In 1985, a fatal accident took place on the approach to the Golden Gate Bridge.
The victim's identity was initially withheld partly because the body was in very bad
condition due to the collision. It was later identified as that of KGO-TV weather woman, Beverly Johnson. A story made the rounds that in fact the victim was not female and was in fact a male. This despite the fact that officials later on insisted the body was indeed that of a woman.
Nobody knows the origin of the rumor but it became chief media gossip and even today is well-known in and outside the KGO-TV newsroom.
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What kind of "post" is this? You fishing for rumors again?
ReplyDeleteFemale-Yes
ReplyDeleteDrunk-Yes
Heading home from a KGO party-yes
I remember this well. Beverly had a BIG smile and was always cheerful and smiling when giving the weather report. And she was a large framed (not fat) "woman". It was sad that her gender was revealed in such a shocking manner, but not really surprising for San Franciscans.
DeleteI remember the accident happened on 'Deadly Doyle Drive,' which was considered one of the most dangerous stretches of road in the bay area. Now that approach to the Golden Gate Bridge from the city is separated by a moveable barrier, preventing any head on wrecks. According to the reports, the car in which she was driving was moving at over 100 miles an hour! I'm not sure if anyone else was killed in the wreck, but it was a shock to hear this news.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope Miss Schertz wears her seatbelt.
ReplyDeletePutz, who cares??????
ReplyDeleteRich, are you trying to tell us that Beverly was possibly a guy?
ReplyDeleteDid you bother to READ what Rich wrote? If only there was a website where you could ask a question or type a name and get information. Obviously you are either young or not from here because this rumor spread well beyond the doors of KGO. If I remember correctly the one and only Alex Bennett mentioned it.
DeleteHey Rich, speaking of Bennett (I know what he's doing now thanks to my secret magic website) did you know him? If so, how about a funny story?
I was living in San Francisco back in 1985 and I remember reading a article in the paper when they contacted her mother and she said that she didn't have a daughter she had no idea that her son was living as a woman
DeleteYou are right I saw her mother AM San Francisco back in 1985 and she said that she didn't have a daughter but she had a son and when she received a call about her death she didn't know what they were talking about.
DeleteThe rumor was started by a very young man testing his chops and destined to have a media themed blog.
ReplyDeleteNot true!
DeleteI was watching channel 7 news that same evening. Van Amberg's kid was anchoring and blurted out the story, including her name. I felt bad for him. Obviously distressed with appropriate producer on hand.
ReplyDeleteIt was announced somewhere that her small convertible drove under the high deck of a truck. Pretty gory accident.
I recall hearing this rumor on KGO radio a year or two after the accident. KGO was the only radio station I listened to in those days. The story goes, IIRC, that Johnson's mother was telephoned about her daughter's death. She reportedly responded, she "doesn't have a daughter, only a son."
ReplyDeleteI am sure I remembered this correctly. I don't recall which show it was on.
Doesn't really make any difference now because it was so long ago, but the body in the
ReplyDeletecar was that of a male. I know members of the SFFD that responded to this tragic call. Protocol dictated that the victim's clothes should be cut off so the first responders could identify and treat all injuries.
So true,my dad was one of, if not the first on the scene!now called first responders!Bev was Ben!
DeleteI remember Beverly Johnson doing KGO weather reports on ch.7, she was a very attractive African-American Woman. Rumor has it that she was almost decapitated in the car accident on the GG Bridge....It was a very sad thing that happened to her, she could have been a rising star at the circle 7
ReplyDeleteYes I remember that was ��
ReplyDeleteAM San Francisco
ReplyDeleteI remember, it was sad then and it’s sad now.
ReplyDelete