Iola Vivian Johnson

Profile Updated: February 13, 2014
Residing In Irving, TX USA
Occupation News pundit, KTXD-TV
Children I was instrumental in raising four children who are like my own. I refer to them as "my kids" and they More…call me their "fake mom". As they have always done, they still consider me one of their parents. Although I never birthed a child, the four I helped raise could not be any closer to me.
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My induction into the 2011 Tucson High Badger Foundation Hall of Fame, was one of my proudest moments. My portrait now hangs in "Ole Main", (the one above in the red). After graduation I attended the University of Arizona and graduated with a double major in Political Science and Journalism. I worked as a summer intern on The Washington Post and started my professional career as a reporter for KVOA-TV, Channel 4 in Tucson. I was "discovered" by a former employee of the company which owned Dallas-Ft. Worth television station WFAA. After declining their first offer, a year later I accepted a more lucrative offer and spent the next 13 years working to become the "most popular" and highest paid news anchor in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area. I was the first woman and the first African-American to anchor a newscast in Texas and one of the first in the country. My highly successful broadcasting career ended when I resigned and was diagnosed as partially, permanently disabled following an automobile accident. I went through a rough period before returning to work for a TV station in St. Louis, then a radio and TV station in Dallas-Ft. Worth. When finances allowed, I took early retirement in 2009 and returned to live in Tucson. I have had a number of health challanges and narrowly avoided death in 2011. After a lengthy recovery period following major back surgery, I had grown tired of retirement. Then as luck would have, a Dallas-Ft. Worth television station sought me out and lurred me back to Texas. I still had my home in North Texas, so it was an easy transitition back to the Dallas area. I continue working parttime as a television news pundit and love every minute of it!

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Feb 13, 2014 at 12:59 PM

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Posted: Feb 10, 2014 at 9:37 PM

WFAA Newscast, January 29, 1985

January 29, 1985 WFAA Channel 8 Dallas (ABC) 10 pm newscast. Opening titles; John Criswell and Iola Johnson; commercial break with Avis, Birdy film preview, and Entertainment Tonight promo; entire Troy Dungan weathercast; first minute of Dale Hansen sports; and closing short credits. Compare the theme song with the one at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r_Z4BDliWg . From 1984 to 1991 WFAA used the highly successful "Spirit" theme music campaign by TM Productions, customized for WFAA as "Spirit of Texas", with voiceover talent from John B. Wells. Ironically from 1996 to present they went to Stephen Arnold Music for their music, the ones who penned KXAS-5's 1980s news music. WFAA actually had an inhouse video graphics department, where they did their titles and animations (such as the news opener) on state-of-the-art Quantel Paintboxes.
Posted: Feb 10, 2014 at 9:30 PM

1980 WFAA News8 Opens

Both 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. opening themes the first time they were used on Monday, September 22, 1980.
Posted: Feb 08, 2014 at 3:35 PM

1979 WFAA Iola Johnson Promo

Promo for anchorwoman Iola Johnson from WFAA's "You Can Count on us" campaign from 1979.