40 things to know about Frank Billingsley

HOUSTON – KPRC 2 chief meteorologist Frank Billingsley celebrated 40 years of broadcasting on Sept. 22, 2022.

Here are 40 things you might have never known about Frank and be sure to go to the bottom of the article for a number of photos of Frank through the years.

Share your well-wishes for Frank here!

1. His favorite Christmas song is “O Holy Night” by Josh Groban. When sung by a great talent, he finds the experience of the song to be spiritual.
2. He beat prostate cancer after an eight-month long battle. He participated in a trial where gold nanoparticles were injected into his body to fight the cells, and allowed KPRC 2 to follow the journey.
3. He was honored with an Admiral’s Commission in the Texas Navy
4. He recently listed his second home for sale, a Victorian-style two-story structure located in Galveston.
5. He is a part of the LGBTQ+ community.
6. Frank has been with Kevin Gilliard since 1995.
7. Frank married his partner a year after gay marriage was legalized in New York in 2012. They married on 12/12/12. They picked that date so Frank could remember it. KPRC reported the wedding on-air, showing photos of the grooms.
8. Frank and Kevin have a son, Morgan.
9. The couple have two dogs named Ocean and Breeze, both schnauzers.
10. Frank was adopted.
11. He chose to use DNA testing to find his long-lost family.
12. He wrote a book about his journey to finding his family entitled “Swabbed & Found: An Adopted Man’s Journey to Discover His Family Tree.”
13. He has received the Best Weathercaster award from the Associated Press seven times.
14. He was named “Ultimate Weatherman” by the Houston Chronicle.
15. He joined KPRC 2 in February 1995 as chief meteorologist, which means 27 of his 40 years in broadcasting were spent here.
16. Frank has blue eyes.
17. Frank was born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1960.
18. Frank was raised in Mountain Brook, Alabama.
19. Frank and Kevin built their Houston home in 1997.
20. Houston has been home for Frank since April 22, 1989.
21. One of Frank’s favorite quotes is “Attitude is everything,” a saying of his mother, Pat Billingsley.
22. Frank began as a television meteorologist in 1982 in Roanoke, Virginia.
23. Frank worked in Biloxi in 1987, and landed in Houston in 1989.
24. This is Frank’s advice for aspiring journalists: “Don’t overthink your future because none of us knows how long it will last or where it will take us. Simply follow your passion and be a person others can count on.”
25. Frank and several of his current and past co-workers have anchor “TV dinners.”
26. Among his many experiences covering Southeast Texas weather, Frank spent six hours in a chopper flying over Galveston after Hurricane Ike.
27. He came out to his parents in his 20s. Frank told Houston’s Out Smart magazine, “I was busy being the best all-round boy,” he says. “Being gay was an added element, for sure. People who don’t understand that being gay is biological, and not a choice, sometimes turn to parenting as the explanation. I didn’t want my parents to go through that. I think that’s why I didn’t come out to them until I was 27 years old.”
28. Frank has a KPRC 2 app named after himself. You can download it here.
29. Frank regularly keeps a blog on Click2Houston.com. You can sign up for his Weather or Not newsletter here.
30. Frank is a Washington and Lee University graduate.
31. Frank received his Broadcast Meteorology Certification from Mississippi State University.
32. Frank holds the seals of approval from both the American Meteorological Society and the National Weather Association.
33. Many viewers recall Radar the Weather Dog with Frank from 2003 to 2006. Radar retired and then died in 2016. Throughout Frank’s life, his dogs have included Buster, Buff, Smokey, Rock, Hudson, and River-- one beagle, two spaniels and several schnauzers (including his current two).
34. Frank has said Hurricane Harvey was the most significant storm of his career. Watch his full reflection on the storm, its impact and lessons in this video.
35. Frank is a fan of Wordle.
36. Frank loves space, eclipses and weather phenomena. He regularly posts about them on his KPRC 2 Facebook page.
37. Frank continues to maintain strong friendships with his former co-anchors Dominique Sachse and Bill Balleza.
38. Frank has his own website here.
39. Frank is an advocate for good in the community. He is know for his activism and volunteerism with organizations like The Diana Foundation and Habitat for Humanity.
40. Frank is really a great guy. Get to know him every day a little more on KPRC 2!