UKcoach helps send off photographer

With Herald-Leader photographer Frank Anderson about to retire, his buddies conspired to give him a special treat.

UK athletics staff photographer David Coyle decided to produce a video tribute to play at a roast. Better still, they got UK Coach Tubby Smith to participate.

After notables like Gatewood Galbreath, Terry McBrayer, Teresa Isaac and former judge Jim Keller poke fun at Anderson, Smith appears in front of the camera.

Smith praises the quality of Anderson's photographs and expresses admiration that a photographer so small in stature could produce such images.

Small? Anderson is at least 6 feet tall and weighs more than 200 pounds.

UK spokesman Scott Stricklin appears on camera to whisper to Smith that the retiring photographer is not the diminutive Bill Luster of The Courier-Journal.

"Frank Anderson?" Smith says. "Who is Frank Anderson?"

With that, the UK coach tears apart the photograph he holds in his hands and walks off camera.

"I almost fell out of my chair laughing," Anderson said. "It was funny. Everybody I sent (a copy of the video) to just died laughing.

"I'm sure he didn't know who I was. It was great he played along with it."

When it was suggested that Smith is a convincing actor, Anderson said, "Well, he is. They said it only took him two takes to do it."

Anderson retired Dec. 29 after working at the Herald-Leader for 42 years. He's not sure what he'll do in retirement.

"Nothing for a couple months," he said. "Then I'll get into something."

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Reprinted with permission from Jerry Tipton’s column in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

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