Kansas broadcasting legend Bill Kurtis (William Horton Kureticha), will officially sign off for teh final time as an anchor on Chicago’s WBBM-TV on Thursday.

Kurtis, 72, and long-time co-anchor Walter Jacobson will be calling it quits at the CBS affiliate.

“I think we’ve benefited more than CBS,” Kurtis told Time Out Chicago‘s Robert Feder in a story on TV Spy. “What fun to relive the best years of your life. Walter and I started co-anchoring in 1973. I was 33. He was 36 or 37, I think. Now we’re over 70.”

At 16, Kurtis began working as an announcer for KIND-AM, a commercial station in Independence, KS, of which he is currently a part owner. He graduated from The University of Kansas with a B.S. in journalism in 1962 and went on to earn his J.D. from the Washburn University School of Law in 1966.

He is also the current host of A&E crime and news documentary shows, including Investigative Reports, American Justice, and Cold Case Files. Previously, he anchored CBS Morning News.

Kurtis has received numerous awards for his television work, including over twenty Emmys and the Illinois Broadcasters Association 1998 Hall of Fame Award and the Kansas Association of Broadcasters 2003 Hall of Fame Award.

He is also famous for narrating the Will Ferrell satirical comedy “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy” and is with Ferrell (below). He was also featured in several AT&T Mobility commercials that poked fun at his serious investigative journalist persona.

Kurtis plans to remain busy, though. He will continue his work with his production company, Kurtis Productions which produces the series “American Greed” for CNBC.

He is also chairman and founder of the Tallgrass Beef Company in Kansas, which markets itself as an environmentally friendly and healthier alternative to any other grass-fed beef on the market. He owns

Kurtis had purchased about 8,000 acres of land in Chautauqua County since the late 1990s and become a proponent of the health and environmental benefits of grass-fed beef. He also purchased several turn-of-the-20th-century buildings on main street in Sedan.

Last year he announced that he was selling 3,600 acres on the north end of his ranch.