Literary Journalism at Sports Illustrated Dan Jenkins, Frank Deford and Roy Bount, Jr

"ABSTRACT: This thesis will examine the work of the writers Dan Jenkins, Frank Deford and Roy Blount, Jr., primarily at Sports Illustrated in the 1960s and '70s, and, secondarily, after they moved on and made their mark in fiction, essay and commentary. Each of these writers influenced American journalism in a profound way, through innovation and experimentation, and each will be evaluated in comparison to those writers of their generation that are credited with developing the journalistic style known as Literary Journalism. This project will define each writer s unique and important contribution to journalism and to modern literature. Sports Illustrated, which reached its peak of creativity and financial success during the time of these writers' rise to fame, played a vital role in the growth and development of Jenkins, Deford and Blount. This thesis will place the writers' work in the context of the growth of a magazine that was at the time considered by many the finest weekly publication in America. In conclusion, this thesis will show that great journalism was being produced at a magazine devoted to sports, and these three writers used the vast subject of sports in America to create journalism that left an indelible mark on both their contemporaries and on writers of future generations."

"Literary Journalism at Sports Illustrated Dan Jenkins, Frank Deford and Roy Bount, Jr"