CBS EYE SHEDS A TEAR FOR ED

DEATH OF '60 MINS

November 10, 2006 -- Trailblazing "60 Minutes" correspondent Ed Bradley, who covered the major stories of the last four decades, died unexpectedly yesterday, leaving colleagues and fans in a state of shock.

Friends said Bradley, 65, who died of leukemia at Mount Sinai Hospital, was "an extremely private guy" who had quietly been battling a dormant form of the disease for a year.

Recently, he had been scheduled to have his spleen removed, but the surgery had to be postponed when his condition took a turn for the worse.

"It was in the last 10 days that it spiraled out of control," said "60 Minutes" executive producer Jeff Fager. "He just fought hard and couldn't fight it off. It's a horrible loss."

Bradley's sudden death stunned his CBS colleagues, few of whom knew how ill he was.

"I knew that he had been having a hard time," fellow "60 Minutes" correspondent Mike Wallace said. "But I didn't know how serious it was."

As the news of Bradley's death spread, the network broke into regular programming to announce the tragic news.

The iconic broadcaster will be remembered as one of the most prominent African-American TV journalists in history.

He started with CBS radio in 1967 and joined CBS News in 1971. One of his first TV assignments was the Vietnam War. He was injured in Cambodia. He covered the White House in the late 1970s and anchored the "CBS Sunday Night News" from 1976 to 1981.

Bradley also reported for "CBS Reports" and "Street Stories."

He joined "60 Minutes" in 1981 and continued to appear on TV until his health failed him.

Last month, Bradley made headlines when he interviewed the major players in the case of the alleged rape of a stripper by Duke University lacrosse team members.