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Bill Bonds has probably won more Emmy awards as a journalist and anchor than any other person in history. He was born in 1933 in Detroit and is most notable as a news anchor at WXYZ-TV in Detroit Michigan.
Education and career
Bill is a graduate of the University of Detroit and immediately set out to pursue his career in journalism. He began at WKNR-AM working as a reporter. He worked with several other Michigan based radio stations among them WCAR, WQTE and WPON.
It is while working for WXYZ at the height of the Detroit riots that Bill would rise to fame.
Television Career
Following Bill's exemplary coverage of the Detroit riots more television stations soon came calling and he traveled to Los Angeles to work for ABC at KABC-TV. he worked there from 1968 helping them create eyewitness news before returning to WXYZ after a 3 year stint at one of their main rivals. From then on Bill continued to work for WXYZ until his retirement in 1995.During his time at the station he helped it become the top station in Detroit something it still holds to this day. At WXYZ he anchored the 5pm as well as the 11 pm news.
It is rumored that one of the reasons for his exit of the WXYZ was due to his drinking as well as smoking habit which had taken a toll on his career. He however returned albeit for a short spell in 1999 handling editorial work.
Life after WXYZ
After leaving WXYZ Bill went on to have some influence in the media doing commercials for radio mainly in his hometown city of Detroit. One of the popular adverts he has been in is one together with a former news anchor at WXYZ Doris Biscoe for potato chips. In 1971 while still news anchor at WXYZ Bill took part in the film Escape from the planet of the apes. He had earlier featured in an episode of it takes a thief.
Bond later signed a contract with Gardner white furniture which is based in Detroit where he would do commercials for them however the contract has since expired but he continues to do mainly radio adverts for other firms.
In 2008 in honor of WXYZ –TV's 60TH anniversary celebration, Bond made a come back to the station airing a special news bulletin together with two of his former colleagues. He has continued to grab headlines in Detroit and has even attracted a Detroit band that has decided to call itself Bill Bond after arguably one of the best news anchors of all time.
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