“A wordsmith is someone who expertly crafts beautiful sentences and uses language in ways that move and resonate with readers and listeners.”—vocabulary.com
Going by the definition above, anyone who heard Bobby Curran speak or who read something he wrote would agree he meets the requirements for the title of a wordsmith.
Curran was most widely known for his long tenure as a sportscaster in Hawaii, most specifically as the radio voice of University of Hawaii sports, especially football and basketball, and his long-running morning sports radio talk show. He was named to the Sports Circle of Honor at UH, his alma mater, in 2023.
Many do not know that Curran also wrote sports articles for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin as a freelancer in the 1980s.
It was without doubt that when he died at age 69 on March 9 that Curran had earned status as a Hawaii sports media legend. But not all legends live on with the legacy of helping future generations like Curran will.
His wife, Jo McGarry, guaranteed that with the announcement of the establishment of The Bobby Curran Literacy Legacy at Curran’s Celebration of Life at Murphy’s Bar & Grill on Sunday.
When Curran wasn’t speaking, the holder of a degree in English was likely reading a book. It could be written by anyone from Charles Dickens to Hunter S. Thompson.
More information about his efforts to help improve Hawaii literacy will be available soon at bobbycurran literacylegacy.org, McGarry said.
Several moving tributes highlighted Sunday’s remembrance. The most poignant came from a eulogy by Max, the eldest of Bobby’s two sons, who reflected his father’s intellectual curiosity and eclectic nature with references to Confucius, Benjamin Franklin and Jim Morrison.
Fittingly, the event was MC’d by John Veneri and Kanoa Leahey, prominent sportscasters who handle UH football and basketball broadcasting duties.
June Jones, the winningest coach in Hawaii football history, spoke of Curran’s diligence in handling radio play-by-play for every game of Jones’ nine seasons at UH, culminating in a Sugar Bowl appearance on Jan. 1, 2008.
Jones and Curran also found bonds in their love for Hawaii despite being born and raised elsewhere (Jones in Portland, Ore., and Curran in Long Island, N.Y.), and in recent years, through their spiritual faith.
“He became a kamaaiana, he lived the dream,” Jones said of Curran, who finished his bachelor’s degree work at UH as a nontraditional student in 1987 after also attending Hofstra and William & Mary.
“And church and bible study, that changed both of us,” Jones added.
Curran became close to pastor Norman Nakanishi before receiving a double lung transplant more than 2 1/2 years ago that helped extend his life, and allowed Curran to strengthen family bonds and return to his sportscasting duties.
Many loved ones attended Sunday, including younger son Finn, nephew Matthew, sister-in-law Tiffany and several of Curran’s siblings Tim, Jamie, Suzanne and Jerry. Friends old and new, including going back to his time as a server at Compadres while working his way through school at UH, also came to pay tribute.
Some of Curran’s ashes were spread at sea in a private ceremony.
