The death of political writer Howard Fineman at the age of 75 made the news this week, primarily because he was a highly regarded chronicler of the American political scene. He was the chief political correspondent for Newsweek magazine for over twenty years, and later, following the demise of that printed magazine, with the Huffington Post. He was also a frequent talking head on CNN, MSNBC, and other outlets. Tributes to him came from both sides of the aisle in Washington.
Long time listeners to the Tony Kornheiser radio show and podcast, also felt the loss of Fineman for he was a regular guest on TK's shows offering his insights into telling all of us Loyal Littles just "where we were now" in regard to Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill and Hillary, upcoming debates, conventions, and, of course, thoughts on the 45th POTUS. While he always informative on these weighty matters, he never took himself so seriously as to be crashing boor on these particular topics.
To me, though, I really enjoyed listening to Howard Fineman because he came from and grew up in the same Pittsburgh neighborhood of Squirrel Hill that I did, and he would share tales of those formative years. While Howard was three years older than me and went to different schools than I did, I always thought that it was quite possible that Howard Fineman and I could have crossed paths with each other at places like Murray Pharmacy, Mineo's Pizza, the Manor Theater, Poli's Restaurant, or a Giant Eagle Supermarket. Call me a fanboy, but I thought that was pretty cool.
I had missed Fineman on Tony's show in recent years, and it was only upon his death that I learned that he had spent the last two years battling pancreatic cancer. Very sad.
RIP Howard Fineman.
Howard, loyal Pittsburgh that he was, took the time to read my 2009 book, “The Paris of Appalachia.” I’m happy to report that he liked it, and gave me a sweet blurb for the back of the book. Nice man. May he Rest In Peace.
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