Chet Huntley (1911-1974) and David Brinkley (1920-2003), American journalists and radio and television news broadcasters, were the most popular dual anchormen in broadcasting history.

In October 1956 NBC News replaced the "Camel News Caravan" with the "Huntley-Brinkley Report," which was apparently a third choice as a replacement after author John Hershey and Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge. The success of the Huntley and Brinkley combination, which soon became the ratings leader, was unprecedented. Previously the great names in American broadcasting were solo performers: H. V. Kaltenborn, Lowell Thomas, Gabriel Heatter, and Edward R. Murrow. It is inconceivable that those giants of broadcast news would have shared a podium. Huntley and Brinkley did. Their format has often been imitated, but their success has never been equaled.

The two partners were similar in their backgrounds, yet also quite different. Chester Robert Huntley, a Westerner, was born in Montana, the only son of...