Longtime News Anchor Jim Vance Dies At Age 75

WASHINGTON (AP) — A longtime television news anchor in the nation's capital has died.

WRC-TV President and General Manager Jackie Bradford said in a statement that Jim Vance died Saturday morning. He was 75 years old.

Vance told viewers earlier this year that he was undergoing treatment for cancer.

Vance joined the NBC station in 1969 and moved to the anchor chair in 1972. The Washington Post reports that Vance's 11 p.m. shows with longtime broadcast partner Doreen Gentzler regularly attracted more viewers than the prime-time programs on the three major cable networks combined.

Bradford said Vance's was "not only the soul of NBC4 but of the entire Washington area."

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser tweeted that Vance was a "steady voice who shared the news — good or bad — with grace."

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