Bill Kurtis

Bill Kurtis

Known for: Acting
Biography: 1940-09-21 (83 years old)

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Biography

Bill Kurtis (born William Horton Kuretich; September 21, 1940) is an American television journalist, television producer, narrator, and news anchor. He has been noted for his sonorous voice throughout his career. He is most known for narrating A&E's true crime series Cold Case Files as well as American Justice.


Kurtis was studying to become a lawyer in the 1960s, when he was asked to fill in on a temporary news assignment at a television station in Topeka, Kansas. His reporting on a devastating tornado outbreak, led to an on air news reporter and later a very successful news anchor position in Chicago.


In 1982, Kurtis joined Diane Sawyer on The CBS Morning News, the network broadcast from New York City. The two were also on the CBS Early Morning News, which aired an hour earlier on most CBS stations. He also anchored three CBS Reports: The Plane That Fell from the Sky, The Golden Leaf, and The Gift of Life.


He became especially interested in investigative in-depth reports and documentaries. When he returned to Chicago and for a time resumed his anchor duties, he also founded a production company, Kurtis Productions.


Kurtis hosted or produced a number of crime and news documentary shows, including Investigative Reports, American Justice, and Cold Case Files. Kurtis is the scorekeeper/announcer for National Public Radio (NPR)'s news comedy/quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, and served as the host of Through the Decades, a documentary-style news magazine seen on Decades.


Kurtis narrated nearly 1,000 documentaries, and Kurtis Productions produced nearly 500 documentaries for series like The New Explorers on PBS; Investigative Reports and Cold Case Files for the A&E; and Investigating History for the History Channel. He also hosted American Justice, produced by Towers Productions. For CNBC, the company has produced nearly 100 episodes of American Greed.


Kurtis has received two Peabody Awards, numerous Emmy Awards, awards from the Overseas Press Club, a DuPont Award, and has been inducted into the Illinois and Kansas Halls of Fame. In 1998, he was awarded the University of Kansas William Allen White citation. Kurtis has also authored three books: On Assignment (1984), Death Penalty on Trial (2004), and Prairie Table Cookbook (2008).


In the animated series South Park, Eric Cartman owns a board game called "Investigative Reports with Bill Kurtis", featuring a talking Bill Kurtis bust. The boys can be seen playing the game in South Park's season four episode "Cartman Joins NAMBLA" (2000) and season eight episode "Up the Down Steroid" (2004). The game can also be seen on the shelf of a hobby store in the episode "Cock Magic" (2014).


A 1972 report by Bill Kurtis, while a correspondent for CBS News in Los Angeles, was used as the introduction to Dr. Dre's album Compton. Kurtis also contributed a spoken-word introduction to The Dandy Warhols' 2005 album Odditorium or Warlords of Mars.

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Filmography

all 32

Movies 18

self 16

TV Shows 14

Voice 5

Narrator 5

Narrator (voice)
Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks

Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks (2023)

TV
Self - Narrator (voice)
Live at Mister Kelly's

Live at Mister Kelly's (2021)

Movie
8
narrator
William Allen White: What's the Matter with Kansas

William Allen White: What's the Matter with Kansas (2018)

Movie
Narrator
A City at War: Chicago

A City at War: Chicago (2017)

Movie
Narrator (voice)
Cold Case Files

Cold Case Files (2017)

TV
Self
'85: The Greatest Team in Pro Football History

'85: The Greatest Team in Pro Football History (2016)

Movie
Narrator (voice)
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)

Movie
5.39
Will Rogers and American Politics

Will Rogers and American Politics (2010)

Movie
Narrator
Discovering Deerpath

Discovering Deerpath (2009)

Movie
Actor
Parking Wars

Parking Wars (2008)

TV
Opening Narrator
Chasing October

Chasing October (2007)

Movie
Bill Kurtis
30 Rock

30 Rock (2006)

TV
6.1
Narrator
U-505: Extend The Experience

U-505: Extend The Experience (2006)

Movie
Bill Lawson
Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie

Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie (2004)

Movie
2
Bill Lawson - Narrator (voice)
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)

Movie
5.87
Self - Presenter / Self - Narrator
Investigating History

Investigating History (2004)

TV
Himself
The Atlanta Child Murders

The Atlanta Child Murders (2001)

Movie
Bill Kurtis
The Sopranos

The Sopranos (1999)

TV
6.33
Narrator (voice)
Cold Case Files

Cold Case Files (1999)

TV
5.79
Self - Host / Host / Self
The Unexplained

The Unexplained (1996)

TV
Self - Host
The New Explorers: The Science of Star Trek

The New Explorers: The Science of Star Trek (1995)

Movie
Self - Host
American Justice: Quiz Show Scandal and Other Frauds

American Justice: Quiz Show Scandal and Other Frauds (1995)

Movie
Self - Host
The American Revolution

The American Revolution (1994)

TV
Self - Host
The Hunt for the Red Ripper

The Hunt for the Red Ripper (1994)

Movie
Self - Host
American Justice: Charles Starkweather

American Justice: Charles Starkweather (1993)

Movie
Self - Narrator / Self - Host
The Mafia: Empire of Crime

The Mafia: Empire of Crime (1993)

TV
Host
American Justice

American Justice (1992)

TV
Self - Host / Self / Self - Narrator
Investigative Reports

Investigative Reports (1991)

TV
Self (uncredited)
Saturday Night Live

Saturday Night Live (1975)

TV
6.36
Self - Host
American Justice: Who Is the LIpstick Killer?

American Justice: Who Is the LIpstick Killer?

TV
Making Waves

Making Waves

Movie
Actor
Lethal Nationalism: Genocide of the Greeks 1913-1923

Lethal Nationalism: Genocide of the Greeks 1913-1923

Movie

Ratings

Average 5.8
Based on 1.24 Million movie and tv ratings over time
1975
1995
2004
2004
2023
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Information

Known For
Acting

Gender
Male

Birthday
1940-09-21 (83 years old)

Birth Name
William Horton Kuretich

Birth Place
Pensacola, United States of America

Siblings
Frank Kurtis, Jean Schodorf

Citizenships
United States of America

Residences
Mettawa, United States of America


This article uses material from Wikipedia.
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