Lester John Biederman "Verna Hocker Becomes Bride"
''The Harrisburg Telegraph''. Wednesday, December 4, 1946. p. 18. Retrieved 2015-09-11. "The marriage of Miss Verna M. Hocker, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph E. Hocker, 3428 Old Orchard Road, Progress, and Lester John Biederman, son of the late Mr. and Mrs. L. J. Biederman of Wilkinsburg, took place at noon today." (June 7, 1907 – November 30, 1981) was an American

sports writer Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism has its roots in coverage of horse racing and boxing in the early 1800s, mainly targeted towards elites, and into t ...

and columnist, writing exclusively for ''

The Pittsburgh Press ''The Pittsburgh Press'', formerly ''The Pittsburg Press'' and originally ''The Evening Penny Press'', was a major afternoon daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for over a century, from 1884 to 1992. At the height of its popul ...

'', from 1930 until his retirement in 1969.

Career

From 1938, Biederman covered the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

, becoming the Press' sports editor in 1966; excluding his military service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served in both capacities until his retirement in 1969."Ex-Press Sports Editor Les Biederman Dies". ''The Pittsburgh Press''. November 30, 1981. pp
A-1A-12
Retrieved 2015-09-11. For the final 20 of those years, Biederman was also a correspondent for ''

The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

''. In 1953, Biederman was elected to the Board of Directors of the

Baseball Writers' Association of America The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) is a professional association for journalists writing about Major League Baseball for daily newspapers, magazines, and qualifying websites. The organization was founded in 1908 and is known fo ...

; in 1959, he served as its president."Baseball Writers' Association of America Constitution: Addendum B (BBWA Presidents)"
BBWAA. Retrieved 2015-09-11. That same year, Biederman was named Pennsylvania Sportswriter of the Year by the

National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association The National Sports Media Association (NSMA), formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, is an organization of sports media members in the United States, and constitutes the American chapter of the International Sports P ...

. In 1956, he initiated the Scoreboard Fund, under the umbrella of the Press Old Newsboys; over the next 14 years, under Biederman's direction, the fund raised approximately half a million dollars for the

Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh (CHP), popularly known simply as Children's, is part of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the only hospital in Greater Pittsburgh dedicated solely to the care of infants, children, teens an ...

.Schneider, Dick (December 1, 1981)
"Baseball Writer Biederman Dies"
''The Fort Myers News-Press''. p. C1. Retrieved February 16, 2024. In a 2015 ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' article, historian Michael Beschloss criticized Biederman for mockingly portraying, in exaggerated "

Spanglish Spanglish (a blend of the words "Spanish" and "English") is any language variety (such as a contact dialect, hybrid language, pidgin, or creole language) that results from conversationally combining Spanish and English. The term is mostly u ...

", the speech of

Roberto Clemente Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (; August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, primarily as a right fielder. On December ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biederman, Les 1907 births 1981 deaths Baseball writers Sportswriters from Pennsylvania Writers from Pittsburgh 20th-century American non-fiction writers

Career

References

Further reading

External links