After serving in the Navy, Stan Chambers began a six-decade career with Los Angeles' KTLA in December 1947, soon after the television station became the first to be commercially licensed in the Western United States.
"In the early days, the station kept a list of everyone who owned a TV set,” Chambers recalled, “and we got regular reports from them on their reactions to programming and the quality of their TV reception."
Chambers reported 22,000-plus stories, including every major natural disaster in Los Angeles since 1947. Most memorable? The tragic story of Kathy Fiscus, who died after she fell into an abandoned well in suburban San Marino. The attempt to save her was reported in 27 1/2 hours of continuous live coverage.
Chambers was also a mainstay of KTLA's coverage of the Tournament of Roses parade and has been since 1949. "One of the great bonuses of being a television reporter in our community for so long a time is you get to experience the changes,” he said. “I was able to share the times when the parade was a local Pasadena tradition, then a Los Angeles one and now a worldwide icon."
Other honors include several Emmy and Golden Mike awards, the Governor's Award from the Television Academy, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Professional Journalists, an L.A. Press Club Award and the USC Alumni Assn. Award.
In addition, the Associated Press Television-Radio Assn. of California-Nevada annually presents the Stan Chambers Lifetime Achievement Award. And KTLA has a building and an annual high school journalism award named for him.
Chambers died Feb. 13, 2015, at his home in Holmby Hills. He was 91.
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