Peter Jennings

Peter Jennings, 64, anchor of ABC's "World News Tonight," was on the air for 17 hours the day of the attacks. * "I was in the newsroom when it happened, when the first plane hit, so I was steps--five feet--from the anchor desk. And I did what you always do in a circumstance like that: You sit down, you plug in and you begin to try to make sense of what is happening.

A year after he died, Peter Jennings will be seen on camera next week as part of an ABC News documentary about AIDS that he was working on when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. The program, "Out of Control: AIDS in Black America," was completed with Terry Moran as anchor and is scheduled for 10 p.m. Thursday. He is shown midway through the documentary conducting a discussion among HIV-positive black men. It was recorded a few weeks before Jennings was diagnosed with cancer in spring, 2005.

ABC News anchor Peter Jennings, who died of lung cancer in August, left an estate valued at more than $50 million, most of which was willed to his fourth wife and to two children from a previous marriage. Jennings, 67, signed the will on April 21, 16 days after announcing on his "World News Tonight" program that he had been diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. He died Aug. 7 in New York.

In the wake of former anchorman Peter Jennings' death from lung cancer last August, "World News Tonight" will feature a series of reports next month on the disease and smoking cessation. "Peter Jennings was at the forefront of reporting on the dangers of smoking and tobacco throughout his career, and we are committed to carrying on his work," Jon Banner, executive producer of the ABC newscast, said Thursday. The series will be called "Quit to Live: Fighting Lung Cancer."

More than a year before the Sept. 11 terror attacks, ABC News anchor Peter Jennings went "In Search of America," his latest TV and book collaboration with Todd Brewster. As a follow-up to their "The Century" project of 1999, the two had settled on "reviewing basic American values as set out by the Founding Fathers," examining their relevance today, said Jennings, an immigrant Canadian.

IT WAS ONLY FITTING that Peter Jennings was there to authenticate the most surreal moment of my life. War had suddenly broken out on a glorious autumn day in New York, and I was making my way across the stunned city to man my journalistic battle station. As I crossed Times Square, it happened.

Peter Jennings marks his 20th anniversary as the sole anchor of ABC's "World News Tonight" on Sept. 5. But first he's offering Thursday's hourlong report on the 40th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, taking viewers back to a difficult time in U.S. history. Call it a bout of nostalgia. The King special puts the speech into its original tumultuous context -- something that has become obscured as the speech has evolved into a moment of triumph.

Peter Jennings' untimely death Sunday put a period to the era in which network anchors derived their "authority" from journalistic experience, as well as on-camera presence. If television viewers are unlikely to see his equal again, it has less to do with Jennings' unique personal qualities -- formidable as they were -- than with the melancholy state of the three broadcast networks' news operations.

When Peter Jennings told ABC News executives several months ago that he wanted to cover the war in the former Yugoslavia, they were reluctant to let their high-profile anchor go. Nine journalists were killed there last year, according to a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists--including ABC's own David Kaplan, a producer.

It's the Fourth of July, and what better way to put the historic moment into perspective than . . . tuning in to see what our nation's network news anchors have to say? Dan, Peter and Tom. They've become so familiar to us in the two decades or so that each has been in the anchor chair, important papers in hand, night after night sharing with us the important news of the day, that we feel as though we're on a first-name basis with them.

ABC News anchor Peter Jennings, who died of lung cancer in August, left an estate valued at more than $50 million, most of which was willed to his fourth wife and to two children from a previous marriage. Jennings, 67, signed the will on April 21, 16 days after announcing on his "World News Tonight" program that he had been diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. He died Aug. 7 in New York.

Peter Jennings' four-decade career as a network television reporter and anchor made him a national media star, but those who knew the ABC newsman best remembered him Tuesday in deeply personal terms, recalling the "goofy" father who loved to dance the jitterbug while cooking and the man of quiet generosity who took a personal interest in the homeless living in Central Park.

ABC's "World News Tonight" topped the evening news ratings for the first time in more than a year -- the increased viewership amounting to yet another tribute to Peter Jennings. The longtime ABC News anchorman died of lung cancer Aug. 7. The following day's "World News Tonight," largely devoted to Jennings' legacy, was seen by 10.5 million viewers, according to figures released Tuesday by Nielsen Media Research. The broadcast hasn't had that many viewers in August since 1998.

Taking another step in its public grieving process, ABC News said Monday it was removing the late Peter Jennings' name from the broadcast he anchored for more than two decades. The network kept calling the show "World News Tonight With Peter Jennings" as a tribute all last week even though Jennings died of lung cancer Aug. 7. Jennings made his last appearance on the program April 5. ABC News President David Westin said he consulted Jennings' family before making the decision.

IT WAS ONLY FITTING that Peter Jennings was there to authenticate the most surreal moment of my life. War had suddenly broken out on a glorious autumn day in New York, and I was making my way across the stunned city to man my journalistic battle station. As I crossed Times Square, it happened.

Anchor Peter Jennings' death was met Monday with a cascade of sorrowful appreciations from national leaders, colleagues and viewers around the country as anguished ABC employees struggled to absorb the impact of his loss on the network. Jennings -- who died at home in New York Sunday night four months after he was diagnosed as having lung cancer -- was hailed as a fiercely determined newsman who infused his broadcasts with a sophisticated sensibility honed by years as a foreign correspondent.

Peter Jennings' four-decade career as a network television reporter and anchor made him a national media star, but those who knew the ABC newsman best remembered him Tuesday in deeply personal terms, recalling the "goofy" father who loved to dance the jitterbug while cooking and the man of quiet generosity who took a personal interest in the homeless living in Central Park.

The Peter Jennings special for children (ABC, Jan. 26) with questions about the war was outstanding. His conversations with the children were intelligent and reassuring. Jean Stein, Idyllwild

Peter Jennings' untimely death Sunday put a period to the era in which network anchors derived their "authority" from journalistic experience, as well as on-camera presence. If television viewers are unlikely to see his equal again, it has less to do with Jennings' unique personal qualities -- formidable as they were -- than with the melancholy state of the three broadcast networks' news operations.

With the passing of Peter Jennings on Sunday, the world has truly lost a giant of a broadcaster. Sadly, the airwaves will no longer carry his voice. Peter had a unique way of putting his viewers at ease during times of crises and was always a welcome nightly sight in our home because of his demeanor in presenting the news. Not enough can be said of the special talent he possessed in bringing us the news. So we say goodnight and goodbye, Peter. You will be sadly missed. PETE TOMAINO Laguna Hills