Larry McCoy is definitely not a wuss.  Believe me, I know.  (Ignore that picture on the left showing him with a ladybug.  He usually doesn’t look that nice with insects, or children.)  Department of Full Disclosure: McCoy was the Executive Editor and News Director at CBS News Radio about 25 years ago. He was my boss.  His essay — wherein he deconstructs “performance reviews” in the workplace — gives you an idea of what it was like to have him reviewing YOUR performance.

Back in the day, I used to work the copy desk during morning drive. At 7:05, moments after the 7:00 am hourly news report had aired, the phone would ring. After that, the four most dreaded words in the English language were: “McCoy’s on the phone.” You knew he’d listened over his morning oatmeal, and you’d done something wrong. Was it screwing up some number in the CPI, or missing some story that was on page A-12 of Newsday? Was it because you’d identified Martin Luther King, Jr. as simply “Martin Luther King”, neglecting that he had a father by the same name?  The possibilities were limitless.  

McCoy was Perry White crossed with Josef Stalin. But he could also be hilarious and, if he was in the mood, surprisingly generous with praise. (If anyone wants to cast his part in the movie version of my life, I’d recommend Tommy Lee Jones.)