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Christine Chubbuck
A black-and-white photo of a young Caucasian woman with long, black hair, and wearing a stripe-pattern shirt. She looks to the camera with a smile while leaning against a television camera that displays a "WXLT-TV 40 ABC" logo.
Chubbuck in 1974
Born(1944-08-24)August 24, 1944
Hudson, Ohio, U.S.
DiedJuly 15, 1974(1974-07-15) (aged 29)
Sarasota, Florida, U.S.
Cause of deathSuicide by gunshot
OccupationTelevision news reporter
Known forBeing the first person to die by suicide on live television
TelevisionWVIZ, WTOG, WXLT-TV

Christine Chubbuck[a] (August 24, 1944 – July 15, 1974) was an American television news reporter who worked for stations WTOG and WXLT-TV in Sarasota, Florida. She is the first person to die by suicide on a live television broadcast.[1][2][3]

Early life

Christine Chubbuck was born in Hudson, Ohio, the daughter of Margretha D. "Peg" (1921–1994) and George Fairbanks Chubbuck (1918–2015). She had two brothers, Greg and Tim.[4] Chubbuck attended the Laurel School for Girls in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland. During her years at Laurel, she jokingly formed a "Dateless Wonder Club" with other "rejected" girls who did not have dates on Saturday nights.[5] Chubbuck attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, for one year, majoring in theater arts, then attended Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts, before earning a degree in broadcasting at Boston University in 1965.[6]

According to Christine Chubbuck's brother, Greg, she began dating a man in his 30s when she was 21, but her father did not approve of the relationship and she had never dated another man since then.[3]

Career

Early work

Chubbuck worked for WVIZ in Cleveland between 1966 and 1967, and attended a summer workshop in radio and television at New York University in 1967. That same year, she worked in Canton, Ohio, and, for three months, at WQED-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as an assistant producer for two local shows, Women's World and Keys to the City.[7] In 1968, Chubbuck left WQED to spend four years as a hospital computer operator and two years with a cable television firm in Sarasota, Florida. Immediately before joining ABC affiliate WXLT-TV (now WWSB), she worked in the traffic department of WTOG in St. Petersburg.[8][9]

Several years before her death, Chubbuck had moved into her family's summer cottage on Siesta Key. Sally Quinn of The Washington Post later reported that she had painted the bedroom and canopied bed to look like that of a young teenager. After Chubbuck's parents were divorced, her mother Peg and younger brother Greg came to live in the Florida home. When Greg left, her elder brother Tim moved in. Chubbuck had a close relationship with her family, describing her mother and Greg as her closest friends.[10]

WXLT-TV

WXLT's owner, Bob Nelson, hired Chubbuck as a reporter, but later gave her a community affairs talk show, Suncoast Digest, which ran at 9:00 am. Production Manager Gordon J. Acker described Chubbuck's new show to a local paper: "It will feature local people and local activities. It will give attention, for instance, to the storefront organizations that are concerned with alcoholics, drug users, and other 'lost' segments of the community." Page five of the article showed a smiling Chubbuck posed with a WXLT camera.[11]

Chubbuck took her position seriously, inviting local officials from Sarasota and Bradenton to discuss matters of interest to the growing beach community. After her death, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported that she had been nominated for a Forestry and Conservation Recognition Award by the Bradenton district office of the Florida Division of Forestry. Chubbuck was considered a "strong contender" by district forester Mike Keel. He had been scheduled to appear as a guest on Chubbuck's show the morning of her suicide, but canceled because of the birth of his son.[12] On occasion, Chubbuck incorporated homemade puppets she had used to entertain children with intellectual disabilities during her volunteer work at Sarasota Memorial Hospital.[10]

Death

Depression

Chubbuck spoke to her family at length about her struggles with depression and suicidal tendencies, though she did not inform them of her intent to die by suicide on live television. She had attempted to overdose on drugs in 1970 and frequently made reference to that event. Chubbuck had been seeing a psychiatrist up until several weeks before her death. Her mother chose not to tell WXLT management about her daughter's suicidal tendencies because she feared Chubbuck would be fired.[13]

