The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray

Forget Ring Lardner, Grantland Rice, and Jerome Holtzman. Jim Murray of the Los Angeles Times was the single greatest sports columnist who ever lived—period. Known for his highly descriptive metaphors and phrasing—e.g., “a strike zone the size of Hitler’s heart”—Murray was a poet. Time magazine sent the Connecticut native to Hollywood in 1948 to cover the movies. But it was at the Los Angeles Times (1961–1998) that Murray made his mark. The paper had experienced tremendous growth, and Murra...