George Skelton: The Dean of California’s Capitol Press Corps

Legendary Los Angeles Times columnist George Skelton shares a wealth of stories and perspectives from his six-plus decades of covering the key people and events that have shaped modern day California. From his early beginnings at UPI, Skelton’s career has taken him from Sacramento to Washington D.C. and around the world and back again. Since 1992, his twice-weekly column for the Times has been a must-read for anyone looking to know the skinny on what is happening with California’s movers and shakers. A three-part interview conducted by longtime Capitol reporter Rich Ehisen.

Part I.
From the Ojai Valley News to the Los Angeles Times. Skelton discusses the beginnings of his career as a reporter and the trajectory of his career up to and including covering Ronald Reagan in the White House.

Transcript for Part 1.

Part II.
Big personalities. Jerry Brown, B.T. Collins, Arnold Schwarzenegger and many more.

Transcript for Part II.

Part III.
The column. For nearly 30 years Skelton has opined regularly on any subject that catches his fancy, and many have, including vaccine mandates, political polarization and Pete Wilson.

Transcript for Part III.

Production of this oral history was supported by a grant from the California State Library.

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