Television journalism has lost one of its pioneers. Former "60 Minutes" executive editor Phil Scheffler died Thursday at the age of 85.

For a quarter century, his steady hand and integrity guided the story-telling you saw each Sunday on "60 Minutes." Scheffler was the trusted right-hand man of the program's creator, Don Hewitt.

Phil Scheffler CBS News

Scheffler started at CBS in 1951 as a copy boy, when Doug Edwards anchored our evening broadcast. His jobs included printing cue cards, in the days before teleprompters.

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He later became the program's first street reporter. His first assignment was asking folks whether General Eisenhower should run for president.

After getting the news of his death, "60 Minutes" executive producer Jeff Fager called Scheffler "a first class journalist" and "an admirable human being."