Even more noteworthy was his uncanny skill at defusing explosive situations. Danny Keeter, a friend from boyhood who officiated countless baseball and basketball games with him, proclaimed Jim the “best I’ve ever seen at handling situations. He knew people and what to say” to calm players and fans alike. But life was painful, too. On Jan. 27, 1981, he lost his only son in an automobile accident. Jim was shattered. Jamie was all that his father had hoped he would be, a multi-sport high school performer, a promising football player at Arkansas Tech. The sting of the tragedy never left Jim. He persevered, however, and immersed himself in his responsible USCE post and his still-expanding schedule with the AOA. His reputation continued to grow as an official who worked a game not for “a check and a hot dog” but out of love for sports and youth, girls as well as boys. His retirement from the USCE in 1999 did not end his officiating. Returning to Perry County, he continued to call games until failing health forced his retirement in March of 2018. Three years earlier, he had received the highest honors available to an Arkansas official: the Billy Ply Award and induction into the Arkansas Officials Hall of Fame. He succumbed to cancer three months after calling his final contest.
Perry County and the 501 are proud to claim Jim Magie, sports official extraordinaire.
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501 LIFE is once again profiling noteworthy athletes, men and women who made their mark in the 501. The “Celebrating athletic excellence” series features one from each of the 11 counties in the 501. The 11 are representatives of the quality of athletes found throughout Central Arkansas. This is the seventh of 11 installments in the fourth “Celebrating athletic excellence” series.
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