JEFF PEARLMAN

JEFF PEARLMAN

A horrible moment

NFL Historical Imagery

God, I feel so incredibly terrible.

A few moments ago I dialed a phone number I have for Rick Kane, the former Detroit Lions running back who played in the NFL from 1977 through 1985. I wanted to speak to him for my book project.

“Hello …” the woman said.

“Yes, I was trying to reach Rick Kane.”

“What?”

“I’m trying to reach Rick Kane, the former running back for the Lions …”

A lengthy pause.

“That’s my husband … (Tears, followed by a tone of angry disbelief) he died Christmas day.”

I didn’t know what to say. “I’m so sorry,” I uttered. “M’am, I had no …”

Click.

Had I taken eight seconds to look at his Wikipedia page beforehand, I would have known.

Awful.

All-time awful.