Bob Hallmark
Longview Bureau Chief
East Texas
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Bob Hallmark is a longtime reporter for KLTV 7. He grew up in Aldine, a south Texas town. At age 18, he joined the U.S. Navy. He later attended Chapman University in Orange, California.
Before moving to the Tyler-Longview area, Bob worked for Major League Baseball as network director of the Houston Astros Baseball Team. He was also network producer for Houston's International Hockey League, the Houston Aeros Hockey Team. Bob has also worked for radio/television stations in Boise, Idaho.
Bob is married to Norma Hallmark and has two sons: Jacob and Luke. Bob loves the outdoors. He owns a small farm in Hawkins where he raises livestock, including horses. He also does a little farming.
Education
Updated: Jun. 23, 2022 at 6:57 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
13 East Texas counties have issued burn bans. The Texas Forest Service continues to list East Texas in the 'moderate range' for fire danger.
Updated: Jun. 10, 2022 at 6:39 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
In the wake of tragedies like the Uvalde school shooting, an East Texas police chief gave a timely presentation on active shooter response plans.
Updated: Jun. 5, 2022 at 5:11 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Audrey and Travis Shipp, who were married in the 1950s, celebrated their 70th anniversary Sunday. It was a marriage that almost didn’t happen and had a fortunate twist when it did.
Updated: Jun. 4, 2022 at 6:35 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
As more East Texans seek discount areas for their strained food budgets, the supply chain may create an even more challenging situation.
Updated: May. 22, 2022 at 6:09 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
The thunderous sound of iron horses was heard in East Texas today as part of an annual motorcycle trek of healing that culminates at the Vietnam Memorial Wall in the nation’s capital.
Updated: May. 15, 2022 at 1:09 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Gunshots rattled Kilgore neighborhood leaving one dead
Updated: May. 13, 2022 at 10:54 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
East Texans who lost homes and property due to previous tornadoes and storms can get assistance in recovery and rebuilding through a current loan process.
Updated: May. 8, 2022 at 6:19 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
There’s only one “first” in anything … first president of the United States, the first man on the moon. Now, an East Texas town has elected its first female mayor.
Updated: May. 8, 2022 at 6:03 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Is a world food shortage looming in the future? Though the USDA says there is no food shortage problem yet, with numerous variables in play, market analysts say it is a possibility.
Updated: May. 7, 2022 at 5:39 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
The heat is on! As we move into the late spring and early summer months, game wardens on East Texas waterways are already warning about heat danger.
Updated: May. 6, 2022 at 9:03 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
While the weather has cleared out Friday, people at the Whispering Pines RV park in Rusk County are cleaning up after damage caused by storms Thursday.
Updated: Apr. 17, 2022 at 3:44 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark and KLTV Digital Media Staff
The shooting occurred during a trail ride event in Cason in the 10 o' clock hour on Saturday night.
Updated: Mar. 30, 2022 at 11:06 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Gregg County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Craig Harrington discusses the latest on the case in this webxtra.
Updated: Mar. 30, 2022 at 8:22 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Longview Police are searching for a suspect in connection to a double homicide that happened on Fisher Street in Longview.
Updated: Mar. 23, 2022 at 1:04 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark and Christian Terry
The tornado cut a six mile path of damage near the Elysian Fields area, according to the Harrison County Fire Marshal. However, despite the large amount of tree damage, no homes received any damage.
Updated: Mar. 18, 2022 at 8:24 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Many East Texas cities continue to feel the lasting effects of last year’s snowstorm, particularly in their infrastructure. Gladewater is one of those cities, and officials are now taking steps to renovate the city’s aging water treatment facility.
Updated: Mar. 5, 2022 at 6:55 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
Residents in one East Texas city are being offered bottled water after a city water main break caused a boil water notice.
Updated: Jan. 22, 2022 at 3:46 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
Achieving the American Dream is the subject that a foreign journalist has come to East Texas to write a book about.
Updated: Jan. 5, 2022 at 6:49 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
East Texas farmers, who suffered losses during the tumultuous weather year of 2021, have a chance to recover some of their losses through a government loan program.
Updated: Dec. 30, 2021 at 7:57 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark and Christian Terry
East Texas fireworks vendors are hoping sales will materialize as people look to celebrate New Years Eve.
Updated: Dec. 24, 2021 at 3:11 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
In what has become a quirky tradition for the holidays, a Longview homeowner has been entertaining visitors with an unusual display of stuffed exotic animals that are decorated for Christmas.
Updated: Dec. 8, 2021 at 7:32 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
Texas Lottery director of media relations Lauren Callahan talks on how gifting to children can create a real problem.
Updated: Nov. 10, 2021 at 11:49 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
Nine out of ten wildfires in Texas are caused by humans, TFS says
Updated: Nov. 7, 2021 at 4:51 PM CST
|By Bob Hallmark
Dealing with animal dumping has become a disturbing, reoccurring problem for one East Texas County.
Updated: Nov. 6, 2021 at 6:53 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
An East Texas man receives a huge celebration for his 100th birthday by a thankful community.
Updated: Oct. 31, 2021 at 5:26 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
An East Texas Army veteran is overcoming obstacles, proving the military motto “overcome and adapt.”
Updated: Oct. 17, 2021 at 3:55 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Hunters are making last-minute preparations for the start of the traditional Texas deer hunting season, which starts the first weekend in November.
Updated: Oct. 9, 2021 at 6:35 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A group of East Texans have been nominated to join an elite group intended to inspire people, in of all things, a 'photo-op'. It's a calendar that will feature East Texans who've overcome adversity and went on to be healthy and fit after 60.
