Brush with Famous - Bill Janklow

South Dakota Governor Bill Janklow
1979 - 1987, 1995 - 2003
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I arrived in Pierre, South Dakota in July, 1986.  Governor Bill Janklow was running against a sitting U.S. Senator in the Republican primary because he couldn't run for re-election.

He lost the primary, so finished his term (he later served another eight years as Governor after winning that election in 1994) as I was getting familiar with my job as the Capitol reporter for KELO-TV.

The most memorable Bill Janklow moment for me was something I wrote about seven years ago in this space (you have to read to the end of the story to read the anecdote).

Before the Governor asked who I would pardon there was another story.  The assignment editor told me to ask Bill Janklow for comments on our our top story that day.  

I called the Press Secretary.  There wasn't a time for an appointment, but there might be time at some point so I camped out on a bench in the reception room.  

After an hour, he decided I waited long enough and rewarded my stamina with a few minutes.

Janklow was a big personality, a force of nature, popular with voters despite or because of scrapes he had along the way.

That personality was on display in a story that could only happen with a South Dakota governor.  

When I worked in Pierre, the Governor's home phone had a listed number.  The Governor answered it.  It wasn't unusual to see the Governor and family shopping downtown.  Pierre had a population of 15,000 then, so it was small town with a lot of changeover as elected and appointed officials moved in and out of the community.

The fun story happened when the Governor worked as an official at a high school football game.  

I was the only TV reporter covering the game (our competitors didn't have a reporter in Pierre outside of the legislative session) so I had access before and after the game to interview the Governor; other refs; and coaches.  Mr. Janklow clearly enjoyed his experience and it came through on camera.

After leaving office, he ran again and won the seat back in 1994 and was re-elected in 98.  He won a seat as the state's lone Congressman in 2002.  He didn't serve long.  While back in the state, he was in a car crash that killed a motorcyclist.  He was convicted of vehicular manslaughter in December 2003 and resigned his House seat in January 2004.

Governor Janklow died of brain cancer in 2012.