It is a sad day for the Chicago sportswriting fraternity. Bill Jauss, a long-time veteran, passed away at the age of 81.
I remember meeting Jauss for the first time in 1977. I was a high school student at New Trier West working the pass gate for a basketball game. Jauss walked in to pick up his credential. Naturally, I was in awe since I was an aspiring sportswriter myself.
Five years later, I found myself as a teammate with Jauss at the Tribune. That night at New Trier West stuck with me during all the years I worked with him. Even though he covered the pros and major colleges, I recall he was so enthusiastic about being there for that high school game.
His approach never wavered. For a four-year period in the 90s, I was Jauss’ main editor. It didn’t matter whether the game or assignment was big or small, Jauss was eager to dive in. Trust me, everyone on the staff didn’t have the same attitude.
Jauss just wanted to part of the action. And he was there for more than 50 years.
The Tribune’s Fred Mitchell wrote a terrific tribute to Jauss. He talked about the Sportswriters on TV show that developed a cult following nationally.
“I think that Gleason was the guy … we were in Billy Goat’s (tavern) one night,” Jauss recalled in May. “We had covered the same event — a hockey game or a basketball game. We had written our stories at our offices and met at Billy Goat’s. We were having a drink and there were some printers in there that we knew. They were seated at a table and we were at the bar. First thing you know, closing time came and we got up and started to walk down to Andy’s, which had a 4 a.m. closing.
“These printers were following along behind us. So Gleason turned around and said: ‘Where are you guys going?’ And they said: ‘Your argument is interesting. We want to hear how it ends.’
“So Gleason is walking along and thinking to himself, ‘Maybe this thing is sell-able.’ And that’s where he got the idea of putting on this argument, first on radio on WGN, and then on TV. I think that is what started all of these (sports) discussion shows that are so prevalent now. It was a pioneering thing at the time, although we didn’t realize it.”
Like me, his colleagues recalled Jauss’ work ethic.
Retired Tribune sportswriter Mike Conklin remembers how much Jauss was revered locally, even though his television notoriety garnered him national attention.
“Bill was a Chicago original. In fact, the farther his assignment took him from Chicago, the less he liked it,” Conklin recalled.
“I first bumped into him at events when he was with Chicago Today (the old afternoon newspaper). I thought it was a great thing to have him as a colleague when the Tribune absorbed the paper (in 1974) and combined sports staffs. He and Rick Talley were the star catches for the Trib in the merger and added much-needed flair.
“I liked this best about Bill: He was the most unpretentious sportswriter I knew,” Conklin said. “He would cover anything. A high school football game or a DePaul women’s basketball game were as important to him, and got his full attention, just as much as the Bears or the Cubs.”
Retired Tribune Hall of Fame Bears writer Don Pierson also admired Jauss’ versatility.
“Bill was the most complete sportswriter I knew because of his interest in and knowledge of so many sports, and his natural curiosity as a journalist,” Pierson said. “He always asked great questions without being confrontational. (He was) one of the few sportswriters even Bobby Knight respected. My fondest recollection is how Bill wrote exactly how Houston would upset UCLA in that famous basketball game (in 1968) — the day before the game.”
Jauss was a true Chicago original. RIP.
