As I look in the rearview mirror of my career, the time I worked at CL-changed-to-WP-and-back-to-CL was the most rewarding experience. Friends made and the people I worked with made all the difference.
I was introduced to Ben Eason in 1992 through a former colleague (Rosalind Dorsey) from my stint at the New Times in Phoenix.
Ben and I hit it off immediately and decided we could grow CL after similar patterns of other alt-newsweeklies. There was no thought about how hard it would be or whether it was possible. Ben and I are entrepreneurs, and we know not to let those thoughts creep into our psyche.
I fondly remember the first time I walked into and stumbled out of the Castle. Alan Kahana and Sue Johnson introduced me to the cool world of Ybor City. Alan became one of my dearest friends, and still hasn’t ever let me pay for a meal. Once I intercepted the waiter at Bern’s before he reached the table and told him to give me the check and he politely informed me it had been taken care of. Damn you, Alan Kahana! I promised myself that some April Fool’s Day I’m going to order 10 pizzas and have them delivered to his house.
Don Barco from King Corona taught me about the world of cigars. He is one of the most generous people on earth. We spent many hours smoking, drinking and waxing spiritual into the hours.
The most amazing accomplishment and richly rewarding adventure for me was the culture of work that we created. It was tedious, challenging, and invigorating. And you knew in a minute you had arrived at that magical point when it lifted off.
Sharry Smith, Gia Coppi and Susan Dix did what no other newspaper management team had done. With shared leadership they took the concept of responsibility that we had infused in the culture and they made it one of the best companies to work for anywhere.
A friend of mine who was a veteran publisher visited our offices in Ybor. He roamed the halls and talked with staff for the better part of a day. That evening we shared dinner and he told me how jealous he was. “That’s the happiest, most productive bunch of people I have ever met in my life. How the hell did you do it?” I’m sure I displayed the biggest smile he’d ever seen when I could say that all the people who work there did it themselves by taking responsibility and learning to work cooperatively with one another.
Technically it isn’t hard at all. But it takes people with tremendous courage and fortitude.
Watching Ybor grow was fascinating. I got to watch my daughter Kris come of age and she took to Ybor like a fish to water. It was a young person’s paradise for creativity.
My favorite party had to be the cigar smoker the Planet produced at the Cherokee Club for Best of in 1995. It was packed, smoky and everybody was your best friend for that one evening. One of our freelancers created an enchanting compilation of jazz numbers from his personal collection. I was thoroughly spoiled and haven’t listened to much else since.
I most miss Delize’s Bakery in South Tampa. Franco and his lovely wife serve up the best breadsticks on the planet.
Terry Garrett was WP/CL Co-publisher with Ben Eason from 1993-98.
This article appears in Apr 18-24, 2013.
