Chairman emeritus of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He
became an advocate for children with cystic fibrosis after his daughter
Alexandra was diagnosed with the illness when she was a few months old.
She died on January 19, 1980, at age eight.
In 1983 he published a memoir that chronicled his daughter Alex's short
life. The book was adapted into the TV film Alex: The Life of a Child (1986),
which starred Craig T. Nelson as Deford and Bonnie Bedelia as his wife, Carol. Deford
updated his memoir in 1998 to include an epilogue on how his family and
Alex's childhood friends progressed following her death.
He and his wife Carol have had three children: Christian (b. 1969),
Alexandra (b. 1972 - d. 1980), and Scarlet (b. 1980). Scarlet is the
daughter they adopted a few months following the death of their
daughter Alex, who died of cystic fibrosis at age eight.
Former editor-in-chief of "The National" sports weekly.
Columnist for "Sports Illustrated" magazine.
Narrator of the documentary "Visions of New York City"
He grew up near Baltimore, MD, and attended the Gilman School in
Baltimore. He is a graduate of Princeton University and resides in
Westport, CT, with his wife, Carol.