Blogs and Libel - or Damn, NKK!

The Mercury News had a very nice piece on Fred Hoar today, and the standing-room-only memorial service.

While I was unable to make it out to the funeral, I did have a few friends that went and said it was a fitting tribute to a man that was so loved by so many. The place was packed, a testament to a man that went beyond just being an employer to many in the Bay Area.

It was very fitting that the column ended with Jocelyn, his daughter. Whenever I spoke with Fred, I always asked about his daughter because I knew how much she meant to him. When I worked with Fred, his eyes would light up when he talked about her, and you could just tell that she was daddy's little girl.

O'Dwyer's also had some nice comments on their article, and the ubiquitous FRED joke ...

Jim L (1/09):
Here was a guy who defined the best in our business for decades on end - he was thoughtful, shrewd, and effective. Through it all, he really was a nice guy.

Jeff (1/06):
Fred is one of the few people from my class at Miller that could smile on the fact that he was a PR man with the last name Hoar.

Jeremy Pepper (1/06):
Fred was one of those public relations people you actually enjoyed working for, and working with. A great boss, a great man, a great thinker.

I was lucky to work with him a little while as an intern, and kept in contact with him through the years. He will truly be missed by all those that knew him.

Shandwickian (1/06):
I had the pleasure of knowing Fred for nearly two decades. He was always mobbed at conferences and events by tech PR people like myself looking for tales of kicking off Apple or the million other projects he was involved in through the Valley. Cheers, Fred.

Retired Rick (1/06):
Fred was an icon and will be missed for the trail he blazed in tech PR. "It's spelled F-R-E-D"