Last Sunday, March 5, 2006 We lost a good friend Sam Chu Lin. Sam became ill Sunday upon arriving at
Bob Hope Airport in
Burbank on a flight from
Phoenix. He was on his way to work at KTTV TV Ch. 11. He was taken to
St. Joseph’s hospital also in
Burbank where he was pronounced dead, although the cause of death was still unknown. Jon will be flying out to
L.A. Wednesday night to prepare for the service. Jon was asked by Judy Chu Lin, Sam’s wife to speak for the family and give the main eulogy. The service will take place at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills this Saturday March 18, 2006 at 12:30 PM. Jon had known Sam for more than 20 years and they covered many stories together. The most memorable was the last successful launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger and a subsequent trip to Epcot. Sam was always asking us when we were going to have kids. So when we decided to adopt of course we had to ask Sam an Judy to write one of our four reference letters. Sam took great pleasure in writing it for us. Diana said, Sam was always smiling when ever she saw him and that will be they way she will always remember him. We are sad that we will never get the chance to introduce Sam to our girls.
We will miss him greatly, below is a brief biography and obituary from the Associated Press.
Sam Chu Lin is a reporter/news anchor/radio announcer who found that "informing and helping others is what makes journalism exciting." As one of the first Asian American network reporters in New York City (CBS News), he announced to the nation the fall of Saigon and helped Superman's creators win their pensions. He's interviewed presidents and world leaders and covered earthquakes and other major disaster. In China, he went on the air to report the government crackdown on the democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square. He feels journalism can also be educational. "It's a chance to use your roots for a positive purpose." Sam recently convinced ABC's Nightline to do a program called "Asian American - When Your Neighbor Looks Like the Enemy" and helped book the guest, checked the script for accuracy, and found historical footage for the broadcast. He spent over a year talking with the executive producer about how Asian Americans have been unfairly stereotyped because of the campaign fundraising and spy scandals. The program was the highest rated show in its time slot beating out Jay Leno and David Letterman in the national ratings. He has been presented with many awards including the AP, UPI, Golden Mike, National Headliner Award for Best Documentary, Chi Lin is an Old American Name, and the 1998 Los Angeles Press Club Award for covering a neighborhood shoot-out. Based in Sunnyvale with his wife Judy, and their sons Mark and Christopher, he also pioneered in Silicon Valley, establishing the television news department for Hewlett-Packard. Sam is a media consultant, contributor to AsianWeek, Rafu Shimpo, San Francisco Examiner, and reports for KTTV Fox 11 News in Los Angeles.
