He really coulda been a credenza.
A “lede” is newspaper talk for the first sentence of a news story, which is supposed to lead you into the rest. (Spelled “lede” to distinguish it from the “lead” that sounds like “led.”) A month ago people in journalism were buzzing about what some said was the “greatest lede ever.” That was hyperbole. Yet it was a great lede: He coulda been a credenza.
Here’s a little item about how it came together and the instant recognition it got. (“Right away, I heard back from a few editors at the Daily. Messages like “Best. Lede. Ever.”)
Now I want to explain why newspaper people would call something like this the greatest lede ever. It’s not that the line is funny. Of course, it is funny if you know the scene in On the Waterfront to which it refers. (“I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I could been somebody…”) But that’s not what delights journalists.
It’s the miraculous fit with facts that can be verified. Brando really could have been a credenza if the Brando line of furniture from Florida-based company, Rooms to Go, had gone forward without being challenged in court by the estate of Marlon Brando. The court case makes it news. Which makes the lede a valid act of newspapering.
Funny. True. Legitimate news. And a miraculous fit. Thus:
I’ve written 2-3 pieces per day for about 5 years now, and none of the ledes have ever garnered this much response. Probably, I’ll end up putting it on my tombstone: Here lies the man who wrote the lede “He coulda been a credenza.”
