Transcript
Levey Live: Q&A With Obit Editor Richard Pearson
Bob Levey
Washington Post Columnist
Tuesday, June 16, 1998; 12:00 PM Good afternoon and welcome to "Levey Live." I’m Washington Post columnist Bob Levey, your host. "Levey Live" appears each Tuesday from noon to 1 p.m. Eastern time. It’s your chance to talk directly to major newsmakers and to key Washington Post reporters and editors. Our guest today is the obituary editor of The Post, Richard Pearson. Pearson has been assigned exclusively to obits since 1977. He has been in charge of the obit staff since the 1980s. As he likes to say, people treat him with the utmost respect because he always has the last word. Any questions or comments you have about obituaries are welcome throughout the hour.
Reston, Va.: In general, what does a person have to accomplish in life to warrant a write-up in The Post?
Richard Pearson: In the case of a person who is not a public figure, the key question is where you live. If you live in the Washington area, we can probably do an obit. If you never lived here, we probably would not do an obit.
Bob Levey: Why does The Post insist on publishing a cause of death? If I've died of AIDS or syphilis, don't I have the right to privacy in that respect? Richard Pearson: We think a cause of death is important because it is the whole reason for the obit -- someone has died. The first question anyone asks on hearing such news is to the cause of death. And how could you do an obit of an 11-year-old and NOT have cause of death? In cases of AIDS or suicide, for example, we tell families that IF we do an obit we need the death cause, but we do not insist on doing an obit. Familes can ask us NOT to do an obit and we will honor that.
Washington, D.C.: What was your favorite correction? And how is Bob Hope doing? Richard Pearson: I recently ran a correction that was a correction of a correction. And the best part, [I] made all the mistakes myself. I would explain just what I did wrong but I don't want to press my luck. And Bob Hope is stable.
Oakton, Va.: Have you written your own obituary? Richard Pearson: No. There are too many people in the newsroom [who] would want to rush it into print.
Lorton, Va.: Day after day, month after month -- does it ever get to you? Richard Pearson: Well, everyone dies in the first graf of my stories, but I console myself with the thoughts that there are relatively few complaints from people I write about.
Bob Levey: Once upon a time, it was simple to list survivors. There was the grieving widow, the grieving kids and several brothers. But today, it's vastly more complicated. I've seen obits where both the wife and the mistress are listed. I've seen obits of gay people where companions (with no legal standing) are listed. How do you navigate your way through this thicket? Richard Pearson: This is a serious problem. Nothing seems more sensitive to many people than who is left behind. We console ourselves that we try to treat everyone the same as to who we list, and in the case of companions, etc., it is usually "public" information and there has never, surprisingly, been any problems with it.
Bob Levey: Did the congressman who announced Bob Hope's death realize that he was writing his own obituary? I don't mean it literally. But surely that poor soul's obit will begin with the Hope gaffe, no? Richard Pearson: Do you think I am the kind of person [who], in an obit, would point out that a public official had made an ass of himself? Well, Mrs. Graham has to sell papers.
Alexandria, Va.: How is it that when a well-known person dies, there is a full-blown obituary in the papers the day after? And how far in advance is an obituary prepared? Richard Pearson: Many obits, especially of elderly prominent persons, are written well in advance of their deaths, often by reporters who covered them. Others we manage to screw up and have to do on deadline -- like Alf Landon, who was barely 100 when he went. Who would have thought?
Reston, Va.: How emotionally challenging is it to approach a family to gain information about their recently deceased loved ones that they may consider sensitive?
H. Stern
Reston, Va. Richard Pearson: This is really the toughest part of the job. But you take time to explain to [the] caller just what you need by way of information, and just why you need it. Most callers, I think, hang up happy that they called us. Many of them say so.
Waldorf, Md.: Why do people die daily in alphabetical order? Richard Pearson: Those are the death notices and are ads, not news stories. They do not die in alphabetical order in news obits cause I could never master that tricky a-b-c song.
Washington, D.C.: How come there are so many obits about British people in The Post? Richard Pearson: Give the public what they want....
Bob Levey: Does The Post have an obit of Bob Hope ready, for that inevitable day? Richard Pearson: Wait a minute, I thought AP already reported his death?
Jacksonville, Fla.: What's The Post's rule on courtesty titles? Are they used only on straightforward obits, or also on news stories about people who recently died? If only on obits, what exactly distinguishes [an] obit from news? Isn't it confusing to have courtesy title[s] in some things, but not others? And finally, why not just drop the titles? If it's to "respect the dead," why not also respect the living? And how about really bad people who die? Who decides if they deserve respect? (I know this question is long. Sorry.) Richard Pearson: We use courtesy titles in all obits for the person who died. We are guided by how that person was addressed in real life. For example, no "Dr. Levey," even though he got [an] honorary doctorate from the Bulgarian mortuary college.
