It's a Great Life if You Don't Weaken: Family, Faith, and 48 Years On Television

by Dave Lopez

Overview

It's a Great Life if You Don't Weaken was awarded the silver medal for Best Autobiography of 2023 by the ILBA.

Read by the author, veteran news reporter Dave Lopez, It's A Great Life if You Don't Weaken won Best Audiobook 2023.

The prestigious annual International Latino Book Awards (ILBA) recognizes excellence in literature by and about Latinos worldwide.

Here's the Story Behind the Stories

For nearly fifty years, Dave Lopez covered every major story in the Southland. The veteran news reporter was a nightly presence in LA living rooms on KCBS Channel 2 for a remarkable 48-year career on camera. General managers and news directors came and went in the unforgiving world of major market TV news, but Dave outlasted more than twenty regime changes. LA's man in the street kept his head down, nose to the grindstone, and relentlessly chased breaking news. He garnered Emmys, accolades, and tens of thousands of fans along the way.

One of the first Hispanic reporters on a major station, Dave's inaugural on-air report on Channel 2 in 1977 concerned an apartment fire that nearly ended in tragedy because none of the firefighters on the scene spoke Spanish. His report ended with the note that the Los Angeles Fire Department was beginning a program to actively recruit bilingual first responders; officials were also thinking of offering Spanish classes at LAFD. Dave was personally breaking barriers decades before Mexican lives officially "mattered"-success he credits entirely to his upbringing.

Professional success came early, but the true measure of a man is his family. In this nostalgic look back, Dave recalls the values instilled by his hardworking father--a man he worshiped and feared in equal measures. It is also a love story that began in high school . . . and how the fearless reporter who thought he could conquer or investigate his way out of anything was forced to accept that some foes cannot be beaten. When he lost both his beloved wife and mother and his invincible father fell apart, Dave finally lost his unflagging optimism . . . and was forced to begin again just as the entire world of news was undergoing a sea change.

It's a Great Life If You Don't Weaken is an inspirational tale of faith, family, and the news from a true LA native. Set against the backdrop of every major story of the last half- century-from Vietnam War protests to the O.J. Simpson trial to countless politicians behaving badly-this story is a vivid remembrance of a life well lived, both on and off camera.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780578370118
Publisher:	Cassie Abby Hallie Elaine Henry, Inc.
Publication date:	02/21/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	296
File size:	68 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

Table of Contents

The Best Day of My Life

Foreword, by Doug Krikorian

Introduction

Chapter One. So Many Questions

Chapter Two. Wilt Only Scored 99 More Points Than You Tonight

Chapter Three. Mom Is a Saint

Chapter Four. Bless This Book!

Chapter Five. Who Is This Blonde?

Chapter Six. Nixon Saves the Day

Chapter Seven. The Greatest Writes a Poem

Chapter Eight. Mentor: Pete Noyes

Chapter Nine. "Did You Kill Dave?"

Chapter Ten. Meeting the Devil

Chapter Eleven. Even More Evil

Chapter Twelve. Reporter/Dad

Chapter Thirteen. No Lifetime Contracts

Chapter Fourteen. Dangerous Assignments

Chapter Fifteen. O.J.? Who Cares

Chapter Sixteen. "Dave, You Have Cancer"

Chapter Seventeen. The Haidl Case

Chapter Eighteen. Forever the Fighter

Chapter Nineteen. Big Changes

Chapter Twenty. I Lose My First Love

Chapter Twenty-One. Ready to Quit

Chapter Twenty-Two. Life Does Go On

Chapter Twenty-Three. You Want Me to . . . Tweet?

Acknowledgments

About the Author