William Horton Kureich is an American journalist, television presenter, narrator, and producer, from Pensacola, Florida, born on the 21st of September 1940 of part-Croatian ancestry, known for hosting a number of varied shows on US TV stations.
How rich is Bill Kurtis? As of early 2017, sources estimate his net worth at $15 million, earned over his television and radio career which began in the 1960s.
Bill Kurtis Net Worth $15 million
Kurtis moved from Florida to Independence, Kansas, after his father retired from the military. At 16, he had his first foray into the media, working in radio for KIND-AM as an announcer, whilst still attending Independence High School. He matriculated in 1958 to the University of Kansas, graduating in 1962 with a degree in Journalism, and going on to study at the Washburn University School of Law, leaving with a Juris Doctor Degree. Between 1962 and 1966, Kurtis was enlisted in the US Marine Corps Reserve as a Lieutenant, and then in the Navy Reserve for three years, until 1969.
After filling in for an absent friend at a radio station, Kurtis was bitten by the broadcasting bug. He stayed on air for 24 hours due to a violent storm hitting Topeka, where the station was based. His coverage of the natural disaster, which killed 16 people and injured many others, brought him to the attention of several news stations. Deciding a career in law was not for him, Kurtis instead deciding to pursue broadcasting.
Kurtis moved to Chicago to work for WBBM-TV, where he was a reporter and anchor. During his career, he has covered such important events as the assassination of Dr Martin Luther King, and the Vietnam War protests. In the 1980s, he branched out into wider presenting work, narrating hundreds of documentaries, and began producing documentaries too, as part of his new company, “Kurtis Productions”. His career went from strength to strength through the decades, along with the growth in his net worth, for example Kurtis’s reporting on notorious murderer Richard Speck in 1994 leading to a complete reform of the Illinois penal system.
In 2005, Kurtis founded the Tallgrass Beef Company, based in Kansas and specialising in grass-fed beef from local, family-run farms. He has also written books including “Bill Kurtis on Assignment” and “The Death Penalty on Trial: Crisis in American Justice”. As of 2017, he is the current judge and scorekeeper on the gameshow “Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!”
Over his distinguished career, Kurtis has been nominated for, and has won, a number of awards. He was nominated for two Primetime Emmys, in 2004 and 2005, both times for “Outstanding Nonfiction Series” with “Cold Case Files”. He has also won several CableACE awards in connection with his various documentaries. He has two Peabody Awards, and is a member of both the Illinois and Kansas Halls of Fame.
In his personal life, Kurtis participates in philanthropic activities, including serving on the board of directors for the National Park Foundation. He first married in 1963, to Helen Kurtis and remained together until her death in 1977, and had two children together. He is now in a relationship with Donna La Pietra. He suffered tragedy when, on the 20th of July, 2009, his son was found dead on the family’s Kansas cattle ranch. He was just 38, and had suffered from mental health problems, including schizophrenia.
