Reilly, before.

I think that's probably one of the reasons I stopped getting SI years ago. Those were always great reads.

Now, it seems the public has such short attention spans, they just want quick hitters and can't actually read something that's more than two or three pages.


It's kinda like when I was in Borders the other day. They had the Kindles (or whatever those electronic readers are called). I just thought to myself, what is so wrong with picking up the actual paper book. Do we have to read everything off of a computer type screen now?

 

A Kindle is better for the enviroment for one. It's a way to reduce your footprint.
I think there will be a point where schools give the kids kindles instead of text books

 

As long as people are reading, does it matter? They still have to pay to read it on the Kindle, right?

 

Is a Kindle really greener? Pages in a book decompose. The binding will decompose. We can - and are - replanting trees.

But will all the electronic and plastic parts of a Kindle decompose?

Just asking.

 

I remember chills going up and down my spine the first time I read the lede for the story about the ref who attempted suicide. Perfectly paced, perfectly described. I haven't had that feeling reading Reilly in a long time.

"On a refrigerated, colorless Saturday morning in the no-McDonald's town of Walnut, Ill., Kenny Wilcoxen walked along the street carrying the letter he had waited for his whole life, the one that meant that after 20 years he was finally going to ref the state high school football finals. On the other side of the letter, written neatly in blue ink, was his suicide note."

 

He certainly wouldn't be the only guy - especially at SI - who burned out a bit on those types of stories, or lost their fastball or however you phrase it. The Jenkins at the end of his time at SI was a far cry from the in-his-prime Jenkins. Deford, same thing. Mark Kram. Of Gary Smith's, say, 10 most famous pieces, I'd think few of them have come in the last five or six years. Of course, at least he's not doing beer pong pieces now.

 

Not only that, but people tend to hold on to books they buy (or sell them to a reseller).
They probably aren't ending up in a landfill.

Newspapers you tend to read once and put in the recycle bin. I have some books that I've read two or three times.

 

I told Reilly once that the Gumbel story was the story that made me want to be a sports writer. I think I was in junior high when I read that.

What he's become is so sad. He's the most successful sports writer ever (financially) and I kind of feel sorry for him. How ridiculous is that?

 

It's kind of like asking which Elvis you remember, or which Ali. Depends upon your age and frame of reference.

Thing is, you can't freeze time. Even the '27 Yankees couldn't remain the '27 Yankees forever.

 

That was and still is one of my favorite stories by Reilly or anyone else. Reilly was the best because he could hammer home a light-hearted piece one week and then drill you with something like this another.

 

The other thing I noticed - was that SI used to do some really great stuff with their art for their big features. Now, not so much.
I still remember the pictures for Deford's story on "the toughest football coach who ever lived" just a bunch of old football memorabilia, leather helmets, a stopwatch, some old pictures, a roster. Good stuff.

 

So it sounds like Reilly might have wanted to work more often and be more involved than a Gary Smith, but not immerse himself in the stories the way he had to for great features like the ones cited here. Plus, of course, make even more money and gain even more celebrity than he would have had sticking to the long-form stuff.

I totally understand the motives. Just too bad, the result.