MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Les Smith, a longtime Memphis television reporter known for vivid, people-centered storytelling, died Wednesday at 75 following a recent hospitalization for suspected lung cancer, his family said.
Smith had recently returned from Belize “in bad shape physically” and, after spending a weekend with his sons and grandchildren, entered the hospital the following Tuesday, according to a Facebook post by his son Jason. Doctors drained fluid from his lungs and believed he likely had lung cancer, the post said.
Over a 13-year run at FOX13 before retiring in 2014, Smith filed more than 8,000 stories, earning a reputation for reporting that centered everyday Memphians and the city’s civic life. Earlier in his career, he worked as a sports journalist at WREG-TV and spent time at WMC-TV. He also served as an original co-panelist on WKNO’s “Behind the Headlines” and later contributed as a columnist to local media…