Jean Rather, a visual artist and the wife of journalist Dan Rather for 67 years, died Tuesday from cancer, her family announced. She was 89.
“Jean was a steadfast advisor and rock of true Texas grit during every storm. She was also the kind of wife who could meet presidents, kings and queens, draft dodgers, criminals, and corporate suits every day with equal ease and a stunning smile,” the family wrote in their obituary, posted on Facebook.
Born in Smithville, Texas, in 1935, Jean Rather started in radio, according to her family, but became a painter and collage maker.
“She attended art classes at American University and Mary Mount Manhattan College.