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HARRISBURG PA – Murray Janoff, 100, Communicators Hall of Fame member and the last surviving founding member of the U.S. Harness Writers Association, passed away peacefully in his sleep early Tuesday morning in Boca Raton FL.
Janoff, a native of New York City and a World War II veteran who attended a reunion of participants in the famous "Battle Of The Bulge" earlier this year, started his writing career at the Long Island Press in 1936 and worked for the paper until it closed in 1977; he then freelanced for wire services AP, UPI, and Reuters. While at the Press, he also authored a weekly column, Murray Janoff's Locker Room.
Janoff was a founding member of the U.S. Tennis Writers Association (covering the U.S. Tennis Open for 61 years) and the Professional Basketball Writers Association (covering the New York Knicks' first-ever game in 1946 in Toronto). Murray also served as president for writers' associations in four sports. His knowledge and versatility made him a valuable asset to whomever he worked for – such as his prediction of Joe Namath's New York Jets, for whom he was a beat writer, upsetting the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III.
Murray was one of the dozen chroniclers of Roosevelt Raceway who met "over hamburgers and beer" after the races on the night of May 8, 1947 to form the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA), harness racing's leading media organization, and was a member for 68 years. (Reportedly, "although he was too modest to admit it," both USHWA and the Tennis Writers Association originated with an idea from him.)
In 2007, Janoff was inducted into the Communicators Hall of Fame, the highest honor in the sport that can be bestowed on a member of the media. He was still active in the Florida Chapter of USHWA, for whom he had served a term as President, and is also a member of the Florida USHWA Hall of Fame.
Even in his last years, Janoff retained an excellent memory of many of the great moments in sports for which he had been in attendance, and was also an excellent raconteur. He also enthusiastically shared ideas and good-naturedly debated issues with anyone, virtually all of whom did not possess a fraction of his experience or expertise.
The funeral service for Murray Janoff will be held tomorrow (Wednesday) at 1 p.m. at the Gutterman-Warheit Memorial Chapel, 7240 N Federal Highway, Boca Raton FL. Those wishing to contribute to a charity in Janoff's memory can obtain information by calling Gutterman-Warheit at 561 997 9900.
Jerry Connors
