Dan Rather Mourns Death of Wife Jean at Age 89

Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather is mourning the death of his wife, Jean Rather, at age 89.

“Today is the saddest of days for Dan and the extended Rather family. Jean Rather, Dan’s wife, passed away at their home in Austin, Texas, early this morning,” friends of the veteran TV journalist, 93, wrote via his Facebook page on Tuesday, November 26. “She had been on hospice care for some time, but the news still comes as a shock for those of us who knew and loved her.”

The statement continued: “Please keep the Rathers in your thoughts. Jean lived a full life as an incredible wife, mother, friend, and artist — and a true Texan.”

The post went on to include Jean’s obituary, which revealed that she died Tuesday following a cancer battle “surrounded by loving family and friends and her beautiful artwork.”

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Born in Smithville, Texas, Jean met Dan at “a Houston radio station” and the two lived in Dallas, Washington, D.C., London and New York City over the course of their 67-year marriage before moving back to Texas for good in 2021.

“Jean was a steadfast advisor and rock of true Texas grit during every storm,” the obituary reads. “She was also the kind of wife who could meet presidents, kings and queens, draft dodgers, criminals, and corporate suits every day with equal ease and a stunning smile.”

The tribute described Jean as both a “tremendous mother and grandmother” and “a very accomplished” artist whose artwork was displayed in galleries and private collections across the U.S. She also “served on many non profit boards throughout her life” and acted as the Painter Member and the Vice Chair of the Art Commission of the City of New York.

“She is survived by her husband, Dan; son Danjack and his partner, Ann Prunty, and grandson Martin in New York; daughter Robin and her partner, Mike Marler, and grandson Andy in Austin; and many members of the extended Wallace, Zimerhanzel, and Rather families,” the post read. “Her many dear friends have been wonderful companions, and their love and support meant the world to her.”

The obituary concluded by asking loved ones to donate to the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders in Austin in lieu of flowers.

Dan and Jean tied the knot in 1957, nearly three decades before he took over for Walter Cronkite as the anchor of CBS News in 1981. He was with the network for 44 years, reporting on news events such as the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Dan recalled calling his wife after the tragic event in an interview with CBS News earlier this year. “I didn’t take time to grieve, because I said to myself, it’s my professional responsibility,” he shared in April. “I remember calling my wife Jean, who was in Houston at the time of the assassination, and she had cautioned me: ‘Dan, sooner or later, you’re going to have make room for your own emotions.’”