Voting Station

Jack Perkins

Please vote to see the next celebrity.

Commentator

The Resume

    (December 28, 1933-August 19, 2019)
    Born in Cleveland, Ohio
    Reporter for NBC (1961-86)
    Alternated hosting A&E’s ‘Biography’ with Peter Graves (full time 1991-99; part time 1999-2005)
    Hosted ‘A Gulf Coast Journal’ on WEDU in Tampa (2004-12)
    Wrote ‘Finding Moosewood, Finding God’ (2013)

Why he might be annoying:

    He fell a year behind his studies while covering the trial of Sam Sheppard for the college radio station.
    One of his producers said, 'Jack was kind of a curmudgeon, kind of a cranky guy.'
    He complained about TV news, 'It's embarrassing to be involved with a medium that has such difficulty distinguishing between news and self-promotion.'
    He said about his decision to leave Los Angeles and journalism, 'It was rather awkward timing. I'd just signed a new contract with NBC.'
    When he was first told about Mike Nelson parodying his 'Biography' introductions on Mystery Science Theater 3000, he replied, 'I have no idea what you're taking about. I don't get cable.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was married to Mary Jo Keplinger for 59 years.
    He said, ‘If a story is dramatic, you don’t have to tell it dramatically. Be simple. Be direct. None of this ‘The nation suffered a great tragedy’ nonsense.’
    He went without sleep for nearly 36 hours while reporting on the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.
    His voice was described as a combination of James Earl Jones and Laurence Olivier.
    He said about his decision to leave NBC and LA, and moved to an off-the-grid cabin in Maine, 'Everyone ought to make a dramatic change in his or her life at least once.'
    He eventually came to enjoy Mike Nelson's parody of him, and joined an online drive to save MST3K after it was cancelled by Comedy Central.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 7 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 8 Votes: 12.50% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 19 Votes: 47.37% Annoying