Washington, D.C.: Do obituaries ever have a joyful note? My question is not meant to be sadistic. Ever since seeing a fictional story on television, where the mourners celebrate the descendants' life instead of mourn their death, I have wondered how many different ways this could be done. Richard Pearson: I believe any number of obits could be called joyful in a sense, especially someone who has obviously accomplished much and led a very full life and died a peaceful death.
Bob Levey: Let's say Uncle George dies, and he was the worst guy in the history of the world. Robbed banks, kicked the cat, the whole bit. But the family wants to "sanitize" George's reputation now that he's gone. What do you tell them? Richard Pearson: We tell them that [a] news obit is the prominent events of [a] person's life, not necessarily the happiest. Once did an Army general who ended his career as head of Army MPs, then became head of U.S. Marshal's. But [I] think I had to include his prison sentence for stealing from the goverment to explain that five-year gap in his otherwise busy career.
Bob Levey: The weirdest obituary you've ever written was... Richard Pearson: Many have accused me of running obits of persons I have made up. Well, life really is stranger than we could imagine and those people are really out there. For example, "Brother Adam" the cantankerous religious brother in England who became perhaps the world's greatest authority on bee-keeping. Can't make that stuff up.
Bethesda, Md.: What is the first lesson of obituary work? Richard Pearson: Make sure the person is dead. No matter how good the obit is, there will be complaints if he is not.
Herndon, Va.: I have wondered why some persons have a lengthy writeup in their obituary and others only have a notice with minimum details. Why is there this difference? Richard Pearson: Believe you may be confusing news obits and death notices. Death notices are the boxed listings, news obits are the biographical profiles. And there is no connection between the two operations, 'tho they appear on the same page.
Bob Levey: How do you guard against a bunch of college kids submitting an obit of a person who isn't dead, or who may not exist? Richard Pearson: We "confirm" deaths by calling funeral homes, or we rely on news services for news of the death of people like, oh, Bob Hope.
Bob Levey: Half an hour remaining with today's guest, Richard Pearson, The Washington Post's chief obituary writer.
Bowie, Md.: I always have trouble guesstimating how truly significant a lead story in the obit section might be. I mean, if someone has the ill fortune, so to speak, of dying on a day when two or three others pass on who were more famous, that first person might be reduced to a small-font headline. But s/he might be the lead story with a bolder headline if s/he happens to be the most famous/infamous person who died that day.
Comment? Richard Pearson: This is everyone's nightmare. You like to think you can handle any number of obits -- or any news stories -- at once, but you can't. Classic example is November 1963: JFK and the writers C.S. Lewis and Aldous Huxley all died [the] same day. Before my time, thank God.
D.C.: Why are there three to four times as many men as women in the obits written by The Post? Don't they die in equal proportions? Don't most people consider their mother as important to them as their father? Isn't it about time to reconsider the criteria for obits -- and all manner of news? Richard Pearson: In case of private people, we are much influenced in this sense, by who requests that we do an obit. Familes may tend to call more about dad, who had a public life, than mom, who made his life possible. But that is all changing.
Arlington, Va.: Why do people call you "Noodles?" Richard Pearson: Well, it ain't 'cause I am very smart.
Bob Levey: The Post's obits are famous for their two-line headlines. The first line lists the person's name. The second lists a one-word description of who and what they were. But many people have lives that are far broader than one word could capture. How do you decide to say "John Kennedy, President," rather than "John Kennedy, Sailor?" Richard Pearson: or "Bob Levey/Discredited Media Critic?" Seriously, the subhead should tell you what, to the public, might "ring a bell" with the reader. Oh, THAT Bob Levey!
Bethesda, Md.: Why are deceased people identfied in obits by their occupations? Instead of John Doe, father of six, it's John Doe, architect, or John Doe, ditch digger. Why is more value placed on what the deceased did for a living than who they were? Richard Pearson: Because we are largely recounting the public events of a life, and probably knew him for his occupation rather than how many children he had.
Frederick, Md.: Do you participate in a "dead poll" wherein you try to predict which celeb will bite the dust next? I know this is big "fun" on the Internet. Richard Pearson: No. I understand at another paper, let us call it the New York Times, they once had something like this going: Put in a buck, get a name in the advance obit file, and collect if he/she is next to go. The "players" were asked by management to drop it.
Washington, D.C.: Do you have pre-written obits only for old celebrities? Or also for "high-risk" ones, like wild-living rock stars? Do you have one written up for Courtney Love? Although she seems less self-destructive than she used to be... Richard Pearson: I figure if Courtney Love goes, I will be among [the] first to know. Good lord, you should see her and Levey carry on.
