La Crosse Tribune, Wis., Larry Olson column: Larry Olson: Kenneth be that 39 years have passed?

Jun 30, 2008 (La Crosse Tribune - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- SLE | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Thirty-nine years ago today was my first day of work at the La Crosse Tribune. I was hired as assistant city editor and for four years worked in the former Trib building at Fourth and Cass (now home to Sara Lee and her crouton enterprise).

At age 30, I had left behind myriad stops in a post-college journalism career. They included an entry-level reporter position at the Sioux Falls (S.D.) Argus-Leader, a do-everything-from-publisher-to-janitor work as editor of the Valley City (N.D.) Times-Record, and a copy rim/hot type composition stint at the Salt Lake (Utah) Tribune.

I will be forever grateful for each pre-Trib career stop, but with honesty I can report that my then-and-now days with the Trib are foremost in my portfolio of the "good ol' days." I left the Trib in 1980 and returned in 2006.

More than a few of you might remember the few personages that follow as I share my early days at the Trib.

When I arrived, I thought it quite unusual to be immersed in a plethora of Kenneths.

There was Kenneth O. Blanchard, managing editor, who met me at the La Crosse Airport on his birthday (June 1), interviewed me, sent me back to Salt Lake City and hired me a couple of weeks later. He was my family's (wife, Betty, and our sons, Brett, 4, and Cory, 1) welcoming host upon our arrival in La Crosse. This Kenneth later became the Trib's publisher, and to this day is a dear acquaintance. Now 81, Ken resides at Hillview Health Care Center. On his most recent birthday, I had the pleasure of paying Ken a brief visit at Hillview. His wife, Jeanne (a Trib employee in Ken's pre-publisher days), also was visiting. It was good to be with them once again.

The city editor and my first "boss" at the Trib was Kenneth F. Teachout. Very direct in his Harry Truman no-nonsense approach to putting out the news, he was a great mentor. To me, this is one who will correct you when something has gone awry, praise you when you do a good job, and know he has done such a splendid job that he can leave town on a three-week vacation. After two weeks of coaching, he did leave the "new boy" with city editor responsibilities. I always knew where I stood with this Kenneth, and I miss him dearly. It would be grand to once again have a chat with the late Kenneth F. Teachout.

Working one floor up from the main newsroom at Fourth and Cass was Kenneth G. Brown, then reporting anything that had to do with the outdoors and occasionally becoming involved in sports coverage. To this day, Kenny G. can be read occasionally in our Letters to the Editor -- always with well-thought-out thoughts on various issues. I can't remember when I haven't gotten a big kick from humorous twists of the tongue. It was this that endeared me to this now long-retired gentleman. It came in the early 1970s at a birthday gathering in a downtown pub for news editor Merle Hill. A rousing toast for Merle's continued years of mirth and good health was highlighted with a comment from the usually demure Kenny G., who exclaimed: "Happy Mirthday, Berle!"

A few months after I was settled in at the Trib, our news desk welcomed back Kenneth E. Brekke from active military duty. Many today still run across Ken and enjoy his good humor. He retired from the Trib while still a kid (his early 50s), but his byline appears on Trib articles from time to time, and his copy usually brings big smiles. A refresher for readers: He knows a lot about travel, gambling and his Norwegian roots, in no particular order. And he plays a mean game of golf. He has been there through good times and bad times, and that is what makes this Kenneth a true friend.

These Kenneths moved with the rest of the old Trib's staff to the new Trib at 401 N. Third St. in 1973. Sadly, there are no Kenneths on today's newsroom staff, but there are a handful of former newsroom acquaintances still at the Trib to help me remember the "good ol' days."

I regret that space doesn't allow mention of everyone so special in this Trib newsman's life. Maybe at another time, in another way. After all, the present-day Trib staff could be contributing to another chapter in my book of the "good ol' days."

Contact Larry Olson at larry.olson@lacrossetribune.com or address mail to him at La Crosse Tribune, 401 N. Third St., La Crosse, WI 54601.

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