RIP, Larry Whiteside

[Full of Shit]

Was privileged to work with Sides for a few years in the '80s. A nicer man you would never meet. Nor a funnier one.

I didn't hear this story until long after I had left the Globe, so I never got a chance to ask him if it was true. Perhaps other SportsJournalists.commers might know.

Sides and George Kimball of the Herald are seated together on a plane sometime in the '70s. Kimball gets up to go to the restroom and somehow manages to get hold of the microphone the stewardesses use to make announcements. There's no stewardess around, so he decides to play a joke on Sides.

In a very professional voice, he says over the cabin intercom something like this: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. We hope you're enjoying the flight. We do not wish to alrm you, but there is something we feel you need to know. Again, we do not wish to alarm you, and there is no danger, BUT THERE IS A NEGRO ON THE PLANE. REPEAT, THERE IS A NEGRO ON THE PLANE. We hope you enjoy the rest of your flight."

I still have to make sure I'm not trying to drink something when I think about that story. If someone tried a stunt like that today, they'd probably take him straight to Guantanamo. No passing Go, no collecting $200 . . .

Whatever, Sides was one of the best. It's sad how many people from that '80s-era Globe are no longer with us -- Ray Fitzgerald, Bob Monaghan, John Ahern, Barry Cadigan, Joe Concannon, Steve Rice, **** Lisherness, Walter Haynes. Apologies if I've missed anyone else.

 

[Chi City 81]

If this has been posted before, I apologize:

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the National Association of Black Journalists scholarship fund on behalf of Larry Whiteside and the NABJ Sports Task Force. NABJ 8701-A Adelphi Road, Adelphi, Md., 20783-1716.

 

[Woo Woo]

great guy. True pro.

 

[boots]

great guy. True pro.

Have a great anecdote on an outstanding gentleman.
Year's ago, Big Daddy Reuschel had pitched a gem of a game, a two hitter. and Big Daddy never gave answers to questions. It was always, yes, no and uh huh. Well this young whipper snapper was pissed at his answers and walked away from one of Big Daddy's sessions not knowing what to write.
Larry said "boots, Big Daddy is the worst interview in baseball history." Then Larry told me an angle to take on the story that wound up being one of my best game stories.
Even Big Daddy read and complimented me on it, which totally shocked me.
RIP Mr. Larry Whiteside. The game misses you already.

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

great guy. True pro.

Have a great anecdote on an outstanding gentleman.
Year's ago, Big Daddy Reuschel had pitched a gem of a game, a two hitter. and Big Daddy never gave answers to questions. It was always, yes, no and uh huh. Well this young whipper snapper was pissed at his answers and walked away from one of Big Daddy's sessions not knowing what to write.
Larry said "boots, Big Daddy is the worst interview in baseball history." Then Larry told me an angle to take on the story that wound up being one of my best game stories.
Even Big Daddy read and complimented me on it, which totally shocked me.
RIP Mr. Larry Whiteside. The game misses you already.

Boy, what a backdoor way of getting a lede.
(C'mon, you ALL werethinking it.)

 

[Frank_Ridgeway]

I wish Full of **** -- who is anything but, BTW -- would post more often. He has so many great stories.

 

[boots]

great guy. True pro.

Have a great anecdote on an outstanding gentleman.
Year's ago, Big Daddy Reuschel had pitched a gem of a game, a two hitter. and Big Daddy never gave answers to questions. It was always, yes, no and uh huh. Well this young whipper snapper was pissed at his answers and walked away from one of Big Daddy's sessions not knowing what to write.
Larry said "boots, Big Daddy is the worst interview in baseball history." Then Larry told me an angle to take on the story that wound up being one of my best game stories.
Even Big Daddy read and complimented me on it, which totally shocked me.
RIP Mr. Larry Whiteside. The game misses you already.

Boy, what a backdoor way of getting a lede.
(C'mon, you ALL werethinking it.)

Dude, I'm going to be nice. Mr. Larry Whiteside was a gentleman and friend. I don't take kindly to your stupid remark on a post that was meant to honor him.
Sometimes, you go over the line. This is one of of those times.

 

[Elliotte Friedman]

Relax boots. It's a joke. Don't let it get in the way of a celebration for someone who deserves it.

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

Lighten up.boots.
Trust me. 'Sides would have laughed.

 

[boots]

Lighten up.boots.
Trust me. 'Sides would have laughed.

Perhaps. I took it to mean something else. If an apology is due, than I am making it.

 

[henryhenry]

Was privileged to work with Sides for a few years in the '80s. A nicer man you would never meet. Nor a funnier one.

I didn't hear this story until long after I had left the Globe, so I never got a chance to ask him if it was true. Perhaps other SportsJournalists.commers might know.

