Ray Robinson died last November at the age of 96. He was born and raised in New York, spent pretty much his whole life here and he died here. Ray wrote about sports and worked as an editor for magazines like Pageant, Good Housekeeping and Seventeen. As a kid, Ray delivered bottles of booze to the Babe at the Ansonia Hotel. When he was a young man he once went on a double date with Betty Perske, later known as Lauren Bacall. Ray was one of those men of the 20th Century. He’d either met everyone or he was once removed from meeting them and still had a story about them. A Zelig, a chronicler of the age.
I got to know Ray about a dozen years ago along with a group of other writers of his generation—Arnold Hano, Roger Kahn, and Al Silverman (who are all still with us, by the way). Ray was easy to know, a cheerful conversationalist and seemed to like when I called to shoot the shit. He answered my many questions and liked telling stories about the old days but mostly, Ray was interested in the news—particularly the politics—of the day, today’s game, tonight’s match-up. He was also interested in hearing news of what was going on outside of his world. Yes, he was a raconteur, but he wasn’t a ham. Ray was wry and sharp, had a common sense way of sizing people up. He was fair but no fool.
Ray and his wife, Phyllis, also a writer and editor, lived in the same apartment for 63 years. The place is so far east on the Upper East side that it is practically in the northern lane of the FDR drive. I recently went to help out Ray’s family sort out through his archives as they sorted through a detailed record of his long professional career. It was an honor and a privilege. It was also dusty—the apartment is on the second floor, half a block from the FDR Drive, so you imagine the soot that’s collected after 63 years of open windows. Profound. But digging had its rewards as Ray kept everything. Amazing to think what’s lurking behind those apartment building windows when you walk around the city.
I spent a few days digging through Ray’s papers and found treasure, to be sure. The gems and goodies will have a loving home here. Can’t wait to share them with you, so here’s a preview.
That’s Ray with the bow tie.