual anchor, Rob Johnson, was on vacation.
On July 29, 2010, it was announced that Kurtis and Walter Jacobson would anchor the 6 p.m. newscast on WBBM beginning on September 1.
Kurtis narrated the 2010 documentary film Carbon Nation by Peter Byck. He was selected after a long search to find a voice that was familiar but not polarizing. The director believed that his narration would be "authoritative and neutral", and reach a wider audience.
Since 2005, Kurtis has become heavily involved in raising and marketing grass-fed beef. His 10,000-acre (40 km) ranch in southeastern Kansas was once the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder. While looking for innovative uses for his ranch, Kurtis learned about the health and environmental benefits of grass-fed beef and founded Tallgrass Beef Company. He is also an investor in the Prairie Grass Cafe in Northbrook, Illinois. Kurtis is a principal of KICA/KICA-FM/KKYC/KMUL/KWUA stations in the Clovis-Portalis, New Mexico and Muleshoe, Texas areas.
Kurtis and his longtime partner, Donna La Pietra, are very active on the Chicago social circuit, supporting numerous non-profit organizations. He has also done several public service announcements, including RFB&D (Recording For The Blind and Dyslexic). Kurtis's wife, Helen (who was his high school sweetheart and whom he married in 1963), died of cancer in June 1977. They had two children, Mary Kristin (born December 1965) and Scott Erik (born October 1970). Scott Kurtis, 38, who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia since he was in his mid-teens, was found dead July 20, 2009, on his father's Kansas cattle ranch, where he had lived. His body was discovered by his sister, who lives near the ranch. Scott Kurtis suffered from heart and thyroid ailments as a result of the schizophrenia.
Kurtis's sister, Jean Schodorf, is a Republican Kansas State Senator. During her 2010 run for the United States House of Representatives, Kurtis narrated a campaign commercial for her.
In the TV series South Park, episode "Cartman Joins NAMBLA," The boys are playing a game called "Investigative Reports with Bill Curtis" where a player must decide to deny a scandal or cover it up.
Kurtis appeared in a computer advertisement with tennis star Andy Roddick, demonstrating his ability to use the internet quickly. The punch line, "I'm Bill Kurtis, and I'm faster than Andy Roddick!" finds Kurtis kissing a tennis trophy and Roddick shaking his head with a wry smile.
