Michael Littlejohns

Here is my Michael Littlejohns story which I hope is not too late to add to the tributes. In a dubious moment of glory, I learned exclusively from the Egyptian UN ambassador that Egypt had agreed to a cease fire in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The scoop was a big deal. But I was so flustered and nervous that I could not write the story. Worse still, I could not read my notes. Instead of berating me for incompetence, Michael calmly asked me to tell him what I had and he banged out the copy quickly and flawlessly, giving Reuters a five hour advantage, maybe more, over rivals AP and UPI. That’s the way Michael was - kind, tolerant, patient. He was one of the most pleasant persons I ever worked for at Reuters. (I went occasionally to the Reuters UN office from the New York office in the 1960s when it needed extra help.) ■