Amica Mutual Pavilion's media room named in honor of late Journal columnist Bill Reynolds
PROVIDENCE — Given the breadth and accomplishment of his career, there is nobody better suited to capture the legacy of Bill Reynolds than the man himself.
He had no formal professional credo, but you might imagine it would look something like the words now painted on a wall at Amica Mutual Pavilion. They’re adjacent to the double doors fronting the facility’s media room, a space that now carries the name of the late Providence Journal columnist and best-selling author.
“Is it any wonder why I’ve kept doing it as long as I have, as the years keep falling off the calendar, and the people come and the people go?” Reynolds once wrote. “Because I’ve always loved it. The games. The work. The people I’ve worked with. All of it.”
A countless number of those occasions played out just a few steps from this room on the arena floor. Providence College basketball was a favorite — Reynolds chronicled the Friars through eras that included names like Rick Pitino, Billy Donovan, Eric Murdock, Ryan Gomes, Kris Dunn and Ed Cooley. It was partly under that spotlight where Reynolds carved his own niche, following his passion for basketball into what became a four-decade career behind the keyboard.
“It is really for all media who cover our teams, our events,” said Larry Lepore, the R.I. Convention Center general manager. “Without you and your stories, we’re just another New England arena with small crowds struggling to survive.”
The state’s General Assembly approved recent legislation granting naming rights to the space. Reynolds was honored at a press conference that also highlighted the return of Interscholastic League championship basketball downtown. The state’s boys and girls divisional tournaments will move from Rhode Island College to the former Providence Civic Center, which hosted RIIL games from 1981 to 2004.
“You knew and kids knew that when he showed up to one of your games it was a big game,” RIIL executive director Mike Lunney said. “When he was covering it, it was a big deal. Definitely a great opportunity for us to recognize and remember Bill.”
Lepore, Lunney, former Journal colleague Kevin McNamara, convention center executive director Dan McConaghy, Gov. Dan McKee and Reynolds' longtime partner Liz Abbott all had seats on the podium fronting the interview room. Reynolds was typically among those questioning athletes and coaches in that same setting. The majority of his pieces were written across Sabin Street at the Journal offices.
“Every time we walk by we’ll see the Bill Reynolds media room,” McNamara said. “We just can’t lose Bill Reynolds, which is outstanding.”
Reynolds likely would have spared a word or two for McKee and the ongoing Washington Bridge situation in his Saturday column. "For What It’s Worth" was an institution, doling out glowing praise and cutting criticism in equal measure. No party was immune, be it elected officials or someone in the sporting realm.
“I followed Bill for years and years and years,” McKee said. “My wife Susan loved the column on the weekends. His insight on movies — that was a go-to spot for us.”
McKee was a basketball player and coach before and during his early years as an elected official. He attended youth camps conducted by former Providence men’s coach Joe Mullaney. Reynolds, as a former standout shooter at Barrington High and Brown University, served as a counselor. His traditionalist roots in the game extended past the days his pickup career had finished.
“Bill would make a trip to the concession stand and bring a hot dog, a black coffee and some type of popcorn,” Lepore said. “I would ask Bill, ‘Why not enjoy the buffet?’ He would say, ‘You don’t eat Swedish meatballs at a basketball game.’
“I came to realize Bill wrote about the game, the players, the fans, the environment. It felt like he had shared the experience as if he was sitting next to you. If you weren’t at the game, you’d realize you had missed something.”
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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Media room at AMP now named in honor of Bill Reynolds
