Joe McAdory: Bill Robinson was Picasso with a keyboard

Bill Robinson could pull a stone from the earth, examine it for a few moments, then poetically bring it to life with a few words. The stone would have a soul, its own tragic story, and somehow Bill would make you cry for that stone as it metaphorically represented something in your life.

Bill was a magician with a keyboard. He could turn an ordinary spring morning into the most beautiful day on earth. He could write about a blizzard and make you beg for a blanket. He could write about a complete stranger and make you feel that person was your brother.

He was the common man who wrote about common things. Bill saw things that few of us do.

He saw the beauty in one’s spirit, the evil dark clouds can bring, the grace in a bumblebee’s flight, the charm in an old cemetery and he had an appreciation for hard work by the hands of those who plow the fields or turn wrenches.

The keyboard was Bill’s wrench and he turned it better than anybody.

Robinson, 79, passed away Saturday morning.

Bill was a dying breed in the field of journalism. He wasn’t your ordinary reporter with a monotone assembly-line style of writing that simply spit out the boring facts. No. Bill was a storyteller, like his good friend Lewis Grizzard. He painted a picture and set the scene for the reader — thrusting them into his stories. Reading Bill Robinson was a journey unto its own.

Some of us believe Bill covered just about everything. I even joked a time or two he was once a Civil War correspondent, covering the Battle of Kennesaw for the Atlanta Journal and even got an exclusive from Gen. Sherman, plucking ashes from his hair.

We had the good fortune of publishing Bill’s columns in this newspaper for the last five years.

Some were sports-related.

Some were people-related.

Some were political-related.

All were colorful and descriptive. He couldn’t write any other way. One of the toughest jobs I had to do each week was trim Bill’s columns for editorial page. Bill was long-winded, but never dull.

Bill often strolled into this office, sometimes in a sleeveless shirt and ball cap — not exactly a picture of modern style. But he was the most romantic writer I’d ever read. No, not those hideous, mushy Harlequin types, but romantic in the manner he described his subjects. Never judge a book by its cover. Bill was a perfect example.

He loved the newsroom. It was his second home.

He wanted to stay connected to the news, the stories, events around town, and hustle and bustle of today’s journalism.

He wanted to feel like a part of today’s newspapers and reporters. He needed to be part of the team.

He needed people.

Doesn’t everybody?

Bill referred to me as Joseph the Irishman. I refer to Bill as the most colorful writer I’ve ever worked with.

Joe McAdory is editorial page editor for the Opelika-Auburn News. He can be reached at 737-2549 or