Goodman was known for never asking for a raise or promotion. He started his career as a reporter working $3 a week for The Glasgow Daily Times. He attended Western Kentucky State Teachers College from 1939 to 1942 as an economics major. He left in 1943 to join the United States Army and served for a few months.[3] After serving in the Army, he moved to Washington. He graduated from George Washington University in 1948. Here he met William McAndrew and was given a job for the night news desk. He served as president of NBC from 1966 to 1974. Goodman helped establish Chet Huntley and David Brinkley as a well-known news team and led the network from 1966 to 1974. While working for NBC, he negotiated a $1 million deal to retain Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show. He also spent some time attempting to put an end to the Fairness Doctrine.[2]
Goodman was married to his wife Betty Davis, who was also from Kentucky. Together they had four children, John, Jeffrey, Gregory, and Julie, along with six grandchildren.[2]
Death
Goodman died on July 2, 2012, at his home in Juno Beach, Florida, at the age of 90. The cause of his death was from kidney failure.[2]
^Mascaro, Tom. Into the Fray: How NBC's Washington Documentary Unit Reinvented the News, Potomac Books, Washington, DC, 2012, page 63. ISBN978-1-61234-099-9
