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Birth
Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. was born on November 4, 1916, in St. Joseph, Missouri to Walter Leland Cronkite Sr. and Helena Lena Fritsch. -
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Walter Cronkite
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Leaves College
Cronkite drops out of the University of Texas-Austin for news and sports radio jobs in Kansas City, Missouri, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and El Paso and Austin, Texas. -
Marriage
Cronkite marries Mary Elizabeth "Betsy" Maxwell. He met her while she was an ad writer in Kansas City at KCMO. They went on to have three children celebrate 65 years of marriage until her death in 2005. -
Hired to CBS News
After a second offer from well-known broadcaster Edward R. Murrow , Cronkite is hired by CBS News for its Washington bureau. -
First televised political convention
Cronkite and CBS present the first nationally televised political convention, called the Republican National Convention in Chicago. -
Presidential campaign
The 1960 presidential campaign was the first election with nationally televised debates. Cronkite also hosts candid one-on-one interviews with the two candidates, John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. -
CBS Evening News
Cronkite signs on his new role as managing editor and anchor of the CBS Evening News, replacing Douglas Edwards. -
Kennedy's death
Cronkite is the first to report the death of President John F. Kennedy, and for a famous moment, loses his composure and bursts in to tears. -
Return to Vietnam
Cronkite, who had been to Vietnam earlier in the war, visits again to observe during the Viet Cong's Tet Offensive. -
Men on the moon
Apollo 11 lands on the moon, and man makes his first step on the surface of the moon. Cronkite, being a fan of the space program, is at a loss for words. -
Voted Most Trusted Man
Walter Cronkite is voted "Most Trusted Man is America" in a public opinion poll. -
Egyption president interview
Cronkite interviews Egyption President Anwar Sadat on air. -
CBS Sign off
Cronkite signs off with his trademark, "And that's the way it is," for his final broadcast as the CBS Evening News managing editor and anchor. -
Cronkite Ward formed
Cronkite's production company, Cronkite Ward, is formed. It produces more than 100 documentaries for CBS, PBS and the Discovery Channel. -
Death
Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. Friday with his family by his side at his home in New York after a long illness. He was 92.
