Stone Phillips | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1954-12-02)December 2, 1954 (age 71) Texas City, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Yale University |
| Occupation | Former news anchor |
| Years active | 1978–2014 |
| Known for | Former Anchor / Correspondent for NBC News |
| Spouse | Debra Phillips |
Stone Phillips (born December 2, 1954) is an American retired television reporter and correspondent on NBC, ABC and PBS. He is best known as the formerco-anchor ofDateline NBC, anews magazine TV series. He has also worked as a substitute anchor forNBC Nightly News andToday and as a substitute moderator onMeet the Press. Prior to his tenure atNBC, he was anABC News correspondent for20/20 andWorld News Tonight.
Phillips was born December 2, 1954, inTexas City, Texas, to parents Victor and Grace Phillips, aMonsanto chemical engineer and school teacher, respectively.[1] Victor Phillips is a veteran ofWorld War II.[2] Phillips and his siblings—brother Victor III and sister Minta—were raised in the Claymont section ofBallwin, Missouri, in theGreater St. Louis area.[2]
As a boy Phillips was anacolyte at St. Martin's Episcopal Church inEllisville, Missouri, where his parents were founding members of the congregation.[2] Phillips attendedParkway West High School inBallwin, Missouri, where he was an honor student and starting quarterback on the football team.[3] Phillips is ofScottish ancestry.[4][5]
Phillips matriculated atYale University where he continued to excel in academics and in athletics. In 1976, he was starting quarterback for the Yale Bulldogs squad that won theIvy League football championship.[3] Phillips was a member of Yale'sScroll and Keysecret society and earned the university's prestigious F. Gordon Brown Award for outstanding academic and athletic leadership.[3][6] Phillips graduated with honors from Yale in 1977, earning aBachelor of Philosophy.[3]
After graduating from Yale, Phillips moved toAtlanta, Georgia, where he worked as a remedial reading and math teacher at theFulton CountyJuvenile Detention Center.[3] He was supplementing his pay by moonlighting as a waiter when he landed an entry-level news position atWXIA-TV, the localNBC affiliate.[6]
In 1980, after less than two years as a reporter, writer, and broadcast producer in Atlanta, Phillips was hired byABC News as an assignment editor for itsWashington, D.C., news bureau.[3] In 1982, he began filing stories as an on-air correspondent for ABC, covering such major events as the war in Lebanon, the exodus ofVietnamese boat people in the mid-1980s, and Rajiv Gandhi's election campaign following the assassination of his mother,Indira Gandhi.[6] In 1986, Phillips was promoted to a regular role on the ABC news magazine20/20. Beginning that year, he also served as a substitute host onGood Morning America and a sports anchor for ABC'sWorld News Sunday.
Phillips ended his twelve-year relationship with ABC in 1992, joiningNBC News to serve 15 years as co-anchor withJane Pauley and co-anchoring withAnn Curry 4 years onDateline NBC. While at NBC News, Phillips also hostedWeekend Magazine with Stone Phillips. He conducted a long list of notable interviews during his time with NBC. Among them was the first network interview withLynndie England, theU.S. Army soldier, about her role in theAbu Ghraib prison scandal.[6] Others included notoriousserial killerJeffrey Dahmer, Russian presidentBoris Yeltsin, andBernhard Goetz (a man who shot four black teenagers in theNew York City Subway). The last earned Phillips anEmmy Award for Outstanding Interview.[6] Phillips co-anchoredDateline NBC from its inception until July 2, 2007, whenNBC did not renew his $7 million contract.
On October 17, 2005, Phillips was the guest on the premiere episode ofThe Colbert Report. Phillips' delivery was part of the inspiration forcomedian Stephen Colbert'spersona onThe Daily Show with Jon Stewart.[7] On December 18, 2014, Phillips would again appear onthe final episode ofThe Colbert Report.
As of 2012, Phillips was contributing reports to thePBS NewsHour. In 2013, he reported on golf course water usage forThe Golf Channel.[8]
In May 2013, Phillips produced and hostedMoving with Grace, a documentary airing on PBS stations that chronicled his efforts and those of his siblings to provide care for their aging parents. It also explored various issues faced by other baby boomers in similar circumstance.[2]
Phillips lives in New York with his wife Debra Del Toro-Phillips who isPuerto Rican and moved to New York City as a child. After a successful career in the fashion industry, she returned to college and earned a master's degree insocial work.[9]
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