Jim Roddey: 1933-2024 — Pittsburgh’s Man For All Seasons
Jim Roddey, the first Allegheny County Executive, a man who came to Pittsburgh mid-career and became one of its greatest advocates and leaders, has passed away at the age of 91. The tributes already are coming from every corner of this region. “Pittsburgh didn’t deserve him, but we benefited from his leadership” was one. Another: “He was the very definition of what it means to leave the world a better place than you found it.” If there was anyone more charming than Jim in Pittsburgh, there weren’t many. And as Jim told the story, it was all because of his Dad, who when he would take his young son to social gatherings warned him that if he didn’t get a compliment about his son’s manners by the end of the night, Jim would get a whoopin’ when he got home.
Roddey grew to become a champion speedster in track and field, a dedicated Marine, a close associate of Ted Turner’s, a business success in his own right, an intrepid racer of sailboats, and a wit, humorist and raconteur without peer in Pittsburgh. He was a civic and political leader who believed in doing the right thing and did it, and he was a friend and mentor to many – including me. In the next few days, you’ll read obituaries about Jim in publications across town, but right now to mark his passing, we’re going to offer links to two stories. The first is Jim telling the story of his life in his own words. The second is one I asked Jim to write on the occasion of this magazine’s first issue 18 years ago about public speaking. Of course, he obliged. I hope you enjoy reading the words of this great Pittsburgher – Doug Heuck.
A journalistic innovator, Heuck has been writing about Pittsburgh for 37 years, as an investigative reporter and business editor at The Pittsburgh Press and Post-Gazette and as the founder of Pittsburgh Quarterly. His newspaper projects ranged from living on the streets disguised as a homeless man to penning the only comprehensive profile in the latter years of polio pioneer Dr. Jonas Salk to creating a statistical means of judging regional progress that has led to similar projects across the country. Heuck's work has won numerous national, state and local writing awards. His work has been cited in the landmark media law case "Food Lion vs. ABC news."
