More from the Do-Gooder File
“For much of his career, he could outthink, out-hustle, out-report, outeat, outdrink and outwork any other journalist in the country. But if his excesses were occasionally unbridled, they were driven by his passion to get a good story and root out the bad guys. ... He could get excited about an investigation of public corruption or a bizarre animal story. We once spent weeks following a story about a dog on ‘death row’ that Bob believed was ‘innocent.’”
—Howard Schneider, former Newsday editor, on the death yesterday of Bob Greene, larger-than-life investigative reporter, editor and Pulitzer winner, April 10, 2008 (see Newsday obit.)
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Sorry, but some guys just aren’t supposed to die and Bob Greene was one of them. Mike Royko, Jimmy Breslin, Bob Greene, William Lawrence—these were the transitional guys, carry-overs from the day when big-city newspapers ruled the earth. I know Breslin is still at it, and with any luck will indeed live forever. The rest are gone, and with them goes precisely what Howard Schneider was speaking of when he described Bob Greene’s work habits. These guys were larger than life, and worked harder than you could possibly imagine. No blow-dried hair, sensitive interpretations or thumb-sucking musing on family affairs for these columnists and reporters. These guys hit the streets, talked with the cab drivers and trash collectors and shop keepers who were witnesses to the passing parade. And by God, they got the story.
ReplyDeleteHats off to you gentlemen. You’re gone, just when we need you more than ever.
Cheers,
Dan