James N. Kimball

James N. Kimball was best known for his one-man show portraying and sharing the life of his famous great-granduncle, J. Golden Kimball. Jim devoted years to collecting stories about Golden. Some of hose stories were shared in Kimball’s one-man KUED broadcast, "Remembering Uncle Golden," and in the book J. Golden Kimball Stories.

“I’ve found that most Mormons have a Golden Kimball story tucked away in their minds.” . . . "I've always gotten a kick out of hearing them. So, 15 years ago, I wrote an article called ‘Remembering Uncle Golden.’ People wanted to know all about him, so I would read the article at gatherings and answer questions. After my talk, people would come up and tell me even more J. Golden stories. The theatrical performance I do grew out of that.”[1]

Jim performed his show around 200 times. He headlined a fundraiser for KUED, which made more than $30,000 for the station.

Jim was born on October 27, 1934, on a ranch in LaVerkin, Utah. He was educated at the University of Utah and held both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees (in political science and American history, respectively). He taught those subjects at various schools and universities. He also published a number of articles relating to his foreign travels, media relations, business experiences, and humanitarian work. He served as the travel editor for Utah Holiday Magazine and wrote a weekly travel column for the Deseret News. Dialogue gave him a Distinguished Literary Award for nonfiction writing. He also worked in businesses such as Ivory & Company, the Boyer Company, and Huntsman Chemical Corporation in Salt Lake City.

He served as a full-time mission in Australia for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Kimball and his wife, Joan Capener Kimball, were the parents of three children. He passed away on May 16, 2004.