Locust Grove, Va.: I enjoy reading the obits for celebrities, but those for unknowns can also be very interesting. A couple of years ago I saw an obit in The Post that I've never forgotten. The deceased was a local elderly man and the obit described the usual info, beloved family man and a long and distinguished career in the U.S. Foreign Service as a diplomat. The gentleman obviously had a very successful life, but what was really great was the way he died: Hit by a car while roller blading at age 77. My hero! What a way to go.
What is the most memorable obit story you've ever encountered? Jim K. Richard Pearson: Frankly, those "unknowns" are my favorite by far, and are the most fun to do. For example, Paul Erdos, a genius of a mathematician and a true original, came up with [the] theory that a mathematician is a machine for turning coffee into theorems.
Waldorf, Md.: Do you think it is incredible that a member of Congress would read an obituary filled with 'XXX's for date, place of death, etc., and think it was a complete and true obituary? Richard Pearson: well, I mean, look at the source. The fact that he can read at all might surprise some voters.
Bob Levey: Your general rule is to publish an obituary on anyone who has ever lived in the Washington area for any length of time. That means you run a whole lot of obits on a whole lot of people who haven't done very much, or haven't done very much of it here. If obits are news, as you've said, why are these obits newsy enough to run? Richard Pearson: Well, these categories are not black & white, which is why they pay me nearly as much as Leavey steals from Children's Hospital to make those editorial calls.
Bob Levey: Some obits have pictures with them but most don't. Why? Richard Pearson: Space, space and space. We never have enough. Pics we use are generally of 1) public figures and 2) in cases where pics really advance [the] story, such as pics of [a] silent screen star.
Bob Levey: Would you advise a young journalist just out of school to become an obit writer? Richard Pearson: Perfect job: your beat is the world, you might write about a mayor, scientist, soldier, educator or football player. Also a good place and time to learn how little you really learned at the college.
Ohio: I have a suggestion. When I go to The Post for obits, I am interested in those of possible national significance, and if these could be separated out, it would be easier on an out-of-towner like me. Thanks a lot for your help. Richard Pearson: Well, as in all stories, longer stories are, we think, more important. If it doesn't work that way, it is because I have messed up yet again.
Baltimore, Md.: Is listing the cause of death in the obituary mandatory or optional? Richard Pearson: We insist on death cause: [The] purpose of news stories is to report facts, not create questions.
Bob Levey: In light of recent events, have you rewritten the advance obits of Bill Clinton, Kenneth Starr and Monica Lewinsky? Richard Pearson: Only important people that our readers really care about: On your list, only Monica.
Bob Levey: When I began in this business, back in the Pleistocene Era, every obit had to contain every snippet about every person. The first obit I ever wrote noted that the deceased belonged to the AAA [American Automobile Association]. Were those the good, old, information-heavy days, or do you believe in leaner, meaner, more streamlined obits? Richard Pearson: With pressures of space, you have to pick and choose on those details. How much does it really add to a story to note that the guy who practiced law for 50 years and was a member of the American Bar Association?
Bob Levey: In this status-crazed city, some survivors choose to be identified by what they do for a living, rather than where they live. Why do you permit this in some cases but not others? Richard Pearson: Add "status" when there is an obvious question in reader's mind. "Survived by companion, Bill "Bubba" Clinton of Washington." Wonder if it is THAT Bill Clinton?
Bob Levey: Are obituaries handled differently if they're going to appear on the front page? Richard Pearson: Big [difference] is we remove honorifics. If you are of such note that you rate front page, you are no longer a Mr., Mrs., Dr., etc.
Bob Levey: Can we look forward to obits in a new and different form some day? Something more lyrical, more personal, less just-the-facts-ma'am? Richard Pearson: Obit formats change VERY slowly. Like it or not, you are guided by the knowledge that you can't make changes every day, the reader is entitled to "expect" a certain format [and] certain info, and when any changes are made, [the] reader should see why.
Arlington, Va.: How did you decide to enter your occupational field? Was it a life-long dream or did it happen perchance? Richard Pearson: Well, I never liked driving, but thought I would really like to be [a] writer, and be paid for it, and obits might be fun until anyone offered me a real job. That was 20 years ago.
Bob Levey: Two-part final question: What will the lead on Richard Pearson's obit say? And what will the lead on (gulp) Bob Levey's obit say? Richard Pearson: "Shot by a jealous husband" has a nice ring to it. Levey's will say that he is the popular Post columnist whose column is now pretty hard to find. And it will key to [an] appreciation on [the] comics page.
Bob Levey: That's it for today. Thanks to our guest, obituary editor Richard Pearson. Be sure to join us next Tuesday for a special show on summer travel. Our guest will be the travel editor of The Washington Post, Craig Stoltz.
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