Title: Chet Huntley Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1957-1974

Creator:

• Huntley, Chet, 1911-1974

Call Number: U.S. Mss 150AF; Audio 752A; PH 5-6954; M2013-139

Quantity: 6.4 cubic feet (16 archives boxes), 17 tape recordings, and 1 drawing; plus additions of 0.4 cubic feet (1 archives box)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Correspondence, radio scripts, and recordings of the broadcaster who co-anchored NBC's evening news from 1956 to 1970. The correspondence includes fan mail written primarily in response to issues discussed on Outlook and Huntley-Brinkley Report, together with some letters concerning more general professional matters. The letters reflect a broad spectrum of public opinion on issues such as race relations, foreign policy and the Vietnam conflict, the 1967 AFTRA strike, and aspects of broadcasting. Individualized replies from Huntley are scattered through the collection. Prominent correspondents include Orson Bean, Homer E. Capehart, Bennett Cerf, C. Douglas Dillon, Will Durant, Abba Eban, Orville E. Freeman, Dave Garroway, David Sarnoff, and Walter D. Scott. Of the scripts, coverage of Perspective on the News and Emphasis is best. On tape are broadcast editorials recorded for Horizons Communications Corporation after his retirement.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0150af

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Radio and television news anchorman Chester Robert Huntley was born in Cardwell, Montana, on December 10, 1911. Although he began his education at Montana State College with plans to become a physician, he left school in 1932 when he won a scholarship to study oratory at the Cornish Schools of Arts in Seattle, Washington. This experience convinced him to alter his career plans, and in 1934 he graduated from the University of Washington with a major in speech and drama.

While in Seattle Huntley worked at station KPCB where his duties included rewriting and announcing the news. This job soon led to other reporting positions at other stations: KHO in Spokane, KGW in Portland, and KFI in Los Angeles. In 1939 Huntley joined the staff of KNX, the CBS-affiliate in Los Angeles. From 1951 to 1955 he worked for ABC. Late in 1955 he was hired by the NBC Pacific Division to work as West Coast commentator and reporter for the Today show and to broadcast his own news program on KRCA. In June 1955 NBC transferred him to their New York headquarters. His first major national assignment came in 1956 when he covered the Republican and Democratic national conventions with David Brinkley. Viewers and network news officials were so impressed with the informative and witty style of the two men that they were chosen to co-anchor NBC's evening news program in October of that year. For the next sixteen years, the Huntley-Brinkley Report was one of the most highly regarded and highly rated news programs on television, eventually becoming a virtual media institution and winning seven Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards. In addition to the Huntley-Brinkley Report, he was involved with several other news programs at NBC. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Huntley edited and narrated a series of Sunday evening news broadcasts. Variously titled Outlook, NBC Kaleidoscope, and Chet Huntley Reporting, this show presented expanded commentary on various news events and issues. Throughout the 1960s he also wrote and narrated a five-minute program of editorial comment: the daily Perspective on the News and Emphasis: Plain Talk, its weekend equivalent. Throughout his career Huntley was frequently a source of controversy when he expressed his own liberal political philosophy on issues ranging from segregation in the Little Rock, Arkansas, schools to the presidency of Richard M. Nixon. While the majority of his opinions were uttered off-camera, one observer charged him with editorializing on the air with his eyebrows.

Huntley retired from NBC on July 31, 1970, to launch Big Sky, a 15,000-acre resort in Montana. He died of cancer on March 20, 1974.

This collection was received in multiple parts from the donor(s) and is organized into 2 major parts. These materials have not been physically interfiled and researchers might need to consult more than one part to locate similar materials.

• Part 1 (U.S. Mss 150AF, Audio 752A, PH 5-6954): Original Collection, 1957-1974
• Part 2 (M2013-139): Additions, 1967-1969, 1973

Acquisition Information

Presented by Chet Huntley, New York, New York, 1969-1970; John Ellsworth, Patchoque, New York, 1971; and the National Broadcasting Company, 1962, 1972, and 1974. Accession Number: MCHC62-006, MCHC69-110; MCHC70-003, MCHC70-029, MCHC70-042, MCHC70-067, MCHC70-068, MCHC70-070, MCHC70-079, MCHC70-091, MCHC70-092, MCHC70-100, MCHC70-101, MCHC70-126, MCHC71-078, MCHC71-099, MCHC71-110, MCHC72-109, MCHC74-006, M2013-139

Processing Information

Processed by Thomas Pscheidt and Carolyn J. Mattern, June 1979.

