Jack Germond
{{short description|American journalist, author, and pundit}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2013}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Jack Germond
| image = File:American_political_pundit_Jack_Germond.png
| alt =
| caption = Germond in 1992
| birth_name = John Worthen Germond
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1928|1|30}}
| birth_place = Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2013|8|14|1928|1|30}}
| death_place = {{nowrap|Charles Town, West Virginia, U.S.}}
| education = University of Missouri (BA, BS)
| other_names =
| occupation = {{hlist|Journalist|author}}
| known_for = Panelist on {{nowrap|The McLaughlin Group}}
| spouse = {{ubl|
- {{marriage|Barbara Wippler|1951||end=div.}}
- {{marriage|Alice Travis|1995|}}
}}
| children = 4
}}
John Worthen Germond (January 30, 1928 – August 14, 2013) was an American journalist, author, and pundit whose career spanned over 50 years. Germond wrote for the Washington Star and the Baltimore Sun, and was a longtime panelist on the television discussion show The McLaughlin Group. Together with Jules Witcover, Germond also co-wrote "Politics Today," a five-day-a-week syndicated column, for almost a quarter-century.
Early years
Germond was born in Boston, Massachusetts.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wUIQaWm4MWoC&q=jack+germond&pg=PA81|title=80: From Ben Bradlee to Lena Horne to Carl Reiner, Our Most Famous Eighty Year Olds Reveal Why They Never Felt So Young|last1=Gardner|first1=Gerald|last2=Bellows|first2=Jim|publisher=Sourcebooks, Inc.|year=2007|isbn=9781402248238|pages=Jack Germond|language=en}} After serving in the U.S. Army as a paymaster, Germond graduated from the University of Missouri with bachelor's degrees in journalism and history.{{Cite news|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2013/08/15/us/jack-germond-political-reporter-of-the-old-school-dies-at-85.html|title=Jack Germond, Political Reporter of the Old School, Dies at 85|last=Martin|first=Douglas|date=August 4, 2013|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 19, 2024|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}
Career
Germond began his career in 1951 writing for the Evening News in Monroe, Michigan.{{cite book |last=Riley |first=Sam G. |date=1995 |title=Biographical Dictionary of American Newspaper Columnists |location=Westport, Connecticut |publisher=Greenwood Press |page=98 |isbn=0-313-29192-6}} In 1953, he moved to Gannett's Rochester Times-Union, and he was chief of Gannett's Washington bureau from 1969 until 1973. In 1974, he joined the Washington Star, becoming a syndicated columnist and national editor, and went on to the Baltimore Sun when the Washington Star folded.
On television, Germond began appearing on Meet the Press in 1972 and The Today Show in 1980. He was a fixture on The McLaughlin Group from the show's inception in 1982, acting as a "liberal voice" against conservative guests such as Pat Buchanan and Robert Novak. When The McLaughlin Group was parodied on Saturday Night Live in the early 1990s, Germond was portrayed by Chris Farley and John Goodman.
{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/longtime-political-columnist-jack-germond-dead-at-85 |title=Longtime Political Columnist Jack Germond Dead at 85 |author= |date=2013-08-14 |website=PBS NewsHour |access-date=2022-12-01}}{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/onpolitics/2013/08/14/jack-germond-jules-witcover-presidential-books/2651717/ |title=Jack Germond, rest in peace |last=Jackson |first=David |date=2013-08-14 |work=USA Today |access-date=2022-12-01}} Germond left the program in 1996, citing a decline in the show's discourse and frustration with John McLaughlin's heavy-handed moderation.{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/article/d5e0df6bbf62270e4d5d65af12953162 |title=Germond Exiting TV's 'McLaughlin Group' |author= |date=1996-11-21 |website=AP News |publisher=The Associated Press |access-date=2022-12-01}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-politics-germond-idUSBRE97D0R320130814|title=U.S. political writer Jack Germond dies at age 85|date=2013-08-14|work=Reuters|access-date=2019-05-31|language=en}} He was later featured as a panelist on the PBS program Inside Washington.[http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=9924 Jack W. Germond profile at Random House website]
Germond retired in 2000. In 2011, he wrote several pieces on the 2012 presidential election for The Daily Beast, an online-only publication.{{cite web|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/contributors/jack-w-germond.html|title=Jack W. Germond - The Daily Beast|work=The Daily Beast|access-date=September 25, 2014}}
Personal life
Germond married Barbara Wippler in 1951. They had two daughters, Mandy and Jessica, before divorcing. In 1995, Germond married Alice Travis, a former secretary of the Democratic National Committee. Germond was stepfather to Alice's two children, Abby and David, from her prior marriage.
Germond died at his home in Charles Town, West Virginia on August 14, 2013, aged 85.{{cite news|last=Bernstein|first=Adam|title=Jack Germond, syndicated columnist and TV commentator, dies at 85|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/jack-germond-syndicated-columnist-and-tv-commentator-dead-at-85/2013/08/14/891c3b34-c5da-11df-94e1-c5afa35a9e59_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 14, 2013|accessdate=February 19, 2024|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130817082540/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/jack-germond-syndicated-columnist-and-tv-commentator-dead-at-85/2013/08/14/891c3b34-c5da-11df-94e1-c5afa35a9e59_story.html|archivedate=August 17, 2013|url-status=dead}}{{cite news|title=Legendary political reporter Jack Germond dies at age 85|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/08/14/legendary-political-reporter-jack-germond-dies/2651559|publisher=USA Today|access-date=August 14, 2013|date=August 14, 2013}}
Bibliography
=With Witcover=
- Blue Smoke & Mirrors: How Reagan Won and Why Carter Lost the Election of 1980, Viking Press (1981)
- {{cite book|author1=Jack W. Germond|author2=Jules Witcover|title=Wake Us When It's Over: Presidential Politics of 1984|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K4Z4AAAAMAAJ|access-date=August 25, 2013|year=1985|publisher=Simon & Schuster|isbn=978-0-02-630710-9}}
- Whose Broad Stripes and Bright Stars? The Trivial Pursuit of the Presidency 1988, Warner Books (1989)
- Mad As Hell: Revolt at the Ballot Box 1992, Warner Books (1992)
=Solo=
- {{cite book|title=Fat Man in a Middle Seat: Forty Years of Covering Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JAYkrkASlu0C|access-date=August 25, 2013|date=January 8, 2002|publisher=Random House|isbn=978-0-375-75867-6}}
- {{cite book|title=Fat Man Fed Up: How American Politics Went Bad|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_Dvr5D54A_gC|access-date=August 25, 2013|year=2005|publisher=Random House Trade Paperbacks|isbn=978-0-8129-7092-0}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|0314595}}
- {{C-SPAN|1665}}
- [http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=9924 Official Random House list of his books]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Germond, Jack}}
Category:American male journalists
Category:American political writers
Category:The Baltimore Sun people
Category:University of Missouri alumni
Category:The Washington Star people