James Charles Lehrer was an American journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and playwright.
28 Facts About Jim Lehrer
2.
Jim Lehrer was the executive editor and a news anchor for the PBS NewsHour on PBS and was known for his role as a debate moderator during US presidential election campaigns, moderating twelve presidential debates between 1988 and 2012.
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Jim Lehrer authored numerous fiction and non-fiction books that drew upon his experience as a newsman, along with his interests in history and politics.
4.
James Charles Jim Lehrer was born on May 19,1934, in Wichita, Kansas.
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Jim Lehrer's mother, Lois Catherine, was a teacher and bank clerk, and his father, Harry Frederick Lehrer, was a bus station manager.
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Jim Lehrer had an older brother, Fred, who was a Baptist minister.
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Jim Lehrer attended school in Wichita, middle school in Beaumont, Texas, and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio, where he was a sports editor for the Jefferson Declaration.
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Jim Lehrer graduated with an associate degree from Victoria College, and a bachelor's degree in journalism from the Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri in 1956.
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Jim Lehrer attributed his service and travels with helping him to look beyond himself and feel a connection to the world that he would not have otherwise experienced.
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In 1959, Jim Lehrer began his career in journalism at The Dallas Morning News in Texas.
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Jim Lehrer was a political columnist there for several years, and in 1968 he became the city editor.
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Jim Lehrer began his television career at KERA-TV in Dallas, Texas, as the executive director of Public Affairs, an on-air host, and editor of a nightly news program.
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Jim Lehrer worked as a correspondent for the National Public Affairs Center for Television, where he met Robert MacNeil.
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Jim Lehrer covered the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment inquiry of President Richard Nixon.
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Jim Lehrer underwent a heart valve surgery in April 2008, allowing Ray Suarez, Gwen Ifill, and Judy Woodruff to anchor in their stead until Jim Lehrer's return on June 26,2008.
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Jim Lehrer had recovered from a minor heart attack in 1983 when he was 49 years old.
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Jim Lehrer received several awards and honors during his career in journalism, including several Emmys; the George Foster Peabody Broadcast Award; a William Allen White Foundation Award for Journalistic Merit; and the University of Missouri School of Journalism's Medal of Honor.
18.
Jim Lehrer was involved in several projects related to US presidential debates, including the Debating Our Destiny documentaries in 2000 and 2008, which feature excerpts of exclusive interviews with many of the presidential and vice-presidential candidates since 1976.
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In 2016, Jim Lehrer served on the board of the Commission on Presidential Debates.
20.
The last debate that Jim Lehrer moderated was the first general election debate of the 2012 election.
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Jim Lehrer had originally sworn off moderating any debates after 2008; however, the CPD persisted, and he accepted as he was interested in the new format.
22.
For six decades until his death, Jim Lehrer was married to Kate Jim Lehrer, who is a novelist.
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Jim Lehrer's father was a bus driver who briefly operated a bus company.
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Jim Lehrer was an avid bus enthusiast, a hobbyist, and a collector of bus memorabilia, including depot signs, driver caps, and antique toy buses.
25.
Jim Lehrer was a supporter of the Pacific Bus Museum in Williams, California, and the Museum of Bus Transportation in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
26.
Jim Lehrer was a prolific writer and authored numerous novels, as well as several plays, screenplays, and three personal memoirs.
27.
Jim Lehrer's book, Top Down, is a novel based on the events surrounding the Kennedy assassination.
28.
On January 23,2020, Jim Lehrer died from a heart attack at his home in Washington, DC, at the age of 85.