Veteran ABC News Cameraman Dies

Feb. 10, 2007 — -- Longtime Los Angeles bureau cameraman Robert "Skip" Jennings died Friday afternoon after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Jennings, who worked for ABC for more than 30 years, will be remembered as one of the one of the hardest-working cameramen for the company.

Jennings began working at ABC News in 1965. Soon after, he went overseas to cover the Vietnam War. When Saigon fell, Jennings was the cameraman for the "baby rescue" operation in Vietnam, rescuing orphans who were being brought to the United States.

On one flight, Jennings was outside the aircraft filming and was unable to get back on; the plane crashed on takeoff.

Jennings risked his life repeatedly to get the story. After Vietnam, he went on to cover wars in Cambodia, Somalia, the Falklands and Afghanistan.

He was at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles when Robert Kennedy was assassinated and later at the jail when Sirhan Sirhan was booked. Jennings then rode the train covering the return of Kennedy's body to Washington, D.C.

Jennings went on to cover the political campaigns for every president from Nixon through Bush.

Once, while riding in a golf cart with President Gerald Ford, Jennings fell off the cart with his camera, broke his wrist and was taken to a nearby hospital, but came back to finish the shoot.

In one visit to California, Queen Elizabeth told Jennings that she wanted to try "used beans."

After some careful thought, Jennings suggested she call them "refried beans."

A memorial for Jennings is being planned.