Kurt Vonnegut had a very brief tenure at Sports Illustrated

Did you know that American author Kurt Vonnegut worked at Sports Illustrated? Well he did in the 1950s – for a few hours, at least.

Reminder that Kurt Vonnegut very briefly worked for Sports Illustrated: pic.twitter.com/hkxg2qJmmp

— Letters of Note (@LettersOfNote) November 26, 2014

@maxthegirl @sarahditum It's an anecdote told by his son, Mark, in 'Armageddon in Retrospect'.

— Letters of Note (@LettersOfNote) November 26, 2014

A full excerpt from Armageddon in Retrospect (including the SI anecdote) can be read at NPR.

Could you imagine the firestorm that would occur today if word leaked out that SI had hired Vonnegut, or someone similar to him? Even if nothing he wrote was published by the magazine or on the website, the clashes between those who despised his work and those who appreciated it would put all current sports media debates to shame. The outrage over First Take would barely be a blip on the radar compared to the outrage over Vonnegut.

At the very least, this is an interesting footnote to his life.