Hugh Downs, Renowned Journalist, Dead at 99

Our hearts are saddened to hear that Hugh Downs, the versatile TV personality, has died at the age of 99.

Of course, Hugh was best known as the co-host of ABC’s newsmagazine 20/20 alongside Barbara Walters, with whom he’d worked at Today for several years.

His TV career began in 1950 as an announcer for the NBC soap Hawkins Falls and it seemed to always be on the up and up — until he retired in 1999.

According to Page Six, in 1985, Hugh was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as holding the record for the most hours on network commercial television (over 15,000).

What a career. What a life. He’ll surely be missed.