( CNN ) There is an old saying among soldiers and correspondents who cover them that when two people drink from the same canteen in some desert , jungle or other war zone they have a bond for life . This came to me in the middle of the night last night as I failed to make sleep come hours after learning that my friend and long-time colleague Bob Simon had lost his life . Death took him in a car crash in New York City . Bob and I had drunk from the same canteen more than once during the 48 years we had known each other , 38 of those working together at CBS News . Once , in South Africa I think it was , we were talking over an adult beverage or two in the shank of an evening about dangerous assignments , a subject about which Bob was experienced and expert . With a piercing look and a hint of that slightly off-center smile he sometimes had , he said something along the lines of , `` More correspondents are injured getting out of the shower and more are killed in automobile accidents than probably anywhere else . '' The irony of that memory mixed with how death took him is painful and lingers . I 've been trying for a long while to come up with an adequate way to describe how devastating Bob 's loss is to those of us who knew him , to CBS News and to quality journalism . But words are failing me . They never failed Bob . He was one of the best writers ever to work in television journalism . He was a master of expressing so much with so few words , perfectly chosen and ordered . But Bob 's words were more than just pretty or evocative . They were not there to stand on their own ceremony . They were chosen to convey information , important information , and lots of it . Bob could and often did write like a poet , but his every fiber was that of a journalist . He was old school , in the style of Edward R. Murrow : notepad , shoe-leather , play no favorites , pull no punches and go where the action is . To look at Bob 's roll call of overseas postings is to see the embodiment of a foreign correspondent . From Vietnam to Northern Ireland to his specialty , the Middle East , Bob thrived on difficult and dangerous assignments . His bravery was matched only by his unwavering professionalism . And yet , even here Bob 's story is incomplete . He did n't just witness history , he strived to understand it . Yes , he was fearless when bullets were flying , but he also never blinked when staring down a despot or thug in an interview . He was always prepared . He knew when he was being lied to or toyed with , and rather than shirk from the challenge , he would embrace it and become more determined to expose the truth , or as close to the truth as possible . Bob was sophisticated , one of the few genuine `` scholar correspondents '' in television . He was extremely well read , urbane and poised . He also had a good sense of humor and sometimes was downright funny . There was no issue he could n't cover , no story he could n't tell . Television is of course a visual medium , but with a Bob Simon piece , if you closed your eyes and just listened , that was often enough . His words and his voice had that power . It was a privilege to know him , an honor to have worked with him . My deepest condolences go to his widow Francoise , and their beloved daughter , Tanya , herself a very accomplished journalist . I also mourn with the rest of the CBS News family . Bob was the very best of that network 's news traditions . He had unbounded curiosity and uncommon compassion . He searched out stories that he felt were important , and then brought them to light with an elegance and intuition that will be sorely missed everywhere that good journalism is valued . And within the `` 60 Minutes '' offices , his absence will be felt especially keenly : the twinkle in his eye , the joke , the story , just Bob being Bob , all of that gone in an instant . Now , only memories remain . That and the example he set . Godspeed my friend . May you continue to inspire those of us left behind . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Dan Rather .
` ` 60 Minutes '' ' : Simon died in a car accident 1980 . Dan Rather : He was one of the best writers ever to work in TV journalism .