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BILL CORUM Bill Corum Directing His Third Derby Popular Sports Scribe Guided By Late Col Winns Principles Also Has Infused New Ideas Of His Own Into Handling of World Famous Racing Classic ClassicBy By OSCAR OTIS OTISCHURCHILL CHURCHILL DOWNS Louisville Ky May 2 The seventyeighth running of the Kentucky Derby here tomorrow marks the third year the American sophomore classic will be run under the direction and per ¬ sonal supervision of one of the great names in American sports and newspaper fields Bill Corum CorumWhen When the builder of the Derby Col Matt J Winn passed on after a lifetime of ac ¬ complishment the board of directors of Churchill Downs cast about for his suc ¬ cessor and after a lengthy study unani ¬ mously selected Corum It was a wise de ¬ cision in many ways for while Corum had been best known to the American public as a sports writer and columnist he had great talents as an organizer an executive as a public speaker and as a clear and incisive thinker These qualifications we believe were necessary for any man to be able to fill the shoes of such a herculean character as Colonel Winn but in themselves they were not quite enough Churchill Downs needed all these talents but that had to be superimposed on a man who knew and loved horse racing who had the best in ¬ terests of the thoroughbred at heart who knew and understood people and whose every action and thought as the guiding leader of the destiny of the Derby would be to continue to build the Derby continue to maintain its traditions and from time to time as modern circumstances war ¬ ranted establish new traditions traditionsPossesses Possesses All Necessary Qualifications QualificationsCorum Corum had that fundamental back ¬ ground plus all the other qualities men ¬ tioned hence it was jus6 about inevitable that he became the choice of the Downs directorate History relates that invariably whenever a specific set of circumstances arise in the course of human events that calls for a certain type of leader the man will arise to fill the need So it proved three years ago in the fortunes of Churchill Downs DownsBill Bill Corums background is worthy of brief outline He had the usual schooling and excelled in his studies his main recreation being the playing of baseball Some of his friends at that time insist he might have made a career in organized baseball had he so desired When World War I flared into reality he was among the first to respond to the call of his country and he rose through the ranks by sheer merit holding the rank of major when hostilities ended endedAfter After the war he enrolled at Columbia University graduated from the school of journalism and was promptly hired as a promising journalist by the New York Times TimesOn On that newspaper he gravitated to sports and his writings were so vivid that he came to the attention of the late Arthur Brisbane of the Hearst newspapers Hearst upon recommendation of Brisbane made him such an attractive offer that he could not refuse He launched his now famous column and as a columnist it was only natural that he should begin to cover the Derby He became a close friend of Colonel Winn whom he admired greatly and through the ensuing years learned of the philosophy of Colonel Winn in making the Derby on outstanding race raceAccepted Accepted Post on PartTime Basis BasisCorum Corum accepted the post on a parttime basis and today as in previous seasons he devotes a great deal of time toward Churchill Downs and the Derby in other parts of the year continues his column columnOne One of Corums first official acts as the new leader at Churchill Downs was to pay tribute to Colonel Winn and to assure that his role as a Derby builder would re ¬ main forever in the awareness of Derby fans The old 21 club was converted into the Matt J Winn room and as one en ¬ ters this hallowed premise he looks at a magnificent oil painting of the Colonel ColonelHis His first tradition was to uncover an unbroken string of solid silver mint julep cups engraved with the various Derby win ¬ ners since Aristides and put these cups on display in the Wjnn room It has been decreed that only the owner of a Derby winner may drink from these cups which on such festive occasions as may follow the Derby running the happy owner may toast the horse with his friends from the priceless collection of silver silverOf Of course this is but a pleasant side ¬ light for Corums main job is to see that the Derby comes off in flawless fashion meet and greet the many visiting digni ¬ taries who annually are on hand from all over the nation and help straighten out any snags which might develop But Corum does not confine his talents toward court ¬ ing the good will of the great and the near great He unobtrusively tours the grounds day after day prior to the Derby running checking to see what could be done here and there to make the average fan more comfortable happier and his or her Derby visit more enjoyable enjoyableCorum Corum is fully aware that there are two sides to every racetrack a backstretch as well as a front stretch Part of his time in the mornings is spent over in the barn area talking to owners trainers jockeys grooms and newsmen The man seems to be most everywhere at all times timesAs As a newspaperman a good many years ago Corum coined one phrase to describe the Derby that not only caught the pub ¬ lics imagination but is now used by byContinued Continued on Page TwentyFive Bill Corum Directing His Third Kentucky Derby DerbyContinued Continued from Page TwentyTwo TwentyTwowriters writers everywhere to tell about the race It is The Bun for the Roses RosesThe The man has some definite ideas about where the Derby goes from here For one thing he feels that the Derby is a true national event certainly an obvious atti ¬ tude But more to the point he feels that the Derby owes something to all American racing and that because the Derby draws its patronage from all over the country it well behooves the management to lire up to its responsibility to racing by putting on a race with its attendant mellow pomp and circumstance that will speak well and in volume for the fine sport that is thor ¬ oughbred racing This writer believes he has done an able job along this line lineCorum Corum also believes that the prestige of the thousands of people who annually attend the Derby should not be unnoticed hence big names are welcomed to the Downs where they mingle with the masses and by so doing demonstrate the fact that the axiom that all are equal on the turf and under it is not just words but father a reality c Corum of course has an able staff They know their tasks and complete them with elan and dispatch It is Corums job to in ¬ tegrate their efforts He is the first to admit that the staging of a Derby is a task of the first magnitude a task which requires an immense amount of detail work Corum does that too and at the same time keeping always hi mind the vision for the future the ideals of the race yet with his feet always on solid ground it be ¬ comes apparant to one and all that Corum has met the challenge that the Derby poses for a leader and has conquered it nly a man of great stature could so do v y When Conim first took his appointment at Churchill Downs he plunged into the task with great vigor On Derby morning he paused and quietly drove to the grave of Colonel Whin where he paid a silent tribute to his predecessor Morally re ¬ armed he returned to his desk at Church ¬ ill Downs DownsDrawing Drawing his inspiration from the pre ¬ cepts of Colonel Winn it is safe to say that the future of Americas blue ribbon classic is in able hands The Corum mental horizons are unlimited
