Bunte Retires From Negotiating
The year was 1955. The place was Salt Lake City. University of Utah pivot man “Artful” Art Bunte was cruising to a record-breaking 43-point performance against Utah State.
It was a basketball record that would be demolished, several times, by Billy McGill in 1961 and 1962, but in 1955, the 6-foot-4 Bunte’s performance was a very big deal.
Forty-five years later, Arthur H. Bunte Jr. is leaving another game, one he has played since 1979, when he was hired at Trucking Management Inc. to help negotiate the National Master Freight Agreement with the Teamsters union. This time he’s making a few comments.
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| Art Bunte (left) shakes hands with Teamsters President Roy L. Williams after ratification of the 1982-1985 National Master Freight Agreement, which was Bunte’s first negotiations as chairman of Trucking Management Inc. |
“The husky marksman with the feather touch hit for 16 double-deckers and 11 foul pitches,” reported the Salt Lake Tribune. “His point spread came from everywhere — long shots, tip-ins, left and right hookers, drive-ins and layups off the fast break.”
When Bunte left the game, he gave credit to his teammates for feeding him the basketball. And to the reporters who asked him for a more expansive quote, Bunte gave them a flat “No comment.”
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