Charles Osgood Wood III was born on 8 January 1933, in The Bronx, New York City USA, and is a radio and television anchor and writer, best known as the host of “The Osgood File”and “CBS News Sunday Morning” programs.
A noted broadcast journalist, how wealthy is Charles Osgood? According to sources in early 2017, Osgood has amassed a fortune of over $5 million. His net worth has largely been acquired during his career in radio and television which began in the mid-1950s.
Charles Osgood Net Worth $5 million
Osgood is the oldest of three children. His family moved to Baltimore, Maryland when he was nine years old, where he attended Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic school, matriculating in 1951. He later enrolled at New York City’s Fordham University, graduating in 1954 with a degree in economics, and where he worked at the school’s radio station WFUV too.
Shortly afterwards, Osgood began working as an announcer on the music stations WGMS (AM) and WGMS-FM in Washington, D.C. The following year he joined the US Army and toured as the emcee of its band for the next few years; their song with US Senator Everett Dirksen entitled “Gallant Men” earned a Grammy Award, reaching #16 on the Billboard 200 chart. During this time, Osgood also worked as an announcer on several radio stations in the Washington area, eventually returning to WGMS as announcer and general manager’s assistant, later being promoted to program director. All contributed to his wealth.
Osgood is credited for providing commentary on President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s 1960 acclaimed album, a collection of thirty-three speeches called “FDR Speaks”.
In 1962 he landed his first television job, becoming the general manager of Channel 18-WHCT, today’s WUVN, in Hartford, Connecticut. The following year he landed a job at ABC News in New York City as a writer and host of “Flair Reports”, spending the next four years reporting for ABC radio and television, paving his way to fame and increasing his net worth.
In 1967 Osgood began working at CBS Radio, as a reporter for Newsradio 880. In 1971 he became the host of the daily program called “The Osgood File”, a three-minute show broadcast on over 400 radio stations nationwide, which brought him one Peabody and three Emmy Awards, boosting his popularity and wealth. The same year he joined the CBS television network, where he served as a reporter and anchor of the “CBS Sunday Night News” for several years, and later co-anchored the “CBS Morning News” and “CBS Afternoon News”. He also served as a reporter for the CBS science broadcast “Walter Cronkite’s Universe” and contributed to “The CBS Evening News with Dan Rather”. All added to his fortune.
In 1994 Osgood became the host of a news magazine television program called “CBS News Sunday Morning”, replacing Charles Kuralt. He went on to spend 22 years on the show, reaching stardom and significantly increasing his wealth. He retired as the show’s host in 2016, at the age of 83, but has continued to host “The Osgood File”.
Aside from his career on radio and television, Osgood has also been the best-selling author of seven books, which brought him a decent income as well He has also written a three-act play called “A Single Voice”.
In addition, he has been involved in the film industry, providing his voice to narrate the animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ “Horton Hears a Who!” in 2008.
Osgood’s remarkable career has enabled him to achieve legendary status and a considerable net worth. He has received several awards and honors, such as being inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1990.
Speaking about his private life, Osgood has been married to Jean Crafton since 1973. The couple has four children.