Sides and George Kimball of the Herald are seated together on a plane sometime in the '70s. Kimball gets up to go to the restroom and somehow manages to get hold of the microphone the stewardesses use to make announcements. There's no stewardess around, so he decides to play a joke on Sides.

In a very professional voice, he says over the cabin intercom something like this: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. We hope you're enjoying the flight. We do not wish to alrm you, but there is something we feel you need to know. Again, we do not wish to alarm you, and there is no danger, BUT THERE IS A NEGRO ON THE PLANE. REPEAT, THERE IS A NEGRO ON THE PLANE. We hope you enjoy the rest of your flight."

I still have to make sure I'm not trying to drink something when I think about that story. If someone tried a stunt like that today, they'd probably take him straight to Guantanamo. No passing Go, no collecting $200 . . .

Whatever, Sides was one of the best. It's sad how many people from that '80s-era Globe are no longer with us -- Ray Fitzgerald, Bob Monaghan, John Ahern, Barry Cadigan, Joe Concannon, Steve Rice, **** Lisherness, Walter Haynes. Apologies if I've missed anyone else.

will mcdonough. ron indrisano. jack tweedy.
walter haynes once boxed an exhibition with muhammad ali at the old garden. haynes, sides, and steve marantz wrote a series on 'blacks in boston' that won an apse first place. sides wrote the sox, haynes the patriots, and marantz the celtics.

 

[Full of Shit]

will mcdonough. ron indrisano. jack tweedy.
walter haynes once boxed an exhibition with muhammad ali at the old garden. haynes, sides, and steve marantz wrote a series on 'blacks in boston' that won an apse first place. sides wrote the sox, haynes the patriots, and marantz the celtics.

Wow, I can't believe I missed McDonough. See, this is what happens when you don't have a good editor to save your ass. Thanks, henry.

I didn't know Jack Tweedy had died, but given his age back then, I can't say I'm surprised. Like Sides, Jack was a wonderful human being. But please tell me you're mistaken about Ron Indrisano. I know he took a buyout and retired, but I hadn't heard anything about him dying (and can't find anything on the Internet).

And Frank, thanks for the kind words. In your honor, I'll give you a quick Indrisano story. He was the Globe's night duty officer in Sports when I worked on the desk there in the '80s. He'd "break the book" -- roughing out the section on the page dummies (pre-pagination, of course. Heck, at that time, we were even pasting up some hard copy) for the layout person.

Anyway, Ronnie had a particularly blacksmith-like touch with his pencil, especially considering that the layout/makeup guy, which was me a couple of nights a week, was supposed to use those same dummies to do the real layout later. Ronnie, would sketch a page, then change his mind and erase everything and start over. Only his drawing was so dark, the original lines were still there. But now they were covered with eraser shavings, which he never bothered to brush off. He'd just draw the new layout right over them.

When I got home after handling those dummies, I felt like I'd been working in a freakin' coal mine.

FOS

 

[rat fink]

There was a brief mention on a thread earlier but this fine gentleman will be enshrined in Cooperstown this summer. A fine tribute to a great guy and a hearty thanks to those who helped make it happen.

 

[clutchcargo]

Another clue I'm out of touch---when did Joe Concannon leave us? I ran into him a few times at golf tournaments and some running events and found him a classy, humble guy with a nice knack for reporting and writing. He embodied all that is good about Baaa-stun.

 

[BYH]

I think he's been gone several years--maybe even 10--but I could be wrong.

As a dumbass teenage stringer, I somehow ended up covering the same event as him once. He was wonderful.

 

[wickedwritah]

Concannon died in 2000 at 60, so says a Google search. Lots of guys on that staff (Jim Greenidge) have died relatively young.

 

[rat fink]

Concannon died in 2000 at 60, so says a Google search. Lots of guys on that staff (Jim Greenidge) have died relatively young.

Sadly, I'm beginning to realize that journalists tend to kick out at a younger age than many others. Kind of makes you want to change professions, eh?

 

[Joe Williams]

Concannon died in 2000 at 60, so says a Google search. Lots of guys on that staff (Jim Greenidge) have died relatively young.

Sadly, I'm beginning to realize that journalists tend to kick out at a younger age than many others. Kind of makes you want to change professions, eh?

Actually, it's a nice arrangement, given how paltry our retirement savings likely would be anyway.

But hooray for Sides, from all the way back in his Milwaukee days.

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

Concannon died in 2000 at 60, so says a Google search. Lots of guys on that staff (Jim Greenidge) have died relatively young.

Sadly, I'm beginning to realize that journalists tend to kick out at a younger age than many others. Kind of makes you want to change professions, eh?

Actually, it's a nice arrangement, given how paltry our retirement savings likely would be anyway.

But hooray for Sides, from all the way back in his Milwaukee days.

'Sides v. Louie Chapman.
Mano y mano covering some really bad baseball teams.