Rest In Peace - Furman Bisher (1918-2012)

JonInMiddleGA · 03-19-2012, 08:07 AM

Sportswriter Furman Bisher dies at 93 *| ajc.com

An Atlanta icon, one of the first writers I can actually recall reading, from a very early age. Still one of the best too, until he officially retired at the age of 90, and even then he contributed an occasional item or two each year, still banged out on the typewriter he used when he arrived at the Atlanta Journal in 1950. He covered the Masters, Kentucky Derby and the Georgia-Georgia Tech football game more than 50 times each. Just think about the things he saw and, as he frequently did, about the people he saw.

Anyone who enjoys words, but especially those who lament the bygone era when sportswriters wrote about what they saw rather than trying to be part of the story, should check out the gems in the link below.
Furman Bisher's best columns *| ajc.com

Rest in peace sir, we were lucky to have had you.

OldGiants · 03-19-2012, 08:13 AM

I read his columns in the Sporting News for many years. He and Joe Falls were the first two items I turned to.

One of the best, no doubt about it.

JonInMiddleGA · 03-19-2012, 10:22 AM

A writer friend of mine who knew Bisher just shared this on his FB

Quote:

Favorite Furman Bisher Story: he was the only sportswriter ever to spend two all-access days with Shoeless Joe Jackson later in life: a piece he did for The Sporting News. After his interviews (this was before the days of digital recorders), he took the "quote sheets" back to Joe for a signature. "He gazed at them with this puzzled look, and then said, 'I'll be right back,'" Furman told me. "He walked into the house and stayed about 15- maybe 20 minutes, came back out and they were signed. That's when I realized he couldn't read. It made the story even sadder." Thousands of stories like this. Furman Bisher: legend.

Chief Rum · 03-19-2012, 11:23 AM

Sounds similar to the great Jim Murray, the longtime LA Times columnist who passed away a few years ago. He was another writer who exemplified the type of sportswriter we no longer seem to have, just like Bisher.

digamma · 03-19-2012, 01:18 PM

When I read the news late last night, I had a feeling you would post this. Thank you.

JonInMiddleGA · 03-19-2012, 06:18 PM

There are tons of tribute columns out there today, including the full piece written by the friend I referred to earlier, who'd just had lunch with Furman last week. I share it here because, well, it's a friend paying respects to his friend.

Furman Bisher: Longtime Atlanta columnist dies at 93

corbes · 03-19-2012, 08:54 PM

Thanks for posting this. He wrote a collection of baseball stories that was one of the first baseball books I pored over religiously as a child. My memory of him will always be tied with my first stirrings of a lifelong interest in the game.

03-19-2012, 08:13 AM	#2
OldGiants College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Location, Location, Location	I read his columns in the Sporting News for many years. He and Joe Falls were the first two items I turned to. One of the best, no doubt about it. __________________ "The case of Great Britain is the most astonishing in this matter of inequality of rights in world soccer championships. The way they explained it to me as a child, God is one but He's three: Father, Son and Holy Ghost. I could never understand it. And I still don't understand why Great Britain is one but she's four....while [others] continue to be no more than one despite the diverse nationalities that make them up." Eduardo Galeano, SOCCER IN SUN AND SHADOW

03-19-2012, 11:23 AM	#4
Chief Rum Hall Of Famer Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Where Hip Hop lives	Sounds similar to the great Jim Murray, the longtime LA Times columnist who passed away a few years ago. He was another writer who exemplified the type of sportswriter we no longer seem to have, just like Bisher. __________________ . . I would rather be wrong...Than live in the shadows of your song...My mind is open wide...And now I'm ready to start...You're not sure...You open the door...And step out into the dark...Now I'm ready.

03-19-2012, 06:18 PM	#6
JonInMiddleGA Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Athens, GA	There are tons of tribute columns out there today, including the full piece written by the friend I referred to earlier, who'd just had lunch with Furman last week. I share it here because, well, it's a friend paying respects to his friend. Furman Bisher: Longtime Atlanta columnist dies at 93 __________________ "I lit another cigarette. Unless I specifically inform you to the contrary, I am always lighting another cigarette." - from a novel by Martin Amis

03-19-2012, 01:18 PM	#5
digamma Torchbearer Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: On Lake Harriet	When I read the news late last night, I had a feeling you would post this. Thank you.

03-19-2012, 08:54 PM	#7
corbes College Benchwarmer Join Date: Nov 2003	Thanks for posting this. He wrote a collection of baseball stories that was one of the first baseball books I pored over religiously as a child. My memory of him will always be tied with my first stirrings of a lifelong interest in the game.

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