University of Colorado at Boulder, 1963
Hometown: Boulder, CO
Inducted November 2010
Mr. Douglas Looney graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1963 with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. Upon commissioning as a Second Lieutenant, Mr. Looney served as an instructor of journalism for the Department of Defense Information School at the former Ft. Slocum, NY.
Following two years of military service, Mr. Looney emerged as a national journalist with experience in magazines, newspapers, books, radio, television, and university teaching. Prior to spending over 21 years as a senior writer at Sports Illustrated, Mr. Looney wrote for The National Observer, published by Dow Jones in MD, where his work appeared in Best Sports Stories. He served as the Special Assignments Editor for the Des Moines-based Better Homes and Gardens; Des Moines Bureau Chief for the Omaha World Herald, receiving the Nebraska Associated Press award for best story of the year; and as a reporter for the Nashville Banner, covering crime, political campaigns, and civil rights.
As a senior writer at Sports Illustrated, with emphasis on football and investigations, Mr. Looney received recognition for the best magazine story on sports. He is the co-author of Under the Tarnished Dome: How Notre Dame Betrayed its Ideals for Football Glory, which, published by Simon & Schuster in New York, reached No. 11 on the New York Times Best Seller List. His second book, All for the Love of a Child, was published in 1997. In addition, Mr. Looney contributed to books on the Denver Broncos, the University of Texas football team, and the official U.S. Olympic Committee book on the Sydney Olympic Games. Mr. Looney has written for the New York Times, The Sporting News, and The Christian Science Monitor; provided late night, on-air commentaries for NBC-TV; hosted a sports talk show for Denver’s leading radio station; and appeared on numerous national radio programs and network television programs, including ABC’s Nightline, CNN’s Crossfire, CBS’s 48 Hours, and PBS’s NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.
Mr. Looney was selected a Notable Alumnus of the University of Colorado at Boulder. His contributions include almost twenty years of teaching sports writing and sports literature. In addition, he was an 18-year member and past chairman of the Advisory Board for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and is a member of the Board of Trustees for the University of Colorado Foundation. Mr. Looney established an endowed journalism fund to assist students.
Mr. Douglas Looney is married to the former Mary Ann Winter of Van Nuys, CA, with whom he has two children.