Al Laney
Al Laney was an influential American sportswriter born on January 11, 1896, in Pensacola, Florida. He began his journalism career as a high school student, working full-time for the Pensacola Journal, and later held positions at the Dallas Dispatch and the Minneapolis News. His passion for sports, particularly golf and tennis, developed during his early career and remained a focal point throughout his life. Laney served in World War I, where he was wounded during the significant battle of the Argonne Forest. After the war, he moved to New York and later traveled to Paris, immersing himself in the city's literary scene and working as a reader for the renowned writer James Joyce. Upon returning to New York, he joined the New York Herald Tribune, where he reported on legendary athletes like Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson until 1966. Notably, his book "Covering the Court: A Fifty-Year Love Affair with the Game of Tennis" was published in 1968. Throughout his career, Laney received multiple accolades for his contributions to sports journalism, solidifying his reputation as one of the best sportswriters of the twentieth century. He passed away on January 31, 1988, in Spring Valley, New York, leaving a lasting legacy in sportswriting.
Al Laney
Writer
- Born: January 11, 1896
- Birthplace: Pensacola, Florida
- Died: January 31, 1988
- Place of death: Spring Valley, New York
Biography
Al Laney was born on January 11, 1896, in Pensacola, Florida. He began his journalism career when he was still in high school and worked full-time for the Pensacola Journal. He did not finish high school but continued to work as a reporter, taking jobs at the Dallas Dispatch and the Minneapolis News. It was as a young sportswriter that his interest in golf and tennis first developed, and he maintained his love for these sports throughout his career.
When the United States entered World War I, Laney enlisted and fought in the battle of the Argonne Forest, where he was wounded. After returning to the United States, he accepted a position with the Evening Mail in New York. In 1924, Laney found himself without work and he decided to go to Paris. There, he immersed himself in the city’s flourishing literary society that included Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and other writers. One of his more interesting experiences in Paris was being hired as a reader for James Joyce, who was by then nearly blind. Soon after his arrival in Paris, Laney found a job at the New York Herald Tribune, where he worked until 1930. He later wrote about his time in Paris in his book, Paris Herald: The Incredible Newspaper (1947).
In 1934, Laney returned to New York to work as a sportswriter for the Herald Tribune. In his years at that newspaper, he interviewed and wrote stories about such sports legends as Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson. Laney continued to write for the Herald Tribune until 1966. In 1968, his best-known book, Covering the Court: A Fifty-Year Love Affair with the Game of Tennis was published. Laney died in a retirement home in Spring Valley, New York, on January 31, 1988.
Readers, writers, and athletes all held Laney in great respect. In 1965, he received the Danzig Trophy for excellence in tennis reporting. The U.S. Tennis Writers Association awarded him a gold writers’ pass in 1977, and the Metropolitan Golf Association awarded him its Distinguished Service Award in 1978. Laney contributed greatly to the field of sportswriting through the quality of his language and his understanding of the games he covered. He is considered to be one of the best sportswriters of the twentieth century.