Lewis McDonald Grizzard Jr. (October 20, 1946 – March 20, 1994) was an American writer and humorist, known for his Southern demeanor and commentary on the American South. Although he spent his early career as a newspaper sports writer and editor, becoming the sports editor of the Atlanta Journal at age 23, he is much better known for his humorous newspaper columns in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a popular stand-up comedian and lecturer.

Grizzard also published a total of 25 books, including collections of his columns (e.g. Chili Dawgs Always Bark at Night), expanded versions of his stand-up comedy routines (I Haven't Understood Anything Since 1962), and the autobiographical If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet to the Ground. Although much of his comedy discussed the South and Grizzard's personal and professional lives, it was also a commentary on issues prevalent throughout America, including relationships between men and women (e.g. If Love Were Oil, I'd Be About a Quart Low), politics, and health, especially heart health. Grizzard was also the stepbrother of the Southern humorist Ludlow Porch.

Biography
Grizzard was born in Fort Benning, Georgia.[1][2] His father, Lewis Grizzard, Sr., was a soldier in the United States Army who served in both World War II and the Korean War, and was a sole survivor of a Chinese attack that wiped out his platoon. Lewis Sr. left his wife Christine, a school teacher, when Lewis Jr. was young, and mother and son moved in with Christine's parents in Moreland, Georgia, where Lewis spent the rest of his childhood. Grizzard recounted his often frustrating relationship with his father in My Daddy Was a Pistol and I'm a Son of a Gun, and blamed his father's difficulties in civilian life on what at the time was called "battle fatigue" and is now called post-traumatic stress disorder, saying, "Daddy came home from his second war" (the Korean War) "a complete mess, the Army did nothing to help him, and he died young." He began his writing early, publishing stories of his Little League team in the nearby Newnan Times-Herald, Newnan, Georgia.

Grizzard attended the University of Georgia in Athens, where he was a member of the Sigma Pi fraternity and Gridiron Secret Society. During his time in Athens, he became an avid Georgia Bulldogs fan. He studied journalism, but he shunned the school newspaper in favor of the independent Athens Daily News. Before graduating with a bachelor's degree in journalism,[3][2] Grizzard moved on to Atlanta, joining the Atlanta Journal, and becoming the youngest-ever executive sports editor of the Journal at the age of 23. The executive editor of the Journal, Jim Minter, said that had Grizzard stayed there, he would be remembered today as one of the great newspaper editors of the 20th century. His time there included the Marshall University football team tragedy and the Journal's coverage of Hank Aaron's 715th home run.

Grizzard then left to become the executive sports editor at the Chicago Sun-Times.

Grizzard often drew criticism for his disparaging remarks about gay people and feminists, and his dislike for the New South and reflections on the "Old South" of his youth were frequently misinterpreted.[who?] Nevertheless, he was extremely popular in the South, and he had enduring popularity across the nation because of the perceived humor, humanity, patriotism, and "old-fashioned" values that permeated his writing.

A few days after marrying for the fourth time, Grizzard died of complications of his fourth heart-valve surgery. Prior to his surgery, he was asked if he had any questions; his reply: "I just have one question: When's the next bus to Albuquerque?"[6] As a result of the surgery, Grizzard suffered from brain damage, according to one report, from lack of oxygen to his brain. Had he survived, he would have been quite impaired. In accordance with his wishes, his body was cremated, and some of his ashes were scattered at the 50-yard line of the Sanford Stadium at the University of Georgia. T

Grizzard never fathered any children, but he did adopt Jordan, the daughter of his fourth wife.[7]