Jim Murray
1919-1998

      His was not an easy life though. He lost a son to drug addiction and a wife to cancer. He lost his sight in one, and then both eyes. Later, he was able to regain partial sight in one eye and he openly commented that he hoped his sight would outlast his heart which had given him problems as well.

      On Sunday, August 16, 1998 he suffered cardiac arrest while watching television in his Brentwood home. Sadly, ironically, he had gotten his wish. But after 37 years with The Los Angeles Times he has left us with thousands of columns with which to remember him by. Here are a selected few dealing with horse-racing. I've also included the columns written when he lost sight in his "good" eye, when his first wife passed away, and his first column as well. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoyed researching them. I think you'll see just how special Mr. Murray was.

      Thanks Jim. You'll most definitely be missed.