Veteran LA Newsman Stan Chambers Dead At 91

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Longtime Los Angeles newsman Stan Chambers, who spent more than six decades at KTLA, died Friday at age 91.

Chambers joined the station in 1947, when there were only about 300 television sets in the Los Angeles area.

Over the next six decades, Chambers filed more than 22,000 stories, including reports on the Robert Kennedy assassination, the Baldwin Hills dam break, the Manson family murders and Hillside Strangler cases, the Northridge earthquake and many more.

According to KTLA, Chambers also broke the Rodney King beating story when an amateur photographer who filmed the beating handed over his tape to the veteran reporter.

He retired in 2010 at the age of 87.

In a statement on the KTLA website, President and General Manager Don Corsini said: "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Chambers family. Stan was a brilliant journalist and one of the best in the business."

Mayor Eric Garcetti described Chambers as "a newsman in the truest sense."

"His dedication to producing the best story possible led to innovations that define the newscasts we watch today," Garcetti said in a statement. "Stan was a gentleman, a gifted storyteller, and one of those rare L.A. icons whose impact was felt by generations of Angelenos. He will be truly missed."

Reaction poured out on Twitter from around the local and national news world, including tweets from CBS2/KCAL9 and KNX 1070 anchors and reporters.

Chambers is survived by his wife, 11 children, 38 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.