Before retiring in 2006, he was a sports columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and the Los Angeles Daily News and previously worked for the Los Angeles Times and the Associated Press. He has written and collaborated on a number of books, including Betty Garrett and Other Songs: A Life on Stage and Screen; See How She Runs: Marion Jones and the Making of a Champion; The Immortal Bobby: Bobby Jones and the Golden Age of Golf; and, in collaboration with Chicago White Sox owner Eddie Einhorn, How March Became Madness: How the NCAA Tournament Became the Greatest Sporting Event in America.
His latest book, Tim and Tom: An American Comedy in Black and White, is with Tim Reid and Tom Dreesen. It tells the story of the only black and white comedy team in the history of show business, and is currently being adapted for the screen.