Chubbuck's focus on her lack of intimate relationships is generally considered to be the driving force for her depression. Her mother later summarized that "her suicide was simply because her personal life was not enough." She lamented to co-workers that her 30th birthday was approaching, and she was still a virgin who had never been on more than two dates with a man. Her brother Greg later recalled a man that she had gone out with several times before moving to Sarasota, but agreed that his sister had trouble connecting socially in the beach resort town. He believed her constant self-deprecation for being "dateless" contributed to her ongoing depression.[14]

According to Quinn, Chubbuck had an unrequited crush on co-worker George Peter Ryan. She baked him a cake for his birthday and sought his romantic attention, only to find out he was already involved with sports reporter Andrea Kirby. Kirby had been the co-worker closest to Chubbuck, but she was offered a new job in Baltimore, which had further depressed Chubbuck.[10] Her lack of a romantic partner was considered a tangent of her desperate need to have close friends, though co-workers said she tended to be brusque and defensive whenever they made friendly gestures toward her. She was self-deprecating, criticizing herself constantly and rejecting any compliments others paid her.[15]

Chubbuck had her right ovary removed in an operation the year before her suicide, and had been told that if she did not become pregnant within two to three years, it was unlikely she would ever be able to conceive.[10]

A week before her suicide, she told night news editor Rob Smith that she had bought a gun and joked about killing herself on air. Smith later stated that he did not respond to what he thought was Chubbuck's "sick" attempt at humor, and changed the subject.[8] She had also hosted a party just days before the incident. Craig Sager, a WXLT sportscaster who later gained fame as a sideline reporter for Turner Sports, was among those who attended. "She was having a great time. It was like, 'Oh My God' this is such a different side to her," Sager recalled. "That was her going away party and it was her chance to say goodbye to everyone, but of course we didn't realize it at the time. It was just so shocking." Sager had been covering spring training for baseball when he learned of Chubbuck's suicide.[16]

Suicide

On the morning of July 15, 1974, Chubbuck confused co-workers by claiming she had to read a newscast to open Suncoast Digest, something she had never done before. That morning's guest waited across the studio while Chubbuck sat at the news anchor's desk.[8] During the first eight minutes of her program, Chubbuck covered three national news stories and then a shooting from the previous day at a local restaurant, Beef & Bottle, at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport.[17]

The film reel of the restaurant shooting had jammed and would not run, so Chubbuck shrugged it off and said on-camera, "In keeping with the WXLT practice of presenting the most immediate and complete reports of local blood and guts news, TV 40 presents what is believed to be a television first. In living color, an exclusive coverage of an attempted suicide."[18] She drew a .38-caliber Smith & Wesson Model 36 revolver and shot herself behind her right ear.[8] Chubbuck fell forward violently and the technical director faded the broadcast rapidly to black.[19]

The station quickly ran a standard public service announcement and then a movie.[20] Some television viewers called the police, while others called the station to inquire if the shooting was staged.[21]

After the shooting, news director Mike Simmons found the papers from which Chubbuck had been reading her newscast contained a complete script of her program, including not only the shooting but also a third-person account to be read by whichever staff member took over the broadcast after the incident. He said her script called for her condition to be listed as "critical".[20]

She had written something like "TV 40 news personality Christine Chubbuck shot herself in a live broadcast this morning on a Channel 40 talk program. She was rushed to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, where she remains in critical condition."[20]

–Mike Simmons, TV-40 news director, quoted in The Dallas Morning News

Chubbuck was taken to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead fourteen hours later. Upon receiving the news, a WXLT staffer released the information to other stations using Chubbuck's script.[21] For a time, WXLT aired reruns of the TV series Gentle Ben in place of Suncoast Digest.[9]

Aftermath

Chubbuck's body was cremated. The funeral ceremony was held on the beach, where her ashes were scattered into the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 120 people attended, including local officials who had appeared on her show.[22] Three songs by her favorite singer, Roberta Flack, were played.[23] Presbyterian minister Thomas Beason delivered the eulogy, stating, "We suffer at our sense of loss, we are frightened by her rage, we are guilty in the face of her rejection, we are hurt by her choice of isolation and we are confused by her message."[24]

