[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 149 (Thursday, October 15, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S10474]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      RETIREMENT OF FURMAN BISHER

  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. President, I rise to honor a giant in the world of 
journalism, Furman Bisher.
  Last Saturday, after nearly 60 years of elegant observation of the 
sports world for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, my friend Furman 
Bisher pecked out his last and final column before retirement on the 
thinning keys of his trusty, old Royal typewriter. His choice of 
instrument to convey his thoughts in this age of instantaneous, inane 
chatter says a lot about why newspaper readers, after all these years, 
have continued to seek out his column on the AJC's sports page.
  It all comes down to this: Furman's graceful prose, courtly voice, 
and sharp observations are unfailingly backed up by his old-fashioned 
shoe-leather reporting. He gloried in doing his homework, making that 
extra call, interviewing one more player or assistant coach or trainer 
in order to breathe even more life into the game or the race or the 
fight for his readers.
  It is also why Furman has become a Georgian--and American--
institution.
  Simply put, Furman Bisher loved sports and he loved journalism. At 
age 90, he was still driving out on summer nights to cover minor league 
baseball games.
  In his career, Furman scored many journalistic knockouts, including a 
1949 interview with Shoeless Joe Jackson, the only one Jackson ever 
gave regarding his involvement in the 1919 Black Sox scandal.
  He got stock tips from Ty Cobb and watched every Masters, including 
Jack Nicklaus's 1986 Masters victory, which he gloried in. He sat in 
the press box at countless Falcons games at Atlanta-Fulton County 
Stadium and the Georgia Dome and covered the Olympics, both winter and 
summer.
  He wrote 11 books, including coauthoring two editions of a Hank Aaron 
autobiography. At the Masters Tournament in Augusta every April, Furman 
reigned among the azaleas and oaks as the dean of the sports press 
corps.
  In a testament to his longevity in a tough business, Furman has 
covered every Kentucky Derby since 1950 and every Super Bowl but the 
first one.
  Furman even branched out into TV. Although I did not grow up in 
Atlanta, I have heard from many people that preachers across the city 
would cut a sermon short so that their congregations could be home for 
Furman's kickoff on ``Football Review.''
  Along the way, he earned the respect of his colleagues and the 
loyalty of his readers, garnering writing awards too numerous to 
mention. Red Smith is acknowledged as probably the dean of all 
journalists from a sports perspective, and Furman Bisher has often been 
referred to as the ``Red Smith of the South.'' He served as president 
of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association from 1974 
to 1976, and of the Football Writers Association of America from 1959 
to 1960. His features have appeared in The Saturday Evening Post, Golf 
Digest, and Sports Illustrated, to name but a few.
  In 1961, Time magazine named him one of the five best columnists in 
the Nation. I would argue that even today, that honor still fits.
  No less than the great Jack Nicklaus said of Furman's retirement:

       He might be turning in his last column for the newspaper, 
     but Furman will never stop writing or giving his opinion. I 
     guess you could say that when it comes to the last writings 
     of Furman Bisher, I will believe it when I don't see it.

  Furman would close every column with a single valediction--the word 
``selah,'' a Hebrew word that ends many Psalms and that exhorts the 
reader to reflect.
  It is appropriate then to reflect on Furman's long, fruitful career, 
one that began in Atlanta as the Korean war was starting, when Joe 
Louis was still boxing, when the Minneapolis Lakers were the NBA 
champs, before Willie Mays had joined the Major Leagues, and before 
Sports Illustrated even existed.
  Ever since, with wit and style, Furman Bisher has chronicled the 
triumphs and the travails of the sports world and its often all too 
human heroes.
  Furman is leaving the AJC at almost 91 years old, and he is still 
going strong. While we may not be seeing his column on a regular basis, 
I am quite sure we have not heard the last of Furman Bisher. As Furman 
would say, selah. I am thankful for Furman Bisher.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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