B.J. Sams, former news anchor at Little Rock television station KTHV, has donated his collection of papers to the University of Central Arkansas Archives.
The collection contains the work of his career as a radio broadcaster and television journalist. This includes selected interviews, professional and personal correspondence, and photographs.
“B.J. Sams’ collection is a treasure trove of materials that covers his 56 years in radio and television broadcasting,” said Jimmy Bryant, director of Archives & Special Collections at UCA. “His collection contains a vast number of photographs that document radio and television methods and technology over five decades.”
Included in his collection are letters from members of Congress, correspondence from fans and video tapes that will be transferred to DVDs.
“The B.J. Sams Collection is a very important part of Arkansas television history, where Sams spent 34 years broadcasting the news,” Bryant said. “It is an honor for the UCA Archives to house his collection.”
Sams retired in July 2009 after 56 years in radio and television broadcasting. He worked for KATV for seven years. He was a news anchor with KTHV for 27 years.
Sams was contacted by Bryant about donating his papers.
“I didn’t think I had enough to start a collection, but he talked me into it,” Sams said. “It is quite an honor. I am kind of overwhelmed by it all. I am very pleased about it and honored.”
Among the collection are news articles about the tragic death of his son in 1973 during an airplane ride in Honolulu. Shortly after takeoff from Honolulu Airport, the plane crashed and exploded into flames. Sams was the only survivor.
“It was a big factor in how I’m living the rest of my life,” he said.
Sams career began in 1953 as a disc jockey and janitor at WBEJ radio in Elizabethton, Tenn., making 75 cents an hour. He was known as “BJ the DJ.” He graduated from the University of Tennessee with a degree in industrial management.
Following graduation, Sams was drafted into the Army. He took basic training at Fort Hood alongside Elvis Presley. Sams was broadcast specialist for two years while in the military. He returned to radio after being discharged from the Army in 1964.
His first television job was at KTVE in Monroe, La., where he was a weatherman and sports director. In 1966, Sams came to Little Rock and became a news anchor for KATV. He moved to Hawaii in 1973 and anchored the news for nine year in the islands. In 1982, he returned to Little Rock and spent 27 years anchoring the news for Today’s THV.
KTHV named its station’s studio in honor of Sams in observance of his 50th year in broadcasting. In November 2007, he was inducted into the Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame joining famous celebrities such as Glenn Campbell and Johnny Cash. In 2008, Sams was inducted into the Gold Circle of the National Association of Television Arts and Sciences during the Emmy Awards in St. Louis.
Since retiring, Sams has traveled across the state sharing his testimony about what God has done in his life, surviving the plane crash, and losing his son.
“I tell them that through God’s help, I have been able to make it,” Sams said. “No matter what is happening to them, they can also make it.”
Sams hopes those who will examine the collection will walk away with a sense of his professionalism and dedication to his work.
“I would want them to think that I was a person who cared for them and Arkansas,” he added.
