Brandon Twp.- The distance between an idea for a book and it’s actual publication can be years. In the case of Bill Haney’s latest work, that span was two decades.
The seed for ‘What They Were Thinking: Reflections on Michigan Difference-Makers? was actually planted in Haney’s mind 20 years ago, when the township resident published Michael Betzold’s book, ‘Appointment with Doctor Death,? chronicling Dr. Jack Kevorkian and his terminally ill patients.
Kevorkian was just one of many fascinating characters Haney had met in a storied career as an author and book publisher and in a life in which friendships developed with beloved personalities including Ernie Harwell, the Voice of the Tigers, and Elmore ‘Dutch? Leonard, famed crime novelist.
‘I had in mind that at some point, I would do a book that would shed light on other dimensions of Kevorkian and assisted suicide and thought, maybe I have some other stories worth sharing,? said Haney. ‘Eight years ago, I started writing this book. It made for problems, because I wrote a number of these chapters, but was interrupted with other books and life in general, causing me to set work aside briefly, and when I came back to it, things had changed.?
Those changes altered the memoir’s chapters on Jennifer Granholm, who was no longer Michigan governor, and Joe Dumars, who had ceased to be a key player in the Detroit Pistons organization. Others featured in the book, including Kevorkian, Harwell, and Leonard, died while Haney was crafting the tome.
Yet the stories were timeless, he knew.
‘I felt the fact they were no longer with us was certainly not an excuse for not recounting these stories,? Haney said. ‘I feel the insights about these people are very worthwhile knowing so perhaps you can understand their work, their lives, and their careers better by reading some of these anecdotes and events that occurred that I was fortunate to be around to participate in or observe and that was really my primary qualification for doing the book. I happened to be there.?
‘What They Were Thinking? includes 14 chapters on people who indeed made a difference in Michigan, and whose reach extended much further in many cases. Besides Kevorkian, Granholm, Dumars, Leonard and Harwell, Haney pays homage to baseball great Charlie Gehringer; radio personality J.P. McCarthy; businesswoman Denise Ilitch; Lt. Milo Radulovich, a central figure in the 1950s ‘Red Scare,?; Academy Award winner Sue Marx; television travel show host George Pierrot; Pistons owner Bill Davidson; advertising executive and publisher Ron Monchak; General Motors President Ed Cole; Carl Oglesby, writer and member of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) during the volatile ?60s; and Tom Wilson, president of Olympia Entertainment.
‘My primary motivation was to share stories, and it happens that the stories I think are most worthy of being shared happen to be positive and I hope entertaining and most of all insightful,? said Haney. ‘I was not interested in regurgitating the same stuff that’s been written over and over. I was interested in adding a dimension and in the process, I hope the result is to entertain the reader with material they would not have gotten otherwise. Some of these stories, like the people themselves, are inspiring, funny and poignant. People will find humorous and touching stories they would not have known otherwise. Some of these people are well-known, others not, but what they did and the impact they had is very, very significant.?
The common denominator among the book’s subjects, he continues, is their passion.
‘They were passionate about what they did and you have to be passionate about how you treat them to do them justice,? Haney said. ‘They all invested tremendous amounts of energy and time and of themselves in to what they did.?
Haney’s challenges in bringing the book to fruition included which people to cover, and what material to keep and what to leave out. Like a parent, he denies having a favorite in the book, but admits Harwell, a close friend, was special. The long-time radio announcer for the Detroit Tigers got two chapters as there were two parts to his story? ‘the first part of his career before he got whacked and then when he got resurrected and brought back by (Tigers Owner Mike) Ilitch, the most brilliant PR move in the history of this state.?
Writing anything of book length is both an exhilarating and painful process, noted Haney.
‘There necessarily has to be protracted periods of isolation, where you are doing this one thing you are obsessed with to the exclusion of other things you want to do in your life,? he said. ‘That has a cost. But when you have finally gotten to the point where you got it right and are comfortable with having your name on it, it’s a very satisfying experience.?
The book is replete with pivotal points in the lives of its subjects and Haney is hopeful that readers of ‘What They Were Thinking? will find revelations within his memoir’s pages.
‘I hope the readers say, ‘I never really thought of it that way, that was really interesting to know about him or her,?? said Haney. ‘So that no matter what side they are on, they understand the other side a little better. You want people to feel they learned something, were touched or moved, that they laughed, that it was worth their time to read the book. I think that will happen.?
A book launch event for ‘What They Were Thinking: Reflections on Michigan Difference-Makers? is planned for 5-7:30 p.m., Sept. 17 at 220 Merrill, Birmingham. Limited first editions of the book will be sold at a price of $40, with book sales benefitting Reading Works, a non-profit organization supporting literacy.
Copies of ‘What They Were Thinking? can also be purchased at a retail price of $27.95 on Amazon.com, at select bookstores including Barnes & Noble, and by direct order from Seattle Book Company at reganp@tshore.com.