From the Chicago Dispatcher, March 2009
From the Editor's Desk
THE Chicago Cabdriver
Remembering Bob Fordon (1922-2008), Chicago cabdriver and author.
By: Jonathan Bullington
Sadly, I write this column as the bearer of bad news. Veteran cabdriver and regular Chicago Dispatcher contributor Bob Fordon, succumbing to his advanced age and deteriorating health, passed away in September of last year. He was 86 years old.
Born June 9, 1922 in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Mr. Fordon's parents moved to Chicago when he was a young boy. At 14, as America's economy struggled under the weight of the Great Depression, Mr. Fordon joined the Civilian Conservation Core - a product of Roosevelt's New Deal - building roads and cutting down trees. By the early 1940s, he enlisted in the Army and served in World War II.
After the war, Mr. Fordon found work driving a semi-tractor trailer. When a co-worker of his came to work in his taxi, at first Mr. Fordon showed no interest in the profession. However, a month later that same co-worker, needing a fill-in driver, called on Mr. Fordon to take his lucrative Saturday night shift.
“During the night,” he said to me once, “I discovered the passengers I picked up were a lot more interesting than the shipping cartons I picked up. By 6 a.m., I was hooked. It was absolutely wonderful.”
Within a month of his first shift, Mr. Fordon bought his own taxi license with the help of the Army's GI Bill. He drove an independent cab for two months while shopping around for the right affiliation to join. He settled on Flash Cab, in large part because of the company's boss - Arthur Dickholtz. He would remain with Flash for the remainder of his driving career: 48 years.
Robert Fordon took to cab driving the way a fish takes to water.
“I never got bored driving a taxicab,” he told me. “I fell in love with all the stories I heard and the places I went.”
With almost five decades of chauffeuring passengers throughout the Chicago area, one can only imagine the vast spectrum of stories he heard and places he went.
“I knew I was encountering fantastic stories that should be written about,” he said. As a rookie driver, he read the book “My Flag is Down: The Diary of a New York Taxi Driver” by James V. Maresca. Clearly impressed, he decided to keep a journal of his own taxi experiences.
The final product is a collection of 98 short stories - accounts really - which offer vivid snapshots of life as a Chicago cabdriver in the mid-20th century: the sights, the smells, the passengers.
“I don't want to write fiction,” he said. “My stories are all about the truth.”
At 5'7” tall, 140 lbs., his appearance bore a striking resemblance to John Wayne. And much like the characters portrayed by Wayne in many of his films, Mr. Fordon was known to face down a villain or two.
In one instance, he drove up on a man being robbed and beaten by a gang of five. He jumped out of his taxi and, with the help of another cabdriver, fought off the five attackers before chasing and capturing one gang member, whom police later took in custody.
Another time he helped police arrest three people who had busted the windows of a neighborhood bar. Still another time, he chased down a 200-pound passenger who robbed him, tackling him to the ground. While he waited for police to arrive, a group of bystanders came and pulled him off the would-be robber, allowing the man to flee. Fordon broke free, chased the robber down - again - tackled him and sat on his back until police arrived. A newspaper headline the next day read: “Cabbie, 140, Downs a Bandit, 200.”
In 1969, he took a part-time job with the Illinois Department of Transportation's Emergency Patrol Unit (now called Emergency Traffic Patrol).
“I took the job because it was fascinating,” he told me, “and it had a retirement plan.”
In his time patrolling the city's expressways, Mr. Fordon was consistently recognized for his exceptional service. One letter addressed to an IDOT supervisor states: “I believe Mr. Fordon should be awarded a special commendation of some sort for his willingness to risk his life and consistently go above and beyond the call of duty.”
His wife of more than five decades, Elizabeth, and a daughter preceded Mr. Fordon in death. He leaves behind two daughters, six grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
On a quick personal note, I had the great pleasure of speaking with Mr. Fordon many times over the past three years. I would always look forward to reading each month's new story when his daughter Donna or niece Ginger would send them to me. And he always looked forward to seeing his stories in print and hearing the reactions they generated from readers. His passion for writing inspired me in mine, and for that I am forever grateful. He will truly be missed.
