Brinkley Retires as Broadcasting Giant

“On this, my last word here on ABC, I quote Shakespeare, who said, ‘All’s well that ends well.’ My time here now ends extremely well. Thank you.” David Brinkley thus ended his final commentary on ABC-TV’s “This Week” and a 54-year broadcasting career. Brinkley, 77, announced his retirement last week, less than a year after he stepped down as host of the Sunday morning news show. Brinkley launched his broadcasting career at 23, covering President Franklin D. Roosevelt. As half of NBC-TV’s Huntley-Brinkley news anchor team in the 1960s, Brinkley’s clipped sentences and dry wit were much imitated.