That was one reason people gravitated to him and why friendships that might have been fleeting endured for decades. Those who came into his presence could count on being heard and understood. But despite suffering hearing loss that ultimately rendered him deaf in one ear and nearly deaf in the other, he was an even better listener. His quick mind and formidable intellect made him a great conversationalist, equally adept at navigating a spirited debate and sharing a funny story. He spent a lifetime in spoken and written conversation with classmates, shipmates, and colleagues as well as friends and members of his far-flung family. A self-described introvert, he nonetheless had a special gift for friendship. He and his brother, Armistead, who co-managed the Commercial, steadily built its reputation and those of two newspapers the brothers acquired in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and Yazoo City, Mississippi.Įdmond was known for his sensitivity and kindness. At their 1950 wedding in Chicago, Edmond-who had been captain of the gymnastics team at the Naval Academy-surprised his new in-laws when he removed his suit coat and executed a standing back somersault.Įdmond joined the Commercial as a reporter in 1951, ultimately succeeding his father as publisher. There he met June, impressing her with his ability to recite poetry from memory as well as his intelligence and good looks. After a stint in the Navy, during which the young lieutenant served aboard an aircraft carrier in the Pacific, he studied philosophy at the University of Chicago. Naval Academy, from which he graduated in 1947. Following graduation from Pine Bluff High School in 1943, he spent a year at The Citadel in South Carolina before entering the U.S.
He attended public schools in Pine Bluff and completed the requirements for Eagle Scout at age 12, though the Scouts made him wait until age 13 to receive his rank. Freeman, Jr., and Elizabeth Councill Freeman, Edmond was born on May 31, 1926. On the wall of Edmond's home hung a framed parchment bearing a passage rendered in calligraphy from "Special Delivery: A Packet of Replies" by James Branch Cabell, a writer a young Edmond greatly admired. Housman, Edward Arlington Robinson, and Edna St. His home office was lined with hundreds of books on topics ranging from poetry, philosophy, ancient civilizations, science, and mathematics to history and literature. Between trips, he indulged his lifelong passion for reading. He attended bullfights in Spain, climbed pyramids in Mexico, and held hands with an orangutan in Borneo. On another trip, he visited South Georgia Island off Antarctica. He sailed aboard a Russian icebreaker to the North Pole. In retirement, Edmond worked along with June to support a range of charities and institutions focused on the arts, architecture, healthcare, and education.Įdmond traveled extensively and always with a sense of adventure. The Freeman family published the paper until 1986, when it was sold. He is mourned by friends and former colleagues as well as many journalists he mentored and whose careers he helped launch.Įdmond's great-grandfather founded the Commercial in 1881. He also leaves behind six grandchildren and one great-grandchild. "The Commercial is lucky because it has an editor who's a real editor."Įdmond is survived by his wife of 70 years, June Biber Freeman, and their four children and their spouses: Andrew Freeman (Joyce Freeman) Gretchen Freeman (Alan Silverman) David Freeman (Ellen Kunes) and Eric Freeman (Rachel Miller). "Both of you guys are wrong," Paul recalled the third man saying. In a televised interview, Paul once recalled telling two other editors that the Commercial was fortunate to have a publisher who was also an editor-only to be corrected, Paul said, by a colleague who instead labeled Edmond an editor who was also a publisher. Paul and Edmond were close friends and collaborators for decades, crafting countless editorials on everything from small-town politics to foreign relations.
It was a distinct honor for such a small newspaper.
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Wielding a red grease pencil and exhibiting a fierce determination to get the words just right, Edmond edited a series of editorials on civil rights for which the paper's editorial page editor, Paul Greenberg, was awarded the 1969 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing. Under his guidance, the Commercial garnered national attention for its principled stand against school segregation during the Jim Crow era and for playing a decisive role in the ultimately successful effort to prevent development of the Buffalo River, which in 1972 was designated America's first National River. Biography: Edmond Wroe Freeman III, the former longtime publisher of the Pine Bluff Commercial and a newsman admired for his civility, courage, and dedication to journalistic excellence, died May 3 at his home in Little Rock.
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