I didn't get the chance the other day to properly honor Arthur George Rust, Jr., upon his death at age 82.

It's difficult for under 35 readers to conceive of sports talk radio pre-WFAN, but for much of the 1980s Rust was pretty much all we had, and he did the job in a way that likely would not fly today, including a quirky, nostalgic touch that included intentionally using old-fashioned sports terms.

Rust was part of a rich history of New York sports talk in the days before it went 24/7, beginning with Bill Mazer and including John Sterling and the young guns at Fordham's WFUV, including early '80s students such as Michael Kay, Mike Breen, Bob Papa, John Giannone, Jack Curry and Paul Dottino.

Rust, a son of Harlem, also was a pioneer among black sports journalists.

RIP, sir. 

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