Nothing less than an American original

Charley Morgan, an icon in the world of sailing from the late 1940s, passed away at 93 years on January 6, 2023. In this report for Cruising World, Herb McCormick offers a view of this American original:

Charley Morgan picked up on the first ring.

Three years ago, while doing research for my latest book—a biography of sailing greats Steve and Doris Colgate called Offshore High—I placed a call to the legendary Florida sailor, boatbuilder, and raconteur, hoping to get some insight into his one and only America’s Cup campaign, aboard Heritage in 1970. That campaign was 50 years earlier, and Morgan was now 90, so I wasn’t really expecting much. I could hear the age in his voice, for sure, but after I explained the reason for my call, I also recognized a fresh perkiness.

“Oh, that was quite a summer,” he said. And over the next hour or so, it was crystal-clear that he remembered every bloody bit of it. – Full report