On the Lewiston Tribune Facebook site, Publisher Nathan Alford is shown holding up a photo of his grandfather, Bud Alford, which bears the newspaper’s famous quote: “Our opinions are not for sale.” I worked for two years for Nathan’s father, Butch, as a news editor at the Trib. I can guarantee you that old Bud’s comment was accurate. Ladd Hamilton, Bill Hall, and later Jim Fisher wrote hard-hitting editorials and didn’t kowtow to anyone. Glad to see the new Alford at the helm of the Very Good Ship U.S.S. Tribune is following in the same footsteps.

Butch Alford, our esteemed former publisher, recently took an unexpected dip in Payette Lake at McCall. During the Payette Cup Regatta, Alford was aboard his sailboat, the Nancy Ann, when he was knocked into the 48-degree water by the boom. A nearby sailor threw him a lifeline and pulled Alford from the frigid lake. His left leg smacked a winch during the mishap, but he was able to race the next day. Unfortunately, this sailing-gone-awry story doesn’t end there. When it was time to get his San Juan 21 sailboat ready for the trip home, the mast fell 3 to 4 feet, striking the Lewiston semi-retiree. “A falling mast is a sailor’s nightmare,” he told the Tattler. “It missed my head, but it hit my left leg”/Tribune Tattler. More here. (SR file photo for illustration purposes: Kathy Plonka)

Question: What’s the strangest thing that’s happened to you aboard a sailboat or motorboat on Idaho waters?

I had perhaps 10 minutes with Harvey, before scurrying back to work. Harvey had two things to impart. One: Young man, you’ve got an alcohol drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Neither is good for you. (I agreed to half, putting out the cigarette.) Two: Young man, I’d like to offer you my newspaper column, now carried by some 250 newspapers. Although I wasn’t the decision-maker at that time, I demurred on behalf of the Tribune, saying his radio broadcasts were sufficient. (Actually, he was better on radio than his print column, in my opinion.) At that time, Harvey was in his 50s, lean and tall and balding. His voice was a marvel, whether in conversation or on the radio/Butch Alford, former publisher of the Lewiston Tribune. More here.

Question: What do you recall most fondly re: the late Paul Harvey?