Idaho Icon Perry Swisher, who died Wednesday at 88,, was a self-described grouch. As often was the case, Swisher was right on the mark. He attributed his irascible style to a bout of polio as a child, where he was forced to stay in a Salt Lake City hospital without exercise. He also said it grew out of his role as the eldest of 11 children. What it reflected was the confidence of a man who soaked up knowledge like a sponge and could stand on his positions. He argued with everyone from Idaho Author Vardis Fisher to former Idaho Statesman Editor John Costa. But if he took the time to argue with you, it was a sign of respect. Perry understood the West as only the son of an Owyhee County rancher who joined the iconclastic cast of Lewiston Tribune writers and editors could. He was a liberal Republican when there were such things/Rocky Barker, Idaho Statesman. More here. And more here.

DFO: I guess Swisher must have respected me. He once chewed my butt for a story that I wrote about the Idaho Public Utilities Commission during his days as a IPUCommissioner. He joined the Lewiston Tribune as a news editor three years after Swisher left as night managing editor.

Question: Do you remember Perry Swisher?