Loved the tribute. Thanks to Peter V. for the great read and trip back in time. He makes those Daily News days zing like something out of The Front Page, and this already was the '60s and '70s. Wow.
It goes without saying that appreciation of old-school types, and the mentoring that went on from one generation to the next in this business long before anyone thought to call it mentoring, is getting lost in our era of buyouts, layoffs and reassignments-as-nudges out the door. The whole learn-from-elders, pass-it-on-to-youngsters tradition started taking a beating when the 18-to-34-year-old demographic became king, editors decided they had to fast-track many still learning into prominent roles (funny how they never hand over their jobs, though) and entry-level salaries became the only kind beancounters possibly can tolerate. I was one of those "Here I come, get outta my way" guys too, but the system in the past, fortunately, had more brakes on that approach. I believe my work and I are better off for it.
This business often has ended poorly for lots of its practitioners, a sour cherry on top of a career of modest pay, crazy hours and constant humbling (pray to God that the naked jackass will answer a few questions about the curveball he hit over a wall two hours ago). Those who beat the odds, congrats. Those who accept a possibly dreary end-game but love this all anyway, good for you. Just so we all keep our eyes wide open to what it is, more than ever.