Suncoast Digest stayed on the air for several years with new hosts. Simmons, the station director, said Chubbuck's suicide was unrelated to the station. "The crux of the situation was that she was a 29-year-old girl who wanted to be married and who wasn't," he said in 1977.[25]

The broadcast of Chubbuck's death has not been seen since its airing, and numerous theories on what happened to the recording have been advanced.[26] One was that the station owner Robert Nelson kept it, and it was in the possession of his widow, Mollie. It was confirmed in June 2016 that the recording of Chubbuck's death exists and had indeed been in Nelson's possession, but was handed over to a "very large law firm" for safekeeping by Mollie. She has no plans to make it publicly available.[27]

In 2007, Greg Chubbuck spoke publicly about his sister for the first time since 1974 in an E! television special.[28] In 2008, the suicide hoax blog 90 Day Jane cited Chubbuck's death as inspiration.[29][30]

An urban legend states that Chubbuck's suicide inspired Paddy Chayefsky's script for the 1976 film Network, in which news anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch) claims he will kill himself live on-air. Dave Itzkoff, author of Mad as Hell: The Making of Network and the Fateful Vision of the Angriest Man in Movies, claims this urban legend is false, as there was no mention of Chubbuck in any of Chayefsky's papers.[31] However, a later draft of the screenplay includes Beale saying he will commit suicide “right on the air ... like that girl in Florida,” but the line was later removed. When shooting Kate Plays Christine, director Robert Greene stated that everyone he met in Sarasota believed that there was a connection between Chubbuck and Network. Greene stated “But I don’t mind that it’s wrong ... It’s about how her story reverberates in all these other ways. That being not quite true seems completely appropriate.” Nonetheless, the claim that she influenced the film Network is often passed off as true.[32]

In 2003, Christopher Sorrentino published "Condition", a short story based on Chubbuck's suicide, in the literary magazine Conjunctions.[33]

In 2016, two films about Chubbuck played at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. The first, Christine, was directed by Antonio Campos, and starred Rebecca Hall as Christine Chubbuck and Michael C. Hall as George Peter Ryan.[34][35] The second was the documentary Kate Plays Christine,[36] which depicts actress Kate Lyn Sheil's preparation for the role of Chubbuck in a hypothetical film.[37][38][39]

See also

  • Inejirō Asanuma, a Japanese politician who was assassinated during a televised political debate in 1960
  • Network, a 1976 fictional film in which a newscaster is murdered on air
  • R. Budd Dwyer, a Pennsylvania politician who fatally shot himself in front of TV news cameras in 1987
  • Daniel V. Jones, an American man who died by suicide on live television in front of news helicopters in 1998
  • Alison Parker and Adam Ward, a reporter and photojournalist who were murdered during a live television broadcast on August 26, 2015, at Bridgewater Plaza, Moneta, Virginia
  • Ronnie McNutt, an Iraq War veteran who fatally shot himself in the head on a live Facebook stream

Notes

  1. ^ Mistakenly reported as "Hubbock" by some sources.

