In an effort to save money, Chicago’s bankrupt daily newspapers are forcing their Cubs beat writers to share hotel rooms — whether they like it or not.
The Tribune’s Paul Sullivan has been rooming with Gordon Wittenmyer of the Sun-Times for nearly a month, and he apparently isn’t getting used to it.
“The season just started, but I don’t know if I can handle it much longer,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan accuses Wittenmyer of eavesdropping on his phone calls and attempting to scoop him.
But the list of complaints doesn’t end there. Sullivan says his competitor never flushes the toilet and snores so loud that neighboring hotel guests bang on the walls and file complaints with the front desk.
Wittenmyer denies any wrongdoing and says that Sullivan isn’t the perfect roommate, either.
“Not a day goes by that I don’t wake up in the middle of the night to some pay-per-view porno screaming away on the television,” he said.
Sullivan says he only orders movies to drown out Wittenmyer’s snoring and to distract him from looming deadlines.
From the May 2009 issue by Mike Pettit
