Furman Bisher facts for kids

James Furman Bisher (born November 4, 1918, died March 18, 2012) was a famous sports writer and columnist. He wrote for a big newspaper called The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in Atlanta, Georgia. Furman Bisher was known for his interesting stories and opinions about sports for over 50 years.

Early Life and Career

Furman Bisher was born in Denton, North Carolina. His parents named him after a well-known minister in their area. He first went to Furman University before attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While at UNC, he helped manage the North Carolina Tar Heels football team.

After finishing college in 1938, Bisher became the editor of the Lumberton Voice newspaper. He was only 20 years old! During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy from 1941 to 1945. He edited a military newspaper and managed a radio network for soldiers in the South Pacific.

After the war, he worked for other newspapers in North Carolina. He became the sports editor for the Charlotte News in 1948.

Famous Interviews and Early Sports Coverage

In 1949, Bisher got a special interview with former baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson. This was the first time Jackson had spoken publicly since the 1919 Black Sox Scandal. Jackson was accused of helping to fix the 1919 World Series. He told Bisher he was innocent, and this was the only interview he ever gave about the scandal.

Bisher also covered the first stock car cup race in 1949. This race later became known as NASCAR. At that time, many sports writers didn't pay attention to auto racing, but Bisher did!

Becoming an Atlanta Sports Legend

Furman Bisher started writing for The Atlanta Constitution on April 15, 1950. He became very well known across the country during his 59 years there. He worked as a sports reporter, columnist, and editor for The Atlanta Constitution, The Atlanta Journal, and later their combined paper, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

He also wrote articles for other national magazines. These included The Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, and The Saturday Evening Post. His last column for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was published online on October 10, 2009. The print version appeared the next day.

A Difficult Time

In 1962, Bisher was involved in a national disagreement. He had helped with an article for The Saturday Evening Post. The article claimed that University of Georgia's athletic director Wally Butts and University of Alabama coach Bear Bryant had planned to fix a college football game.

Bisher did many interviews for the story, but they were not used in the final article. Wally Butts sued the magazine for libel. The U.S. Supreme Court decided in Butts' favor. Bryant settled his case outside of court. Years later, Bisher called this the "Ugliest part of my career."

Awards and Recognition

Time magazine named Bisher one of the top five columnists in the country in 1961. He was honored in many halls of fame, including:

• The National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame
• The University of North Carolina Journalism Hall of Fame
• The Georgia Golf Hall of Fame
• The International Golf Writers Hall of Fame
• The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame
• The Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame
• The Atlanta Press Club Hall of Fame

He was chosen as the Georgia Sportswriter of the Year 16 times! The Associated Press also recognized him for the best Georgia story of the year over 20 times. He received many other awards, including the Associated Press Sports Editors' Red Smith Award.

Leadership and Influence

Bisher was the president of the Football Writers Association of America from 1959 to 1960. He also led the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association from 1974 to 1976. He strongly supported professional sports coming to Atlanta. He was a founding member of the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Authority. This was a group that helped build and manage the city's stadium.

He also helped write the first autobiography of baseball legend Hank Aaron. The book was first called Aaron, RF in 1968. In 1974, when Aaron was about to break the all-time home run record, Bisher added more to the book. The new edition was simply called Aaron.

Bisher often ended his columns with the Hebrew word "Selah". This word comes from the Book of Psalms. After retiring from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2009, he continued to write. He wrote a column for the Gwinnett Daily Post starting in January 2010. He estimated that he wrote about 15,000 daily sports columns, 1,200 magazine articles, and more than a dozen books!

Until he was 90 years old, Bisher was the most senior golf reporter at the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. He covered every Kentucky Derby since 1950. He also covered almost every Super Bowl, missing only the very first one.

Later Life and Passing

Furman Bisher passed away from a heart attack on March 18, 2012. He was survived by his second wife, Lynda, and two of his three sons from his first marriage.