A magazine epitaph like no other – Cityview

I was 20 years old, between my junior and senior years of college, not much older than the students I was teaching at the college. I entered the Time & Life building for the first time and took the elevator to Building 20.^th Floor to start my summer internship sports illustrated. I was wearing a tan corduroy suit. (I bought a khaki suit at a store in a small college town, and it was raining that day, so I didn’t want to ruin it.)

At one end of the elevator bank, I saw a large photo of a memorable play in the 1971 World Series when the ball was behind the Orioles catcher and umpire. Reporter Roger Jackson strides over to shake my hand and lead me down the floor, past the offices of editors like Gil Rosin and Roy Terrell, and past the art department, where photography by Neil Leifer and others is displayed weekly. He showed me around. , Heinz Krutmeyer, Walter Eos Jr., Manny Millan, Knoxville’s Patrick Murphy-Lacey, and many others were edited in light boxes, shown to editors, and published in magazines.

The reporters sit mostly in the bullpen, guarded by octogenarian British receptionist Betty Marcus and reporter Marv Hyman, co-author of a biography of Joe Paterno, who bears a striking resemblance to his childhood friend Vince Lombardi. Worked under guidance. Roger showed me his office, which had four walls covered with smoked glass and sliding doors. He was down the hall from the bullpen, and he was next door to Dan Jenkins’ office. We didn’t meet that summer, but we met later when I was fact-checking his amazing story.his novel Semi-tough Since it had just been made into a movie, he received more attention than ever before.

Deputy Reporter Chrissy Wolford shows us how to fact-check a story. A kinder person has never walked the earth. After telling a nature story about a bear named Two-Toes, I checked out Daphne Harford’s profile of Conrad Doebler, headlined “The Meanest Man in the NFL.” Confirming Harford’s prose, I asked Dobler’s mother, “Was Conrad mean as a child?” She paused, and replied, “Well, he was kind of crazy.” Ta. Harford wrote that he and his sister “played Joan of Arc.” “Did Conrad play Joan of Arc with his sister?” I asked. Another short break. “Well, he set her on fire, if that’s what you mean.”

Yes, I knew I was the luckiest fool in this country. I got a spot in the American Society of Magazine Editors’ internship program and was selected by SI, probably because of my love for the Washington Redskins and the 1971 Washington Senators’ last season on my resume. Probably because it included my story about Frank Howard’s home run in that game. , ended in a riot. I loved all my coworkers right away. After my second day at work, I saw Tom Jones coming out of PJ Clarke’s. This is a must-have celebrity quote for newcomers to the Big Apple.

I bought a silver Schwinn Varsity bicycle and rode it to work and around Manhattan. He must have seen Son of Sam at the bank, especially the day after the 1977 blackout. He was ugly, nervous, and untidy. I was relieved when the New York Post ran the headline, “Caught!” When David Berkowitz was discovered and arrested. The dog in the apartment next door told him to kill it. I was asked to stay for a few more weeks at the end of the summer and miraculously got a job after graduation.

I still keep in touch with the friends I made during the 10 years I worked at SI. Of course, they are all saddened by the recent news that all remaining staff members are putting on their mittens and that this national institution, which began in 1954, will effectively cease to exist. The New York Post’s headline read, “The sport is dead.”

I’m always happy to talk about great moments from those days. Interviews with Bear Bryant, Jim Brown, and Paulina Porizkova. Don’t even get me started. But what I want to say here is that of all the positive interactions I’ve had with UT journalism students, people like Bob Brown, Jerry Kirshenbaum, Gil Rogin, Ken Rudeen, and Peter Carey, We hope to repay the kindness and inspiration of our editors. , Bob Creamer, Walt Bingham. As a fact checker, you stand over the shoulder of his Rogin-like elegant line editor (who actually used a blue pencil) and see how his already good copy gets even smoother and better. will be observed in real time. (A fact checker was present to ensure there were no editing errors.)

Also amazing to have worked with writers such as John Underwood, Frank Deford, Callie Kirkpatrick, Dan Jenkins, Gary Smith, Bill Knack, Ron Fimreit, John Papanek, Rick Telander, and many others. It was spot on. One day on my day off, I was in a glass-walled office. The only other person on the floor was legendary humorist Roy Blunt Jr., who was sitting in the office next to mine writing an article about Yogi Berra’s return as Yankees manager. He typed page after page into his typewriter, typed a few lines, then pulled the page out, crumpled it up, and threw it in the corner. This went on for hours.

By the end of the day, there was a three-foot-tall pile in the corner. The article that came out had a cover photo of a yogi’s back under the title “Yogi’s Back.” Every line was witty and brilliant, smooth and elegant. You’ll swear it’s inspired by the muse, perfected, and effortlessly done. Many collections have been created of the best sports stories of all time. But I know how hard Roy tried to make it look so easy.

Ralph Waldo Emerson writes about advance payment in his essay “Remuneration.” (The immortal Ohio State football coach, Woody Hayes, often quoted this quote in his pep talks to the Buckeyes, as he told me in a phone interview about the pep talk.) I know that.)

In 2009, while teaching sports writing at the University of Texas, I worked with Zach Ellis to help him land an internship at the same ASME. This, which rarely happens, led to a job after graduation. As Emerson taught us, every time we interact with a young person, we want to repay a debt that can never be repaid. yes, sports illustrated It was a world of its own – Camelot. new yorker A sports gift from every grandma to a teenager. Very 20^th Century, you might say more accurately. It started mainly with SI guys like Papanek, Steve Wolfe, and Roger Jackson. ESPN: The Magazinewhich itself worked fine.

people The Athletic They shake their heads and say, “How did he/she know this? And how is he/she able to write so well?” Sally Jenkins, Dan’s daughter is Pat Summitt’s biographer and writes great columns and articles for the Washington Post.

The world of sports writing continues, and the News Sentinel’s beat writers are better than anywhere else.In the old weekly magazine sports illustrated Now that our world is gone, I love getting together with old friends and reminiscing about those days. We’ll invite you out for a beer, pull the string on your back (to borrow the loquacious Kathy metaphor), and do our best to tell you the story of a unique magazine that’s gone with the wind.