One of sportswriting’s most trusted voices has left this Earth. Sid Hartman, who even at age 100 was still contributing to the Star Tribune in Minneapolis multiple days each week, died on Sunday.
In a column for the Star Tribune by his friend and colleague Patrick Reusse, Hartman is credited as more than just an iconic journalist. Reusse writes that Hartman’s voice was so important that he parlayed his media profile into influential roles in the Minneapolis sports scene.
“He was for years a power broker in the local sports scene, playing an integral role in the early success of the Minneapolis Lakers pro basketball team while serving as the team’s de facto general manager and working behind the scenes to help bring major league baseball to Minnesota,” Reusse wrote.
Hartman’s career at the Star Tribune began in 1944. He was credited with “21,235 bylined stories in his career” for the paper. His final one ran last Sunday.
In addition to writing, Hartman was also a recognizable name and voice to Minneapolis radio listeners. He spent four decades with WCCO, where his son Chad works to this day as a talk show host.
