William Melvin "Bill" Libby (November 14, 1927 – June 17, 1984) was an American writer and biographer best known for books on sports including 65 on sports figures.

Early years

Libby graduated from

Shortridge High School Shortridge High School is a public high school located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Shortridge is the home of the International Baccalaureate and arts and humanities programs of the Indianapolis Public Schools district.(IPS). Originall ...

in Indianapolis, also attended by several notable authors including

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer known for his satirical and darkly humorous novels. In a career spanning over 50 years, he published fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and ...

. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from September 1945 to October 1948. He attended

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

from 1948 to 1951. Libby was sports editor of the ''

Herald Statesman ''The Journal News'' is a newspaper in New York State serving the New York counties of Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam, a region known as the Lower Hudson Valley. It is owned by Gannett. ''The Journal News'' was created through a merger ...

'', then later worked for the ''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

''.

Works

Libby wrote several books on sports figures including

Rod Carew Rodney Cline Carew (born October 1, 1945) is a Panamanian former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman, second baseman and designated hitter from 1967 to 1985 for the Minnesota Twins ...

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain (; August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player who played as a Center (basketball), center. Standing at tall, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 yea ...

Phil Esposito Philip Anthony Esposito ( , ; born February 20, 1942) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, coach and executive, and current broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Lightning. A member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, he played 18 seasons in t ...

A. J. Foyt Anthony Joseph Foyt Jr. (born January 16, 1935) is an American retired auto racing driver who has raced in numerous genres of motorsports. His open wheel racing includes United States Automobile Club Champ cars, sprint cars, and midget cars. He ...

Catfish Hunter James Augustus Hunter (April 8, 1946 – September 9, 1999), nicknamed "Catfish", was a professional baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB). From to , he was a pitcher for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees. Hunter wa ...

Fred Lynn Fredric Michael Lynn (born February 3, 1952) is an American former professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1974 through 1990 as a center fielder with the Boston Red Sox, California Angels, Baltimore Orioles, Det ...

Rocky Marciano Rocco Francis Marchegiano (September 1, 1923 – August 31, 1969; ), better known as Rocky Marciano (, ), was an American professional boxer who competed from 1947 to 1955, and held the world heavyweight title from 1952 to 1956. He is the only ...

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...

O. J. Simpson Orenthal James Simpson (born July 9, 1947), nicknamed "Juice", is an American former football running back, actor, and broadcaster who played for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. Once a popular figure ...

Willie Stargell Wilver Dornell Stargell (March 6, 1940 – April 9, 2001), nicknamed "Pops" later in his career, was an American professional baseball left fielder and first baseman who spent all of his 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) ( 1962– 1982 ...

, and

Fran Tarkenton Francis Asbury Tarkenton (born February 3, 1940) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football at ...

as well as books on hockey, auto racing, professional football, and college football. He also co-wrote several books on celebrities and sports people including

Nancy Reagan Nancy Davis Reagan (; born Anne Frances Robbins; July 6, 1921 – March 6, 2016) was an American film actress and First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. She was the second wife of president Ronald Reagan. Reagan was born in N ...

, the

Roosevelt Roosevelt may refer to: *Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president *Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president Businesses and organisations * Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation) * Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank * Roosevel ...

family,

Rick Barry Richard Francis Dennis Barry III (born March 28, 1944) is an American retired professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the ...

Vida Blue Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. (born July 28, 1949) is a former American professional baseball player. He was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball between and , most notably as an integral member of the Oakland Athletics dynasty that won thr ...

Monty Hall Monty Hall (born Monte Halparin; August 25, 1921 – September 30, 2017) was a Canadian radio and television show host who moved to the United States in 1955 to pursue a career in broadcasting. After working as a radio newsreader and sport ...

Richard Petty Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937), nicknamed "The King", is an American former stock car racing driver who raced from 1958 to 1992 in the former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most notabl ...

John Roseboro John Junior Roseboro (May 13, 1933 – August 16, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1957 until 1970, most prominently as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers. A four ...

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...

, and

Jerry West Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...

Libby national champions

Libby's 1975 book ''Champions of College Football'' selected a single college football national champion from the 1900 to 1974 college football seasons. As the highest level of college football does not have an official national champion, Libby's selections are often referenced by the athletic department of the selected university. Six of Libby's champions, for the years (1910, 1911, 1913, 1929, 1931, 1936), were not selected for that year as national champion by any NCAA-designated "major selector". † Champion not selected by any NCAA-designated "major selector".

Awards

In 1964, Libby was named National Magazine Sportswriter of the Year. He was named to the

Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, in Beverly Hills, California, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring American Jewish athletes, other sports personalities, and teams from Southern California who have distinguished themselves ...

in 2004.

Family

Libby and wife Sharon had two daughters, Allyson and Laurie Libby.

References