Bill Eddins, retired Inquirer editor, has died at 77

Bill Eddins, 77, of Philadelphia, retired editor for The Inquirer, lifelong grammarian, local golf champion, and expert DIY carpenter, died Tuesday, Nov. 5, of complications from diabetes and other ailments at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.

Mr. Eddins joined The Inquirer as a part-time copy editor in 1978 and rose to deputy editor of Inquirer Magazine and night sports editor before his retirement in 2001. Born and reared in Pine Bluff, Ark., he was known for his meticulous line editing, office collegiality, and distinctive Southern drawl.

“Bill was part Southern gentleman and part good ol’ boy rebel,” longtime Inquirer colleague Sally Downey said. Reid Tuvim, another former Inquirer colleague, said: “Turn him loose on a story, and it could become a gem.”

Mr. Eddins edited copy and wrote book reviews and an occasional feature for The Inquirer in the late 1970s and early ’80s. He was deputy editor of the Sunday magazine from 1985 to 1995 and ran the nightside sports desk for six years.

He mentored dozens of reporters, young and old, with his folksy style of instruction, and edited thousands of stories. When things got tense on deadline, former colleagues said, his composure under pressure and dry sense of humor usually kept things calm.

“He could work on the fly, which is always handy in deadline situations,” Inquirer sports digital editor Jim Swan said. Former Inquirer staff writer Michael Bamberger said: “Bill had style in all that he said and all that he did. He improved any piece of copy that came his way. I never write ‘said Smith’ because he told me ‘Smith said’ is better.”

Mr. Eddins called his word-by-word editing process a matter of “weeding” the stories and described himself as “a little piece of grit in the oyster that produces the pearl.” Eagles reporter Jeff McLane said: “I always marveled at how he was able to juggle so many tasks on deadline without hardly ever breaking a sweat. He’d zip through a story, always make it better, and, in his Southern drawl, yell over to the copy desk, ‘Y’all got the story.’”

He worked at the Pine Bluff Commercial and Little Rock Democrat in Arkansas before joining The Inquirer at the invitation of now-retired managing editor Gene Foreman. Mr. Eddins met Foreman in the 1960s when Foreman, then working in Pine Bluff, presented a young Mr. Eddins with an award for excellence in high school journalism.

“Afterward, we got acquainted and, realizing the teenager had genuine talent, I offered him a part-time job at the [Pine Bluff] paper,” Foreman said. “He had an exceptional career [at The Inquirer] in a variety of editing assignments.” Retired Inquirer columnist Bob Ford said: “He was unflappable and a wonder to work with. He made it easy to do good work.”

William Barkley Eddins III was born July 28, 1947. He was a natural-born reader and editor, his younger sister Dell said, and he grew up gifting books to her and other family members on birthdays and Christmas. Much later, he enjoyed gently correcting his hospital nurses when he overheard their grammatical errors.

“He was sensitive,” his sister said. “Growing up, I could talk with him about anything. He was an intellectual, no doubt. But he had a deep connection to feeling the world as well. He was my rock.”

He did magic tricks for the family when he was young. He wrote for the newspaper and played on the tennis team in high school, and graduated in 1965. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at Hendrix College in Arkansas in 1969 and married and divorced Gail Stewart.

He worked for a time as a carpenter and welder in Arkansas, and visited California before moving to Philadelphia. He met fellow journalist Patsy McLaughlin on The Inquirer’s copy desk, and they lived together in Spring Garden for nearly 40 years. “I remember seeing these bright eyes through all this hair and a beard,” she said of one of their early meetings.

Mr. Eddins often brought black-eyed peas to office holiday parties and sometimes worked with his feet propped up on his desk and keyboard balanced on his lap. He volunteered with the Philabundance food bank, admired art at the Barnes Foundation, and lingered in the stacks at the nearby library.

He never stopped taking on home carpentry projects and built a deck on the third floor of his house. He played second base on softball teams and drums in a band, and conquered countless crossword puzzles and word games over breakfast.

He was club champion at the Bala Golf Club and carried a respectable 10 handicap during the 1995 season of the Philadelphia Newspapermen’s Golf Association. He traced his family’s genealogy and doted on his cats, Black Star, Fluff, and Brown Cat.

“He was kind and gentle,” McLaughlin said. “He always said writing was hard; editing was easier. He was a rare person who always told you exactly what he thought.”

In addition to McLaughlin, his sisters Dell and Jane, and a brother, Kirk, Mr. Eddins is survived by other relatives.

A celebration of his life may be held later.

Donations in his name may be made to the Philabundance food bank, 3616 S. Galloway St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19148; and the American Diabetes Association, Box 7023, Merrifield, Va. 22116.