Many people consider Blackie Sherrod the best sportswriter in history.  Certainly in this area, he was a legend and a mentor to many.  Sherrod passed away on Thursday at the age of 96.  You can read an feature article about him by Kevin Sherrington by clicking HERE.

Sherrod worked in the Dallas area for both the Dallas Times Herald and the Dallas Morning News.  I will never forget the commercials and billboard advertisements that announced his move from one paper to the other.  He was sitting a typewriter, and his energy pecking the keys was an engine, as it depicted him on the move.

Here is a brief summary of his life from Amazon.com:  “Blackie Sherrod was born, reared, and educated in Texas. After a failed career as a wingback at Howard Payne College, he spent most of World War II as a torpedo plane gunner in the Pacific.  Sherrod began his sportswriting career in 1946 with the Fort Worth Press. He joined the Dallas Times Herald in 1958, and since 1984 his writing has graced the pages of the Dallas Morning News. His lengthy list of honors includes the Red Smith Award for distinguished contributions to his craft, a National Headliners Club Award, inclusion in the National Sportscasters-Sportswriters Hall of Fame, and an honorary doctorate from his alma mater.”

Here is a picture with Sherrod and legendary Texas Longhorns coach Darrell Royal.

In addition to his countless number of articles in newspapers, Sherrod wrote three books.  His first, called Scattershooting, was published in 1975 (Strode).  The second, co-authored with Dan Jenkins, was entitled The Blackie Sherrod Collection (Taylor Publishing, 1988).  The last, Blackie Sherrod at Large, was published in 2003 (Eakin Press).  Although they are long out of print, you can still purchase all of these books from third-party sellers.

 

Sherrod was in poor health for many years, so it has been awhile since he was able to write.  But, his contributions to local sports will never be forgotten.