U.S. Mss 150AF	Part 1 (U.S. Mss 150AF): Original Collection, 1957-1974 Physical Description: 6.4 cubic feet (16 archives boxes), 17 tape recordings, and 1 drawing  Scope and Content Note The papers are comprised chiefly of correspondence, radio scripts, and recordings, with some biographical material, copies of speeches, and visual materials. The BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIAL AND MEMORABILIA consists of clippings of newspaper and magazine articles and NBC press releases about Huntley, as well as cartoons and other miscellany dealing with Huntley-Brinkley Report. Several of the cartoons utilize their well-known “Good night, Chet...Good night, David” closing. CORRESPONDENCE, which is sorted to the month level, divides into three parts. The first section, mainly covering the years 1958 and 1959, consists of viewer mail written to Huntley about his various television programs. While the majority of the letters concern Outlook, there are some responses to Huntley-Brinkley and NBC Kaleidoscope broadcasts. This part of the correspondence, which has been weeded to remove routine letters, presents a cross-section of American attitudes on such issues as education, foreign policy, and race relations. Three Outlook programs generated an unusually large response: an interview with Kimmie Tojo (aired September 7, 1958); “The Second Agony of Atlanta,” which dealt with desegregation in the South; and “Too Late for Reason,” which concerned the emerging African nations. Other events of note were Israel's tenth anniversary, the 1958 reciprocal trade agreements, and Khrushchev's visit to the United States in 1959. In addition, many people commented on commercials, network affiliation, propriety in newscasting, and other aspects of television. The second portion covers the years 1967 and 1968 and is basically composed of professional correspondence. Included are letters regarding speaking engagements, explanations of why certain news stories were included or omitted from broadcasts, solicitations for funds, and suggestions for future broadcasts (filed as “future file”). Most noteworthy here is the correspondence dealing with the 1967 AFTRA strike during which Huntley crossed picket lines in order to stay on the air. The third part begins in November 1968 and continues through 1970; this segment is again fan mail, with some professional correspondence included. The one event of this period which elicited the most comment was Huntley's retirement, but other subjects treated include the Vietnam conflict, student riots and racial violence, U.S. exploration of the moon, and Huntley's autobiography, The Generous Years (1968). Outgoing correspondence consists of scattered personal letters and two form letters prepared for issues which generated heavy viewer response. Prominent Correspondents Bean, Orson 1959 February 2 Capehart, Homer E. 1958 March 7 Cerf, Bennett 1970 July 6 Dillon, Douglas 1958 February 26 Durant, Will 1967 February 9 Eban, Abba 1958 July 8 Freeman, Orville 1967 November 3 Garroway, Dave 1973 January 5 Sarnoff, David 1958 July 8 Scott, Walter D. 1967 April 14 SCRIPTS AND RECORDINGS are arranged alphabetically by title and chronologically thereunder. With the exception of his farewell remarks broadcast on the Huntley-Brinkley Report, the holdings relate entirely to radio. The two series for which coverage is most complete are his daily-five-minute editorials: Perspective on the News and Emphasis: Plain Talk. The tape recordings consist of editorials prepared under the auspices of Horizon Communications Corporation following his retirement from NBC. Huntley-Brinkley Report and Outlook are well represented by scripts and recordings in the NBC Records (U.S. Mss 17AF). VISUAL MATERIALS consist of a pencil cartoon drawing, 1970, depicting Chet Huntley leading a donkey or pack mule west, presumably from New York City. Huntley is shown saying, “G'bye David.” An unseen David Brinkley says, “G'bye Chet.” Underneath is the text “… and us tube watchers wish you the best.” The drawing is unsigned.
Box   1 Folder   1	Series: Biographical Material and Memorabilia, 1956-1974
	Series: Correspondence	⇧
Box   1 Folder   2-10	1957-1958 August
Box   1 Folder   11	1958 circa September 7, response to interview with Kimmie Tojo