Updated: Oct. 2, 2021 at 5:30 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A huge outpouring of community support for 2 East Texas law enforcement officers stricken and deeply effected by Covid-19.
Updated: Sep. 22, 2021 at 9:44 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
27th annual Angel Network golf tournament and concert
Updated: Aug. 14, 2021 at 6:49 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
An East Texas gym is a throwback to the old days when boxers trained in dark confines with no air-conditioning, and became tougher for it. With only a fan to ease the heat, kids and adults choose to train in Spartan conditions in Longview.
Updated: Aug. 7, 2021 at 10:49 AM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark and Gary Bass
Three firefighters suffered minor injuries, and two businesses after a fire broke out at a strip shopping center on Longview’s High Street early Saturday morning.
Updated: Aug. 6, 2021 at 10:53 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Jails have been hit hard over the past year with the pandemic; the Gregg County Sheriff’s office has devised a new way to help with the fight against covid-19 in the jail. The Gregg County Sheriff’s Office has a new method of processing inmates in the midst of COVID.
Updated: Jul. 25, 2021 at 7:07 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A few tips are still coming in on the case of a missing East Texas woman who vanished 21-months ago. Rosemary Rodriguez was driving in the Kilgore area in the fall of 2018, and that's the last time she was seen.
Updated: Jul. 16, 2021 at 9:51 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
New details in on the investigation into East Texas petroleum thefts. Investigators with the Gregg county sheriff's office now know 'how' and 'why' it was done. In a continuing investigation, Gregg county sheriff's officers along with other law enforcement are looking into the scope of the organized theft of petroleum products from East Texas locations.
Updated: Jul. 10, 2021 at 12:06 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A man died in a riding lawn mower accident that occurred in Liberty City, according to the Gregg County Sheriff’s Office.
Updated: May. 21, 2021 at 3:14 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Bob Hallmark spoke with Glenn Parker of Richard Parker Plumbing about the three months spent repairing thousands of feet of pipe.
Updated: May. 20, 2021 at 8:30 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
Heavy rain that continues to swell the Sabine river out of it's banks is a particular concern for some East Texans who live along it's edges. They call it 'the bottoms', land where homeowners live near the low-land parts of the river.
Updated: May. 16, 2021 at 8:21 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
An East Texas sheriff has to release more than a dozen people suspected of being in the country illegally, after being advised that they can't be charged with any crime. Last month, a traffic stop on I-30 near Mount Vernon resulted in finding eighteen Guatemalan immigrants jammed into an SUV.
Updated: May. 8, 2021 at 6:14 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
As the moderate temperatures of Spring give way to Summer, an East Texas rescue mission prepares for it's busiest time of year. The Summer heat means the homeless will look for a place of refuge, such as the 'Hiway 80 Rescue Mission' in Longview.
Updated: May. 5, 2021 at 9:51 PM CDT
|By KLTV Digital Media Staff and Bob Hallmark
The long road to recovery for one East Texas deputy, once in a coma with 'Covid-19', is not over yet. Gregg county sheriff's 'corporal James Hagler', was released from the hospital last month, but his struggle to recover continues.
Updated: Apr. 28, 2021 at 4:52 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
The search is over for a person sought in connection with an East Texas hostage situation. Around 9:40 this morning, Gregg county deputies were called to a house north of Judson on 'Lonesome Pine road.'
Updated: Apr. 21, 2021 at 7:33 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
“They actually landed the aircraft at Templehoff in Berlin and unloaded hundreds of aircraft daily with all the essential survival needs of the people,” said organizer and director of Flight of the Phoenix Air Museum, Steve Dean.
Updated: Apr. 19, 2021 at 9:04 AM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A successful opening weekend for an East Texas renaissance festival. 'Avalon Faire' in Kilgore off of FM 1252, had good crowds on it's opening weekend. The festival features music, acrobats , and of course the crowd favorite, jousting tournament.
Updated: Apr. 18, 2021 at 8:01 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
2020 and the pandemic wiped out most sports tournaments, but a very important one is back in East Texas, the 'Golden Gloves'. Amateur boxers train all year for a shot at a gold gloves title.
Updated: Apr. 15, 2021 at 3:34 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
After months in the hospital fighting Covid-19, an East Texas sheriff's deputy is back home. We first told you about Gregg county corporal James Hagler on new year's day. It was a day Shalon Hagler had been waiting months for. Her husband coming home.
Updated: Apr. 10, 2021 at 6:08 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
In April 2006, the bludgeoned body of a woman was found dumped in the road near an East Texas interstate. Since then, no clues as to what happened to 'Norma Martinez-Cooper' have ever been found. Now the family is asking for someone, somewhere to help them solve the mystery of her death.
Updated: Apr. 9, 2021 at 7:16 PM CDT
|By KLTV Digital Media Staff and Bob Hallmark
A late night fire in one East Texas city displaces a family of 5 and destroys everything they have. Just after 10 Wednesday night, Marshall fire units were called to a fire in the 1-thousand block of East Austin street.
Updated: Apr. 7, 2021 at 4:31 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
A combination of factors is driving up the sale of firearms in East Texas. Talk from some lawmakers about more 'gun control measure', and even 'stimulus checks', have gun shops doing great business.
Updated: Mar. 31, 2021 at 10:25 PM CDT
|By Bob Hallmark
An East Texas business, that started almost by accident, turned out to be a blessing to many who struggled during the pandemic. Driving through Gladewater, you come upon a curious sign for 'Sasquatch's Trading Post' on highway 80.