Former Montreal Expos general manager and lifelong supporter of Canadian baseball Jim Fanning has died of a heart attack. He was 87.

Often called Gentleman Jim, Fanning first served the Expos as general manager in 1968, and stayed involved with the franchise in different roles until the early 1990s.

“He wore just about every hat you could for the Expos,” his son Frank said over the phone from the Fanning family home in London, Ontario.

The younger Fanning, now 25, grew up alongside his dad in Montreal until he was 10 years old.

He said as a young boy he remembers marvelling at the amount of people that would pull his father aside to shake his hand and talk with him on their way to the park.

“He even tried to learn French, so he’d be speaking the best American French he could to French Canadians,” he said. “And he was so happy to, because he loved Montreal from the bottom of his heart.”

An outpouring of support took place on social media Saturday afternoon as Montrealers and baseball fans shared memories and thoughts of Fanning.

“It feels bittersweet,” Frank said. “I keep thinking I could run into the other room and tell him: ‘oh, look who said this about you.’ But he’s gone. It’s hard to fathom, but we know he’s at peace now and we’re getting through it.”

Fanning’s wife of 30 years, Maria, said he’d be humbled by the support, though she wouldn’t expect any less.

“Jim loved the public and the public loved him,” she said. “They were true to him and he was true to them.”

The two met in Montreal when she was working as a personal consultant in the Dominion Square building. The Expos had offices there at the time and they crossed paths.

“I found out that the Gentleman Jim thing was real. It wasn’t a facade he put on for the public, he was a gentleman in the house too. Nothing about him was phoney, nothing at all.”





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GALLERY: Photos: Former Expos GM Jim Fanning A cartoon Aislin drew for Jim Fanning (and his wife Maria) on his 80th birthday. Aislin /Montreal Gazette files

A copy of an Aislin cartoon of Jim Fanning from 1974, when he was trying to form a roster with Gene Mauch. (Aislin gave Fanning the original.) Aislin /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning in 1975 Tedd Church /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning

Montreal Expos' newly named manager, Jim Fanning, adjusts his cap prior to taking the field for a game against the Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia on Sept. 8, 1981. /The Associated Press files

Jim Fanning in 1981. Bill Robson /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning at breakfast at the Marriott Hotel in Chicago on Sept. 10, 1981. /The Associated Press files

Expos manager Jim Fanning displays a picture of Jackie Robinson while touring the site of the new Carey Diab Baseball Museum of Canada in Montreal on Nov. 26, 1981. Ian Barrett /Canadian Press files

Jim Fanning in 1982. /Montreal Gazette files

Montreal Expos manager Jim Fanning, center, files an official game protest with home plate umpire Bruce Froemming, left, during a division playoff game against the Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia, Pa. on Oct. 9, 1981. /AP

Jim Fanning.

Jim Fanning on March 7, 1972. /Montreal Star files

Jim Fanning. Tedd Church /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning, left. Tedd Church /Montreal Gazette files

Expos general manager Jim Fanning, left, and manager Gene Mauch as Mauch gets his first look at the Expos' new multi-coloured baseball cap on Jan. 16, 1969. /Montreal Star files

Montreal Expos vice-president Jim Fanning gets a close up view of a model of the completed Olympic Stadium after a news conference on Sept. 16, 1986, explaining the workings of the new roof. /Canadian Press files

Jim Fanning. John Mahoney /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning in 1975. Tedd Church /Montreal Gazette files

John McHale, Bill Stoneman and Jim Fanning on Nov. 15, 1983. Tedd Church /Montreal Gazette files

Expos' GM Jim Fanning, left, and baseball aide (Lou Martin) look over plans for temporary Jarry Park home as construction work started yesterday. Sept. 17, 1968 Adrian Lunny /Montreal Gazette files

Jim Fanning. /Montreal Gazette files

Montreal mayor Denis Coderre, left, greets baseball legend Jim Fanning beofe the start of a preseason Major League Baseball game between the Blue Jays and the New York Mets at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal on Friday March 28, 2014. Allen McInnis /Montreal Gazette

In the public eye, Fanning was involved with the Expos from the start.

He joined the team as its first general manager in 1968, and led the squad into the playoffs as field manager for the only time in franchise history in 1981. That year, he headed the team through the infamous “Blue Monday,” when the Los Angeles Dodgers edged out the Expos 2-1 in Game 5 to advance to the World Series.

“He was a lifelong baseball man,” said Bill Young, Expos author and amateur baseball historian. “He was involved with the Expos in every capacity: as the general manager, as field manager, as director of sales. He was even a broadcaster for a period on the radio.”

Even after his time of being officially involved with the team ended, he stayed close to Montreal, living in St-Lazare well past his Expos days.

“He was so integral to the team and to the life of the team, he was almost identified as being part of it,” Young added.

Fanning was the team’s general manager when it inaugurated Jarry Park Stadium in 1969.

Shortly before opening day for the stadium, a wicked snowstorm blew through the city, covering the field and bleachers, Young said.

“Anyone the team could get their hands on, they gave a shovel to,” he said.

Kids skipped school to help shovel and get in for free, and fans called in sick from work to do the same.

“And Fanning was right there among them, shovelling out the ballpark with everyone else that was helping out,” Young remembered. “That’s the kind of hands-on commitment he had to the team.”

Danny Gallagher, a former Expos beat writer who last spoke with Fanning about a week ago, described him as “the heart and soul of the Expos.”

“But beyond baseball,” he added, “he was always so accommodating to writers. Anyone who would have met him will tell you how genuine and down to earth he was.”

Fanning got his start in pro sports as a catcher for the Chicago Cubs in 1954, where he played four seasons before turning toward management positions.

In 2000, he was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. In a statement Saturday, its director of operations Scott Crawford said that without Fanning’s “tireless efforts, there may not be Major League Baseball in Canada.”

Born in Chicago, Fanning officially became a Canadian citizen in 2012, and lived out his days in London, Ontario. He leaves behind his wife Maria, son Frank and daughter Cynthia.

He had been battling cardiac failures for the last couple of weeks, his family said.

Despite his quality of life worsening, he threw Maria a party for her 65th birthday last Monday. Earlier this week he told his son: “My book is 87 years old and no one lives forever. My book’s about ready to close.”

Over dinner Friday night he thanked God for his family and long life. He died early Saturday morning.

jfeith@montrealgazette.com

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