Murray Was Biggest Name of Them All

“You’ve never been to Las Vegas?” Jim Murray said to me.

He looked surprised for a second and then told a story.

“Let me tell you about my first time in Las Vegas,” he said.

He started talking about covering a trial involving a jilted Irish war bride, who shot her husband and killed him. We were sitting in the press room at Grand Champions Resort at Indian Wells.

Soon, Jim had plenty of company as he told the story. The trial wasn’t the highlight, however. “Bugsy had us over to see the casino,” he said.

Whether it was Bugsy Siegel one day or Lucille Ball the next, the highlight of the tournament was listening to Jim. But it was never name-dropping. These stories were about his life.