Remembering John Komen

John Komen graduated from Bellingham High School in 1954. He attended Western Washington University and transferred to the University of Washington where he graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the School of Communications in 1958. While still a student at the UW, he was hired in 1957 by The Associated Press where he worked at both its Seattle and Olympia bureaus. At KAYO radio he was a news writer and a weekend disc jockey known as Johnny Dennis.

In 1965, John began his thirteen-year career in broadcast journalism when he was hired as a political reporter for KOMO-TV. He subsequently held the positions of news director and news anchor.

In 1967, John became a national network news correspondent for ABC-TV in New York City. He reported on many historical events, including the presidential campaigns of Richard Nixon and Hubert Humphrey, the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.

In 1969, John was hired by KING-TV, where he held various positions including political reporter, assignment editor, and news anchor.

In 1976, John joined The (Tacoma) News Tribune as its chief editorial writer, serving as associate editor, managing editor, and editor over his nineteen years at the Trib.

John Komen (Rainier Beer commercial)