Legendary sportswriter Frank Deford, also known as NPR’s longtime philosopher of sports, died at his home in Key West, Florida, at the age of 78.
His wife, Carol Penner Deford, confirmed that her husband passed away on Sunday.
The Baltimore native started writing at Sports Illustrated in 1962 and had two lengthy stints with the magazine. The first came from 1962 to 1989 when he became known for writing SI’s bonus story — the longest piece in each issue. His second stint lasted from 1998 until his passing during which time he continued to write his signature stories.
Deford also was known for his booming voice delivering his unique takes on sports on National Public Radio for 37 years. He retired earlier this month following his 1,656th NPR commentary.
“The wonderful thing about delivering sports commentary on NPR was that because it has such a broad audience, I was able to reach people who otherwise had little or no interest in sport — especially as an important part of our human culture,” Deford said upon his retirement.
“Nothing made me happier than to hear from literally hundreds of listeners who would tell me how much the commentaries revealed about a subject they otherwise had never cared much for. I’ll forever be grateful to NPR that they gave me such extraordinary freedom. … It was 37 years of a fond relationship.”
Deford also wrote 18 books — nine of them novels such as “Everybody’s All-American” — in a wide-ranging career. He served as a contributor to HBO’s “Real Sports” and from 1990 to 1991 was the editor-in-chief of the short-lived The National, America’s first all-sports daily newspaper.
Deford was elected to the Hall of Fame of the National Association of Sportscasters and Sportswriters in 1998 and was been voted by his peers as the U.S. Sportswriter of the Year six times.
Deford received the National Humanities Medal in 2013 from President Barack Obama, who said: “A dedicated writer and storyteller, Mr. Deford has offered a consistent, compelling voice in print and on radio, reaching beyond scores and statistics to reveal the humanity woven into the games we love.”