Spink, J(ohn) G(eorge) Taylor (1888-1962)

US publisher and editor. In 1914 he succeeded his father as the autocratic editor and publisher of the weekly tabloid-style periodical Sporting News, positions he held until his death. It was mainly devoted to baseball.

He was born in St Louis, Missouri. He was the son of Charles Taylor, who had acquired the principal interest in the periodical in 1899 when its founder (1886), Charles's brother Alfred Spink, sold it to him After dropping out of high school in 1909, J G went to work for his father as an office boy J G Taylor Spink ran the paper as the autocratic proprietor he was, demanding total commitment from his staff and many correspondents; he was especially notorious for phoning anyone, night or day, wherever they were, whenever he wanted a story. On his death, his son C C Johnson took over as editor and publisher, and in the 1960s, anticipating its financial problems, converted it to an all-sports periodical; in 1977 he sold it to the Times Mirror publishing group. The firm also put out various other sports-related publications, including the standard annual handbook, the Baseball Register.