Dan Rather was born on October 31, 1931, to two loving parents who cared a great deal about newspapers. In Rather's autobiography, Rather Outspoken: My Life in the News, he states that he cannot remember a time when he did not want to be a reporter. Rather's rise to becoming a renowned journalists was not a simple one.
He attended Sam Houston State University with the intent to play football, but was eventually redirected by Hugh Cunningham, a professor at his university into journalism. This changed Rather's life. After this, he joined the Marines, from which he was discharged due to his rheumatic fever history. From this point, he began to work at the Houston Chronicles Radio station. This was a good fit for Rather considering he was not a gifted speller and had had radio hosting background from his university days.
Working this job, Rather met his wife, Jean Goebel. Jean would continue to play a huge role in Rather's life as his number one motivator and would always be there to tell Rather to stick up for what he believes in. From the radio station Rather moved on to the television news network KHOU in Houston, Texas. Rather began to build a name for himself due to his in storm news coverage. After his success, he moved on to CBS News.
Rather made history by always sticking up for his beliefs and going the extra mile to catch a good news story. He eventually left CBS but did not stop his mission. Today, he is still putting his input on the latest news story.