(CBS News Correspondent, 60 MINUTES)

"The most felicitous nonfiction writer in television" is how Time magazine once described Andy Rooney, the CBS News correspondent, writer and producer, who has won the Writers Guild Award for Best Script of the Year six times, more than any other writer in the history of the medium.

The 2002-03 season marks Rooney's 25th on 60 MINUTES. His unique reports, "A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney," became a regular feature in September 1978. He won Emmy Awards for these essays in 1979, 1981 and 1982. On May 19, 2002 he presented his 800th segment on the broadcast. In May 1996, he made headlines when he strayed from his usual "few minutes" to do a longer piece on assisted-suicide advocate Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who had insisted that he would talk to 60 MINUTES only if Rooney conducted the interview.

In addition to his contributions to 60 MINUTES, Rooney wrote, produced and narrated a series of broadcasts for CBS News on various aspects of America and American life, including "Mr. Rooney Goes to Washington," for which he won a Peabody Award, "Andy Rooney Takes Off," "Mr. Rooney Goes to Work" and "Mr. Rooney Goes to Dinner."

Rooney wrote the first example of what has become his specialty, the television essay--a personal format illuminating subjects most people take for granted--with "An Essay on Doors" in 1964.

From 1962 to 1968, he collaborated with the late CBS News Correspondent Harry Reasoner--Rooney writing and producing, Reasoner narrating--on such notable CBS News specials as "An Essay on Bridges" (1965), "An Essay on Hotels" (1966), "An Essay on Women" (1967), "An Essay on Chairs" (1968) and "The Strange Case of the English Language" (1968). "An Essay on War" (1971) won Rooney his third Writers Guild Award. In 1968, he wrote two CBS News specials in the series "Of Black America." His script for "Black History: Lost, Stolen or Strayed" won him his first Emmy Award.

He wrote for "The Garry Moore Show" (1959-65) and for Arthur Godfrey (1949-55), both on CBS. He also wrote for such CBS News public affairs broadcasts as "The Twentieth Century," "News of America," "Adventure," "Calendar" and "The Morning Show with Will Rogers Jr."

Rooney is the author of 12 books: Air Gunner; The Story of the Stars and Stripes; Conquerors' Peace; The Fortunes of War; A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney; And More by Andy Rooney; Pieces of My Mind; Word for Word; Not That You Asked...; Sweet and Sour; My War; and Sincerely, Andy Rooney. The Story of the Stars and Stripes, which he wrote after three years as a correspondent for Stars and Stripes in the European Theater during World War II, was purchased by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He worked as a writer at MGM on that and other projects.

In addition to his work as a CBS News correspondent, Rooney writes a column two days a week for Tribune Media Services, which appears in 200 newspapers across the nation. He has also contributed articles to Esquire, Life, Look, Reader's Digest, Harper's, Playboy, Saturday Review and other magazines.

Rooney was born Jan. 14, 1919, in Albany, N.Y. He attended Colgate University until he was drafted into the Army in 1941. In February 1943, he was one of six correspondents who flew with the Eighth Air Force on the first American bombing raid over Germany.

Rooney and his wife, Marguerite, live in Rowayton, Conn. They have four children.