Fifteen Years Ago Today...

The National folded.

 

I will always remember the National for two things.
One, the outstanding column done on Shelby Strother after his death.
Two, Yet another failed newspaper/wire service for Richard L. Shook to put on his resume

 

I remember I was living in Delaware and got the National every morning at around 10 a.m. at a store there until one morning, when the girl at the counter said they had gotten the last edition, and it was sold out by 7 a.m. because collectors bought every copy.

 

There was a great thread on here a while ago that traced where all the National folks had gone. Fascinating, mostly because it showed you just how much talent really was assembled there.

David Granger, Esquire's editor-in-chief, for one. He still talks about it fondly.

 

While prepping to move, I recently unearthed about 30 Nationals that I got from lord knows where. My wife remarked "What are those?" My reply: "The best thing that I have ever seen ..."

There is actually a National box still tethered to one of the area gas stations. I am very close to bolt-cuttering that sucker and taking it home with me.

rb

 

About nine years ago, I saw a Houston Post box sitting in front of a KMart store that was scheduled for demolition. I talked to the business reporter at my paper and asked him if he had any contacts with the new owner of the building. I called them, 'splained that there was a box from a long-defunct newspaper sitting on their sidewalk and asked if I could take it off their hands. It's now made four moves with us and is loaded with a bunch of papers I'm saving. Wife was skeptical at first, but she kinda likes it now.

If there's any way you can get the Nationals box, go for it.

 

I thought that was when Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play.

I could be off by five years or so, though.

 

Doesn't matter how good the product is if you can't distribute it.

 

I saved everyone I ever bought, so I have a good number of them.
I have the final one and I had Van McKenzie sign it as well as another couple of staffers.
Gotta get it framed someday.
Still ahead of its time.
Baseball boxes were so cool.
I still miss it.

 

If it was such a good paper, why did it fold?

 

what did the baseball boxes have that were so cool?

 

I can't even estimate the number of fond memories I have for The National.

I still have, somewhere at my parents house--unless Mom chucked 'em, in which case I cut all ties--the first and last editions of The National (the first one had Patrick Ewing on the cover and a teaser about Darryl Strawberry saying he wasn't going to re-sign with the Mets) and the paper from the day after Hank Gathers died. I bought a bunch of them that night and gave a couple to buddies.

What a fantastic experience that paper was, every single day. I'd buy it and we'd pore over it at the lunch table. I'd do the crossword during history class 7th period (usually got caught). I remember the final edition: We were in the last week of school senior year and it felt kind of appropriate...the bunch of us reading the last edition of The National during our last week in high school.

Really made my career goal in the yearbook seem obsolete: To edit The National.

A wonderful idea that was done in first by distribution and is now rendered obsolete by the Internet. Tell kids these days there used to be an all-sports newspaper and they'll just shrug and say why.

You had to be there. Glad I was.