Jack Murphy (sportswriter)
Jack Murphy | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 5, 1923 Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Died | September 24, 1980 (aged 57) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Sportswriter |
| Relatives | Bob Murphy (brother) |
John Patrick Murphy[1] (February 5, 1923 – September 24, 1980) was an American sportswriter and columnist for the San Diego Union from 1951 to 1980. Jack Murphy Stadium was named in his honor.
Background
[edit]Murphy was born on February 5, 1923, in Denver.[1] He was the older brother of Bob Murphy, a New York Mets broadcaster. He moved from Fort Worth, Texas, in 1951 to become a sportswriter for the San Diego Union newspaper.[2] On December 21, 1960, Jack Murphy wrote a column for the San Diego Union proposing that the Los Angeles Chargers of the American Football League (AFL) should become a San Diego franchise.[3] For a year in Union articles, he was a key figure who implored San Diegans to move the Chargers.[4] He helped secure the San Diego Padres as a National League MLB expansion team in 1969.
Jack Murphy Stadium
[edit]
After the Chargers began to outgrow Balboa Stadium in San Diego, Murphy helped lobby for a San Diego stadium in articles for the San Diego Union.[5] A 50,000-seat stadium was proposed and approved by San Diego voters in 1965.[2][5]
San Diego Stadium, with 54,000 seats, was renamed San Diego–Jack Murphy Stadium[6] after Murphy died in 1980.[7] It was known as well by "The Murph".[5] The stadium was renamed Qualcomm Stadium in 1997 and Qualcomm retained the naming rights until 2017. It was renamed SDCCU Stadium in 2018 after the San Diego County Credit Union purchased the naming rights. The city named the stadium site Jack Murphy Field.[8]
Personal life
[edit]Murphy owned a black Labrador Retriever named Abe and he wrote about him in articles. A statue of Murphy with Abe is in front of Qualcomm Stadium.[2] He was a third cousin of billionaire investor Warren Buffett.[citation needed] Murphy died on September 24, 1980, of lung cancer.[4]
Awards
[edit]On May 3, 1988, Murphy was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame.[1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "1988 – John Patrick "Jack" Murphy". NSSA. Archived from the original on December 22, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Canepa, Nick (January 21, 2003). "The writer who came into town and left a city". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
- ↑ Crawford, Richard W. (2011). The Way We Were in San Diego. The History Press. p. 121. ISBN 978-1-60949-441-4.
- 1 2 Wilson, Bernie (January 22, 2003). "Al Davis Unveils Murphy Statue". The Ledger. Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 18, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Krasovic, Tom (July 6, 2013). "Most historic sports site? The stadium". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
- ↑ "It's San Diego–Jack Murphy Stadium". St. Petersburg Times. January 7, 1981. p. 2C. Retrieved July 4, 2016 – via Google News Archive.
- ↑ Engstrand, Iris (2005). San Diego: California's Cornerstone. Sunbelt Publications. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-932653-72-7.
- ↑ "San Diego City Council Minutes, March 31, 1997". Archived from the original on July 9, 2003. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
- 1923 births
- 1980 deaths
- Sportswriters from Colorado
- Sportswriters from California
- Writers from San Diego
- Journalists from San Diego
- San Diego Padres
- San Diego Chargers
- 20th-century American journalists
- 20th-century American non-fiction writers
- 20th-century American male writers
- Deaths from lung cancer in California
- The San Diego Union-Tribune people
- 20th-century American male journalists
