So long Ed BlawgReview creator

I just received information through tweets sent out over the @BlawgReview Twitter feed Ed, the anonymous editor of Blawg Review, has died. Ed was short for Editor.

Dear Blawg Review Community,

I am the son of Ed, writing today with a heavy heart to inform you of his passing after a courageous battle with esophageal cancer. I believe it would have been his wish for Ed to remain anonymous – and so I will respect those wishes.

Ed created Blawg Review in April 2005, he called it a “carnival of law bloggers” in which each week a law blawger host would Blawg about his or her picks for the best Blawg posts of the week. Blawgers could not wait to read Blawg Review every Monday.

In the seven-year period between 2005 in 2012 a total of 323 Blawg Reviews were posted. He made quite a few friends in that time and many tributes were posted last night saying goodbye to Ed the anonymous editor of blog review.

Charon QC of the UK posted about his many chances to host blog review.

The ABA Journal posted a tribute which included the following quote “Newcomers to the blawgosphere might not know of Ed, as Blawg Review wore out as too many lawyers became self-promoters rather than members of the blawgosphere.”

Scott Greenfield wrote at Simple Justice. “It reflected a golden age of blawgging, where we weren’t in it for the money or phony prestige, but for the good we could do and the camaraderie of being part of something more important than ourselves. And Ed was at the helm.”

Toronto litigator Antonin Pribetic titled his post in The Trial Warrior , “Ed, we hardly knew ye.”

Ronald Coleman writes of  “The death of Blawg Review” in his blog “The Likelihood of Confusion.“

Robert J. Ambrogi author of  Law Sites Blog posted a “photo [he] took of him adorned in full identity-protection mode” in a post titled “Anonymous Blawg Review Editor Dies.” And “Above the Law” posted the sad news on its Morning Docket.

Legalblogwatch wrote a few years back “I could be wrong, but I suspect it is no easy task for “Ed.”, the editor of Blawg Review, to find a new, talented blogger each week to write Blawg Review. And yet Blawg Review continues to crank out good stuff week after week, and celebrated its 300th edition.”

I met Ed on several occasions when he visited Buffalo. He was always in full identity-protection mode. The contract he negotiated required that no one in the company could ever reveal his identity. Still to this day the address book in the phone of the CEO of the company identifies Ed only by his initials.

Ed loved technology. He would love the idea of me sitting here watching TV creating this blog post on my iPad. He convinced me to purchase the first iPad and was delighted that I was able to get the unlimited data contract.

We would talk about social networking, blogging, his travels around the world…he was a Renaissance man. He convinced me blogging would be the best thing for my law practice and he taught me what to do. In fact he let me post Blawg review number 274.

While in Toronto he introduced me to Kevin O’Keefe from Lexblog. He said if you want to be taken seriously you need to show that your blog is run by professionals. People will know you are serious if you use Lexblog.

Although in recent years we haven’t talked much he would always drop a congratulatory line by email or otherwise based on what he saw online. He was a good man and he will be missed. Thanks for helping me out. I’ll never forget you.