Frank DeFord

[CentralIllinoisan]

OK, Frank DeFord is coming to Bradley University, and I, verily, was picked to attend the lecture. He's supposed to speak on a half-century of sports journalism, and I'm supposed to cover it.

I'd not read a single word of DeFord's before a few days ago. Any suggestions? My editor says he just wants the usual color of the crowd, jist of the speech, etc.

Bradley is playing, at home, in Game 2 of the CBI, so I'm tempted to use that as a parallel. I dunno.

Help out a journo brother.

 

[BYH]

Do some research on The National. He was the EIC. I wanted his job. The paper folded before I could even graduate HS. Should have taken the hint.

Also research his involvement with cystic fibrosis...his daughter died of it.

 

[spnited]

Please, CI, find out in advance if you can have a few minutes afterward to sit and talk with him. An absolutley brilliant and fascinating man...as well as one of the nicest human beings you'll ever meet.

And as BYH suggested, reasearch The National as well as his work at SI and his charitable work for CF

 

[PeteyPirate]

Ask him if his hairstyle was inspired by Pauly Walnuts, or was it the other way around.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

His Bob Knight piece called "The Rabbit Hunter" is one of his best...

His Anna Kournikova cover piece in SI may have been one of his most controversial. He and SI got shredded (mostly justifiably) after it ran. I'd be curious if he could tell you about the hate mail he got after that one...

He has an anthology out there that you could read in a few hours...

I've met him a couple times. I don't know if strange is the right word, but he's definitely very out there...

 

[PeteyPirate]

Also, ask him what the hell Bryant Gumbel is writing in his notepad when "Real Sports" transitions to the studio segments.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

Great guy.

My pet description of him is "charmingly naive".

You'll find out.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

Very nice guy. He's so nice it almost catches you off-guard...

 

[Bob Cook]

You also can go to NPR's web site and search for his weekly commentaries on Morning Edition.

Also, now that the SI archive is open, you can dive into everything he's done there. I recommend finding -- it's either from 1980 or 1981 -- his scene piece on the Indianapolis 500. It's hilarious.

 

[Joe Williams]

By all means, ask him about The National. And find out if his money man in Mexico is ready to give it another try, only on the Web this time. Then PM me.

 

[Joe Williams]

Also, when you introduce yourself to him, don't pronounce his last name with a capital "F." It's "Deford."

 

[Double Down]

Central:

Please visit SI.com/vault and give these three articles a read. They represent some of the best feature writing ever penned in Sports Illustrated.

1. The Rabbit Hunter

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1124147/index.htm

2. The Boxer and The Blond

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1119578/index.htm

3. The Toughest Coach There Ever Was

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1122011/index.htm

 

[dreunc1542]

I had the chance to talk to him earlier this year and he was so gracious to an aspiring journalist. I was nervous to talk to him because I've always admired his work, but he couldn't have been nicer.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

By all means, ask him about The National. And find out if his money man in Mexico is ready to give it another try, only on the Web this time. Then PM me.

If I'm not mistaken, the "money man" died several years ago...

 

[Mizzougrad96]

I've talked to several people who worked at The National who said the primary reason it failed is because Deford spent way too much money hiring people and traveling and doing all that before they had any subscriber base. They all love the guy, but basically said he had zero business sense.

 

[Cousin Jeffrey]

I think it's a great idea to use Bradley's run in the famed CBI as a launching point for the story. ... I'm just kidding, that makes no sense.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

Ads? We need ads?

 

[Steak Snabler]

Ask him what Billy Cannon thought about "Everybody's All-American."

(It was actually based on Charlie "Choo-choo" Justice, though the movie made it seem like it was based on Cannon).

Seriously, though, just ask him what he looks for in a great feature story, and go from there ...

 

[Double Down]

I've talked to several people who worked at The National who said the primary reason it failed is because Deford spent way too much money hiring people and traveling and doing all that before they had any subscriber base. They all love the guy, but basically said he had zero business sense.

It failed because the distribution system was flawed. And that the U.S. spans four time zones. Not because Deford spent too much on hiring and travel.

 

[expendable]

I've talked to several people who worked at The National who said the primary reason it failed is because Deford spent way too much money hiring people and traveling and doing all that before they had any subscriber base. They all love the guy, but basically said he had zero business sense.

It failed because the distribution system was flawed. And that the U.S. spans four time zones. Not because Deford spent too much on hiring and travel.

Damn, that Manifest Destiny. Damn it!!!!