References

  1. ^ Pelisek, Christine (February 10, 2016). "Journalist Christine Chubbuck Threw Herself a Going Away Party Before Killing Herself on Live TV, Colleague Says". People. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  2. ^ Pelisek, Christine (February 10, 2016). "Colleagues Recall Shock and Horror After Journalist Committed Suicide on Live TV: 'I Didn't See the Gun'". People. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Pelisek, Christine (February 11, 2016). "Brother of TV Journalist Christine Chubbuck Who Shot Herself on Air: 'She Never Felt Like She Was Good Enough'". People. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  4. ^ "Margaretha D Chubbuck public record". FamilySearch. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  5. ^ Hart, Anna (January 24, 2017). "The newsreader who shot herself live on air: the tragic true story of Christine Chubbuck". The Telegraph. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  6. ^ "Tragic death of former Hudson resident on live TV is inspiration for two films". January 31, 2016. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  7. ^ "TV Hostess Dies in 'Suicide Show'". The Pittsburgh Press. July 16, 1974. p. 8. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  8. ^ a b c d Dietz, Jon (July 16, 1974). "On-Air Shot Kills TV Personality". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Chris Chubbuck Memorial Services Thursday". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. July 17, 1974. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  10. ^ a b c d Quinn, Sally (August 4, 1974). "Christine Chubbuck: 29, Good-Looking, Educated. A Television Personality. Dead. Live and in Color" (PDF). The Washington Post. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 26, 2004. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  11. ^ Wesson, Helen (August 30, 1973). "WXLT-TV Adds A.M. Talk Show". Siesta Key Pelican.
  12. ^ "Chris Chubbuck is Posthumous Award Candidate". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. July 20, 1974. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  13. ^ Kamstock, Dr. Edwin L. (July 15, 1974). "Autopsy report #A-74-203". Sarasota County Sheriff's Dept. File, Case #74-15120. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  14. ^ "Interview with Greg Chubbuck for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams: Christine Chubbuck"". E! Entertainment Television. February 26, 2007.
  15. ^ "Chubbuck Rites On Beach". The Hudson Hub. July 28, 1974.
  16. ^ "Journalist Christine Chubbuck Threw Herself a Going Away Party Before Killing Herself on Live TV, Colleague Says". People. February 10, 2016.
  17. ^ "Sarasota County Sheriff's Dept. file, case #74-15120". July 15, 1974. Retrieved November 17, 2018. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  18. ^ "Sarasota County Sheriff's Dept. file, case #74-15120, transcription of Christine Chubbuck tape". July 15, 1974. Retrieved June 10, 2021. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  19. ^ Rubin, Valerie (July 16, 1974). "Tragic TV drama unfolds before unbelieving eyes". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  20. ^ a b c "Newswoman shoots self on live TV". The Dallas Morning News. July 16, 1974. p. 1A.
  21. ^ a b "Florida TV talk show host dies after shooting herself during broadcast". Associated Press. July 16, 1974.
  22. ^ "Special Memorial Service Held On Public Beach For TV Personality Christine Chubbuck". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. July 19, 1974. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  23. ^ "Timothy Chubbuck Eulogizes Sister in Beach Service". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. July 18, 1974.
  24. ^ "Chris Chubbuck is Eulogized". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. July 18, 1974.
  25. ^ "'Suncoast Digest' Survives". Ocala Star-Banner. August 1, 1977. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  26. ^ Pelisek, Christine (February 11, 2016). "Brother of Christine Chubbuck, the 70s Journalist Who Committed Suicide on Live TV, Says No One Will Ever Find the Tape of that Horrific Day". People. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  27. ^ Riesman, Abraham (June 8, 2016). "The Existence of Christine Chubbuck's Suicide Video Has Been Confirmed". Vulture.com. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  28. ^ "Christine Chubbuck". Boulevard of Broken Dreams. February 24, 2007. E! Television.
  29. ^ Friedman, Emily (November 21, 2008). "Florida Teen Live-Streams His Suicide Online". ABC News. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
  30. ^ Bronner, Simon J. (2009). "Digitizing and Virtualizing Folklore". In Blank, Trevor J. (ed.). Folklore and the Internet: Vernacular Expression in a Digital World. Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press. p. 54. doi:10.2307/j.ctt4cgrx5.5. ISBN 9780874217506. JSTOR j.ctt4cgrx5.5.
  31. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (August 19, 2016). "News Anchors Mad as Hell in 'Network' and Suicidal in 'Kate Plays Christine'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  32. ^ Hooton, Christopher (January 27, 2016). "Christine Chubbuck: True story of televised suicide behind two of this year's biggest Sundance films | The Independent". The Independent. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  33. ^ "Conjunctions:40". Conjunctions. Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  34. ^ Christine at IMDb
  35. ^ Buckley, Cara (October 9, 2016). "When Rebecca Hall First Got This Script, She Hid It". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  36. ^ Kate Plays Christine (2016) at IMDb
  37. ^ Guerrasio, Jason (January 25, 2016). "A movie about one of the most horrific moments in TV history has become the talk of the Sundance Film Festival". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  38. ^ Holden, Stephen (August 24, 2016). "Review: 'Kate Plays Christine,' a Blurring of Fact and Fiction in a Suicide Story". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  39. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (August 19, 2016). "News Anchors Mad as Hell in 'Network' and Suicidal in 'Kate Plays Christine'". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
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