Axel found out he had lung cancer on his 71st birthday. He fought a tenacious battle with the disease. A little over a week ago, he decided to forego further chemotherapy when his doctor said it would not help him. He died in hospice care in Florida.
"It was time. It was time," said one of his three sons, Jeff Axel.
Axel had a long and distinguished career at WAGA-TV. He was with the station from the turbulent 1960's well into the 1990's. He reported on a wide variety of stories both from the anchor desk and from overseas. Jim traveled to Washington when Jimmy Carter left the White House and then flew on to West Germany when Americans taken hostage by Iran were finally freed after 444 days in captivity.
James Frederick Axel was born on October 31, 1934 in Grand Haven, Michigan. He was named for his father, who came to America from Denmark and died while serving in the Coast Guard. Axel was just two years old when his father passed away. He and his sister Joan were raised by their mother, Violet. Axel was educated in Osseo, Minnesota, attending elementary and high school there. He enlisted in the Navy and later studied at the Brown Institute of Broadcasting and Electronics in Minneapolis.
Axel began his broadcast career in April of 1956 at KANO radio in Anoka, Minnesota where he scrubbed floors and eventually became an announcer. He worked at WCHK radio in Canton, Georgia from 1957 to 1959 where he was announcer and chief engineer. He was hired by WSB radio in Atlanta in 1959 and was quickly promoted to Night News Editor. He left WSB radio "to try television." Axel said he made the move because he felt like a one-legged man in a two-legged industry--broadcasting could be both words and pictures.
Axel came to WAGA-TV in Atlanta in April of 1962 and spent most of his television career here. He retired in December of 1996 and moved to Florida where he lived with his wife Millie. In an interview last summer, Axel credited his wife with helping him fight his cancer.
"I would hate to be where I am without her," he said at the time. "She's been wonderful. She makes sure the family gets through it. I can't tell you enough what it has meant to have her. She's supportive. She's demanding. She'll tell me what I need to have done whether I want to do it or not."
In the final months of his life, Axel accepted his fate, but remained upbeat and characteristically straightforward. He wanted more than anything to make sure his family was ready for his passing.
"We're all gonna die," he said last June. "I'm grateful that the cancer is giving me the opportunity to prepare."
Jim Axel is survived by his wife Millie, son Jeff and two other sons, Bob and Jason.
Plans for a memorial have not been announced.
Jim Axel
http://accesswdun.com/article/2009/11/224749