Gil Noble
Encyclopedia
Gil Noble is an American
television
reporter and interview
er. He was the producer and host of New York City
television station
WABC-TV
's weekly, Like It Is
, originally co-hosted with Melba Tolliver
. The program focused primarily on issues concerning African Americans and those within the African diaspora
.
Noble joined WABC in July 1967 as a reporter, and starting in January 1968 became an anchor
of its Saturday and Sunday night newscasts. He became host of Like It Is a few months prior to the rebranding of the station's newscasts as Eyewitness News
in November, 1968. In addition, he was an occasional interviewer on some of WABC's other public affairs shows, such as Eyewitness Exclusive. From 1986 on, Noble concentrated exclusively on Like It Is.
Noble also created documentaries on such topics as W. E. B. Du Bois, Malcolm X
, Fannie Lou Hamer
, Ella Baker
, Decade of Struggle, Martin Luther King Jr., Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
, Jack Johnson
, Charlie Parker
and Essay on Drugs. In 1977, he wrote, directed and produced the first documentary on Paul Robeson
, entitled The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
.
In 1973, Noble reported (for local TV station WABC channel 7) on the first mobile cellular phone invented by Marty Cooper from the NY Hilton in New York.
Noble won four Emmy Award
s. In 1981, he wrote an autobiography, Black is the Color of My TV Tube.
Noble was a supporter of The Jazz Foundation of America
, hosting the 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2007 "A Great Night in Harlem
" Concert / Benefit for The Jazz Foundation to support The Musicians Emergency Fund. He is also a member of the Board of Directors.
In July 2011, Noble suffered a serious stroke. In late September, his family announced that Noble would not be returning to host Like It Is.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
reporter and interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
er. He was the producer and host of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
WABC-TV
WABC-TV
WABC-TV, channel 7, is the flagship station of the Disney-owned American Broadcasting Company located in New York City. The station's studios and offices are located on the Upper West Side section of Manhattan, adjacent to ABC's corporate headquarters, and its transmitter is atop the Empire State...
's weekly, Like It Is
Like It Is (public affairs program)
Like It Is is a public affairs television program focusing on issues relevant to the African-American community, produced and aired on WABC-TV in New York City between 1968 and 2011. It is one of the longest-running, locally-produced programs of its kind in television history...
, originally co-hosted with Melba Tolliver
Melba Tolliver
Melba Tolliver is an American journalist and former New York City news anchor and reporter. She is best remembered for her defiant stance against ABC owned WABC-TV when she refused to don a wig or scarf to cover up her Afro in order to cover the White House wedding of President Richard Nixon's...
. The program focused primarily on issues concerning African Americans and those within the African diaspora
African diaspora
The African diaspora was the movement of Africans and their descendants to places throughout the world—predominantly to the Americas also to Europe, the Middle East and other places around the globe...
.
Noble joined WABC in July 1967 as a reporter, and starting in January 1968 became an anchor
News presenter
A news presenter is a person who presents news during a news program in the format of a television show, on the radio or the Internet.News presenters can work in a radio studio, television studio and from remote broadcasts in the field especially weather...
of its Saturday and Sunday night newscasts. He became host of Like It Is a few months prior to the rebranding of the station's newscasts as Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
in November, 1968. In addition, he was an occasional interviewer on some of WABC's other public affairs shows, such as Eyewitness Exclusive. From 1986 on, Noble concentrated exclusively on Like It Is.
Noble also created documentaries on such topics as W. E. B. Du Bois, Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Malcolm X , born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz , was an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its...
, Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer was an American voting rights activist and civil rights leader....
, Ella Baker
Ella Baker
Ella Josephine Baker was an African American civil rights and human rights activist beginning in the 1930s....
, Decade of Struggle, Martin Luther King Jr., Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., was an American politician and pastor who represented Harlem, New York City, in the United States House of Representatives . He was the first person of African-American descent elected to Congress from New York and became a powerful national politician...
, Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson (boxer)
John Arthur Johnson , nicknamed the “Galveston Giant,” was an American boxer. At the height of the Jim Crow era, Johnson became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion...
, Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
and Essay on Drugs. In 1977, he wrote, directed and produced the first documentary on Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
, entitled The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
The Tallest Tree in our Forest is a 1977 documentary film directed and written by Gil Noble, about singer, actor and activist, Paul Robeson. The tallest tree was shot on 16mm and was started shortly before Robeson's death at age 77 in 1976. The film features rare archival footage, interviews, and...
.
In 1973, Noble reported (for local TV station WABC channel 7) on the first mobile cellular phone invented by Marty Cooper from the NY Hilton in New York.
Noble won four Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s. In 1981, he wrote an autobiography, Black is the Color of My TV Tube.
Noble was a supporter of The Jazz Foundation of America
Jazz Foundation of America
The Jazz Foundation of America is a non-profit organization based in Manhattan, New York founded in 1989. The JFA’s programs help jazz and blues musicians in need of emergency funds and connect them with performance opportunities in schools and the community...
, hosting the 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2007 "A Great Night in Harlem
A Great Night in Harlem
The Jazz Foundation of America is a 501 non-profit organization that created A Great Night in Harlem Benefit Concert in 2001 to raise money for the Jazz Foundation's Musician Emergency Fund.-History:...
" Concert / Benefit for The Jazz Foundation to support The Musicians Emergency Fund. He is also a member of the Board of Directors.
In July 2011, Noble suffered a serious stroke. In late September, his family announced that Noble would not be returning to host Like It Is.