Box   1 Folder   12	1958 September
Box   2 Folder   1-4	1958 September-1959 January
Box   3 Folder   1-7	1958 circa February 1-8, response to “The Second Agony of Atlanta”
Box   4 Folder   1-4	1959 February-May
Box   5 Folder   1-3	1959 June-August
Box   5 Folder   4-5	1959 circa September 13, response to “Too Late for Reason”
Box   5 Folder   6-8	1959 September-November
Box   6 Folder   1-7	1959 December
Box   6 Folder   2	1960 January 5 and June 30
Box   6 Folder   3	1961 January-May
Box   6 Folder   4	1965 December
Box   6 Folder   5	1966 October-December
Box   6 Folder   6-7	1967 January-April
Box   6 Folder   8	1967 March-May, AFTRA strike
Box   6 Folder   9-12	1967 May-October
Box   7 Folder   1	1967 November-December
Box   7 Folder   2	1966 December-1967 July
Box   7 Folder   3-5	1968 January-July
Box   7 Folder   6-9	1968 November-1969 May
Box   8 Folder   1-8	1969 June-1970 April
Box   9 Folder   1-7	1970 May-October
	Series: Scripts and Recordings	⇧
	Chet Huntley Reporting
Box   9 Folder   8-9	1965 January-September
Box   10 Folder   1-3	1966
	Chet Huntley Show recordings
752A/1-4	1970 November 9-December 25
752A/5-9	1971 May 3-June 4
752A/10-16	1971 July-August 20
752A/17	1971 September 13-17
U.S. Mss 150AF	Emphasis: Plain Talk
Box   10 Folder   4-15	1960 January-1961
Box   11 Folder   1-11	1964 January-1966 March
Box   12 Folder   1-8	1966 April-1968 March
Box   13 Folder   1-2	1968 April-August
Box   13 Folder   3	Focus, 1965 September-December
Box   13 Folder   4	Huntley-Brinkley Report retirement remarks, 1970 July 31
Box   13 Folder   5	Just a Year to Go, 1967 November 10
Box   13 Folder   6-7	Monitor, 1967 March-July
Box   13 Folder   8-9	Owens-Corning Fiberglass program, 1962 January-November
	Perspective on the News
Box   13 Folder   10-14	1962 December-1963 October
Box   14 Folder   1-13	1963 November-1965 September
Box   15 Folder   1	1965 October-December
Box   15 Folder   2-7	1966 February-1967 August
Box   16 Folder   1-5	1967 September-1968 November
Box   16 Folder   6	Projection '68, 1968 January 10
Box   16 Folder   7	[Sunday Night Commentary], 1962 October-November
Box   16 Folder   8	Today in Politics, 1968 July-September
Box   16 Folder   9	Series: Speeches and Remarks, 1960-1970 and undated	⇧
	Series: Visual Materials	⇧
PH 5-6954	Cartoon drawing of Huntley, 1970
M2013-139	Part 2 (M2013-139): Additions, 1967-1969, 1973 Physical Description: 0.4 cubic feet (1 archives box)  Scope and Content Note: Additions, 1967-1969, 1973, consisting primarily of news clippings and viewer correspondence in response to coverage of the 1968 presidential primary and general elections and Huntley's commentary regarding The Chicago Tribune's one-day moratorium of student demonstrations and coverage of former President Eisenhower's funeral. News clippings regarding Huntley's New Jersey cattle farm; letters from his wife, Tippy; scripts from David Brinkley are also included. One photograph, circa 1969, is of Huntley, David Brinkley, and other NBC news correspondents.	⇧
Box   1	AFTRA Strike, 1967
Box   1	Race and war, Just a Year to Go (NBC Special Report), 1967
Box   1	National Association of Broadcasters award speech, 1967
Box   1	Huntley's New Jersey farm, 1967
Box   1	Huntley's radio scripts, 1967-1968
Box   1	Letters from viewers, 1968
Box   1	Viewers on coverage of race relations, 1968
Box   1	Cartoons on Huntley-Brinkley
Box   1	Letters from Mrs. Tippy Huntley, 1968
Box   1	Huntley, NBC News Projection '68, 1968
Box   1	Huntley-Brinkley after thoughts on Nixon, 1968
Box   1	Huntley scripts
Box   1	Brinkley scripts, 1968
Box   1	Articles about Huntley-Brinkley Report, 1968-1973
Box   1	Letters from viewers, 1968
Box   1	Viewers on 1968 election coverage
Box   1	Viewers on post-election coverage, 1968
Box   1	Coverage of 1968 National Conventions
Box   1	NBC News promotion
Box   1	Huntley's Huntley-Brinkley closer on Chicago Tribune, 1968
Box   1	Viewers on Huntley vs. Chicago Tribune, 1968-1969
Box   1	Viewers on coverage of Eisenhower Memorial, 1969
Box   1	Huntley's retirement, 1969
Box   1	The Generous Years book reviews, 1968
Box   1	Articles by David Brinkley
Box   1	Articles about David Brinkley
Box   1	Calendar, 1968
Box   1	Photographs of Huntley-Brinkley staff, Huntley, et al., circa 1969