12 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • JANUARY 2018 12 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • SEPTEMBER 2017 12 LONGISLANDPRESS.CO M • SEPTEMBER 201-----------TUTU111
TRIBUTE TO THE PUBLISHER
John Kominicki:
Gone but unforgettable
John Kominicki burst on the Long Island
scene 20 years ago from Texas via Oklahoma.
Anointed the new publisher of Long Island
Business News by its then-new corporate
owner, Kominicki — he went by one name —
introduced himself that night by singing a song
he’d just written accompanied by electric guitar.
No speech. One era snapped shut, another
began. In the weeks and months that followed,
he engineered a series of changes, starting
by walling off editorial from advertising. He
hired new writers, introduced new features,
supervised a graphic makeover.
As a writer, his columns were humorous,
irreverent and insightful. As an editor, he
prodded his staff to get out in the field and meet
sources. Some writers disliked what they called
his “sharp pencil.” Others found his suggestions
— directives, really — invaluable. I remember
reviewing his edit of one long-ago article and
seeing his sole comment in caps: “HOW MUCH
IS HE GETTING PAID?” The answer I reported
caused me to reframe the article. The new piece,
far better, was front-paged.
I moved on after two years. Kominicki stayed
until 2013, transforming the publication
while raising the bar for Long Island business
journalism. He trained a generation of
journalists to use their brains rather than accept
pat answers, to demand more of themselves
rather than less of their editors.
He became a confidant of business and political
leaders even as he shone a bright light on
their goings-on. He was a masterful showman
and superb live interviewer. Media types and
power brokers who agree on nothing else agree
Kominicki was our Edward R. Murrow.
His last gig was as executive editor of this
publication. Tragically, his life was cut short by
cancer Dec. 5. He is survived by his wife, Marie,
and daughter, Anya, of Stony Brook, mother,
Alma Kominicki, sisters Stefanie Price, Jennifer
Danly and Michelle McLaughlin and brother,
Russell Johnson.
He leaves a remarkable legacy. Hard to believe I
won’t pick up the phone any more to: “Kominicki
here.”
-Warren Strugatch
My favorite memories of John were
discussing politics over lunch at the
Sweet Hollow Diner or at one of Paul
Tonna’s dinner group meetings. He
was a political junkie on all levels
but truly kept his finger on the pulse
locally. He loved discussing how we
could address our challenges and
capitalize on our opportunities. He
was the masterful panel moderator
who knew how to guide a discussion
and get speakers to open up. John was
a warm-hearted human being who
touched so many of us. Long Island
has truly lost a treasure.
-John Cameron, Сhairman,
Long Island Regional
Planning Council
Here’s what you never wanted to do with John
Kominicki: deliberately mislead him. Or fail to
show up as a promised guest at an event where
he was master of ceremonies. John was one of the
few people on the planet who could command to
silence a room filled with people intent on closing
deals. One year, then-U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton
was delayed for her scheduled appearance at
an Association for a Better Long Island gala.
John was master of ceremonies. Waiting for
her arrival, he began a series of deliciously
wicked, wonderfully barbed asides from the
podium. She didn’t show; he never relented. It
was a public reminder that if you crossed John’s
sense of decorum, there’d be a price to pay. No
swordsman ever had a rapier as effective as John
at the podium.
-Gary Lewi, Rubenstein
I remember John’s unforgettable performance at an HIA-LI holiday luncheon as Honey Bun
in the great song and dance number from South Pacific. He brought down the house with his
long blond wig and strategically positioned coconuts, twirling his not-inconsiderable hips
with gusto. Truly they broke the mold.
- Ann-Marie Scheidt, Director of Economic Development/Stony Brook University