The Denver Postap last “sob sister,” feature writer Frances “Pinky” Wayne, chronicled the woes of abused women and orphaned children and was a prominent force in the newsroom from 1909 to 1946. Wayne grew up in Central City, the daughter of noted judge and congressman James Belford.
Dubbed “Pinky” for her fiery-red hair, Wayne was influential in the establishment of Emily Griffith Opportunity School and the city’s annual Christmas lights display.
She was one of owner Frederick Bonfils’ favorite employees (she had her own office) and was such a powerful force among women in the community that a mention by her in the paper of an upcoming City Council or society meeting would attract hundreds of people. Her reporting covered social issues of the day, including opium addiction, immigration and health, and she was one of those who covered the Ludlow mining massacre in southern Colorado.
She made no secret of personal feelings in her writings, often reported with high drama. During her coverage of a 1919 murder that involved a husband, his wife and his lover, she described the “other woman” in this fashion: “She lay on the couch in the half-shadowed room cluttered with wearing apparel, shoes, slippers and the paraphernalia which indicates disorderliness.” Wayne portrayed the wronged wife, on the other hand, as having “a white girlish throat, her blond head and hazel eyes set in a face with an upturned nose, round, trembling chin and creamy complexion.”
During the sensational 1911 trial of Frank Henwood for a murder at the Brown Palace Hotel, Wayne wrote of the woman in the case: “Mrs. Springer was tender and gentle and very, very sympathetic. Her tips to servants were the talk of the hotel.”
Described as “the uncrowned queen of Denver reporters,” Wayne could be imperious and protective of her role. But late in Wayne’s career at The Post, as her reportorial skills diminished, new editor Palmer Hoyt shunted her off, and she joined the Newspaper Guild because she feared The Post was trying to get rid of her. Angry management fired her, ending her 37-year career.
The Francis Belford Wayne Merit Award, named in her honor by the Denver Woman’s Press Club, goes each year to a University of Colorado media and information student.
