Here's Jack Mangus, lead editor for Cycle News East, hamming it up Salvador Dali style for the camera...if I remember correctly I was shooting facials for our passport photos. What ever the purpose, this is a great image.
Mangus was eclectic and well read. He could also be tough when needed. I remember that he went to bat for me on several occasions when my news reports brought a retort from industry VIPs.
One time I published a story that stated Johnny O'Mara won the 1980 125cc Mid-Ohio USGP on a Mugen Honda. Al Baker, who was instrumental in the Mugen effort, was on the phone contesting that the bike was not a Honda. I don't think I had the moxie at that time to hold that debate, but Jack had no problem stating his case. He challenged Baker on the origin of the bike's frame, main engine components, etc. I can still recall the sound of his voice escalating as he and Baker got into it. A young writer in the MX business doesn't forget things like that.
On another occasion Mangus chastised me for using a spelling dictionary when I wrote (no spell check in those days). He said throw it out, get a real dictionary...he said it's not just spelling a word, it's learning what each word means. Never forgot that, either.
There are countless other Mangus stories, but I can state with all certainty that Jack was a big piece of Cycle News and its success in the motorcycle industry.
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