Neal Russo
Aniello "Neal" Russo (June 12, 1920 – March 6, 1996) was an American sportswriter.
Russo was one of 14 children born to
Farrell High School in 1938,[2] and later from the University of Pittsburgh at the top of his class.[3]
During
434th Fighter Squadron in United States Army Air Forces, primarily at RAF Wattisham. He wrote the 479th Fighter Group's newspaper, Kontak, for which pilot Robin Olds created cartoons.[4]
After the war, Russo moved to
St. Louis Browns beat for their final two seasons in St. Louis in 1952–1953.[1] He succeeded Bob Broeg and preceded Rick Hummel on the St. Louis Cardinals beat from 1959 to 1978.[1][5] His unconventional work practices and antics around the offices of the Post-Dispatch, Busch Stadium, and beyond included weight-loss challenges and stand-up comedy routines.[1][6][7]
Russo moonlit as an official scorer and as a crossword puzzle writer. On April 6, 1978, he made a controversial call that resulted in Bob Forsch's first no-hitter.[8]
He covered St. Louis Flyers hockey, boxing, and youth sports.[6] In addition to his work with the Post-Dispatch, he contributed to Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News.[1]
Russo died of congestive heart failure on March 6, 1996, in St. Louis.[7] He was posthumously inducted to the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.[9]
References
- ^ ProQuest 305145028.(subscription required)
- ^ "Farrell Senior High School - Farrell, Pennsylvania - Class of 1938 Alumni". pedasfamily.com. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ProQuest 402054858.(subscription required)
- OCLC 58653175.
- ^ "STL Press Club 2014 Honorees". stlpressclub.org. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ ProQuest 305149564.(subscription required)
- ^ ProQuest 305148400.(subscription required)
- ^ Kaplan, Jim (24 July 1978). "Do they really know the score?". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ "St. Louis Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame". 2018-04-07.