Dave O'Hara, a Boston reporter that worked for the Associated Press for 50 years covering area sports and athletes, died on Wednesday at the age of 86.

According to the Associated Press, O'Hara died of cancer at his home in Florida at the age of 86, said his daughter. O'Hara covered many great athletes in Boston, including Larry Bird and Ted Williams and he started his career as a kid reporter and coy boy in Boston before moving up the ranks.

O'Hara covered many area stories, including the terrible fire that nearly killed 500 people at the Cocoanut Grove nightclub and he started off working in Boston before moving to cover the Green Bay Packers while being coached by Vinco Lombardi. He came back to Boston soon after and was the New England sports editor before retiring in 1992.

He worked many different events at Fenway Park and the Boston Garden and was a staple on the area sports scene for years. He also covered the Boston Marathon as well as the World Series, Red Sox training camp, Stanley Cup runs by the Bruins as well as college sports and other events.

"Dave was a no-nonsense sports writer who brought gusto and grit to his work for half a century. He was every bit the epitome of Boston sports as Williams, Orr, Russell, Auerbach and Bird," AP Sports Editor Terry Taylor said. "He gave readers a front-row view of their heroes and heartbreaks, equally at home in the press box or the clubhouse."