BRYANT CHARLES GUMBEL
September 29, 1948
First African American to Anchor a Television Morning News Show
Bryant Charles Gumbel is Creole and was born on September 29, 1948, to Richard Dunbar Gumbel a Judge, and to Rhea Alice who held the position of a city clerk. He attended and graduated from De La Salle Institute in Chicago Illinois. He then attended Bates College and graduated in 1970.
In 1971 Blacks Sports Magazine employed Bryant as Editor of the publication. He held the position for one year and left. In 1972 he was hired by KNBC as a sports broadcaster in Los Angeles. He was the co-host of the NBC national football league with Jack Buck. This position was from 1975 to January of 1982. He was then employed as the anchor for the Today Show with co-host Jane Pauley. He eventually left the position and the network and moved on to CBS where he was given the position of anchor of the new prime-time show called PUBLIC EYE from 1997 to 1998. He won the Peabody Award in 1998 for the show The Reckoning. The Public Eye was canceled after one year.
He remained with CBS and became the host of the Early Show. He won 22 Emmys with that position. He was given a contract with HBO to do his own show THE REAL SPORTS in 2009.
Bryant Gumbel, is the younger brother of sportscaster Greg Gumbel. He was married to June Baranco (1973–2001) who has two children for him Jillian Beth Gumbel and Bradley Christopher Gumbel and is currently wedded to Hilary Quinlan (2002–present).
4 Emmy Awards
Frederick D. Patterson Award from the United Negro College Fund
Martin Luther King Award from the Congress of Racial Equality
Three NAACP Image Awards
Edward R. Murrow Award for Outstanding Foreign Affairs work from the Overseas Press Club, September 1984
Edward Weintal Prize for diplomatic reporting
Peabody Award for his reporting in Vietnam
International Journalism Award from TransAfrica
Africa’s Future Award from the U.S. Committee for UNICEF
Leadership Award from the African-American Institute
Best Morning TV News Interviewer, the Washington Journalism Review, 1986
National Association of Black Journalists, Journalist of the Year Award, 1993
Trumpet Award of the Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.
Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award for outstanding broadcast journalism for Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (HBO), December 2005
Clinton Award
NS2015