Former Chiefs Player Turns History Prof

With all the academic work, ex-lineman and UMKC professor Pellom McDaniels also finds time to write poetry and paint. KCUR's Sylvia Maria Gross recently asked him about the relationship between his different pursuits.

By Sylvia Maria Gross

Kansas City, MO – Pellom McDaniels has to be the first person to have been recruited by two very different Kansas City institutions. He was a defensive lineman for the Chiefs from 1993 to 98. When he retired from the NFL, McDaniels moved to Atlanta to begin a PhD in history at Emory University. Dr. McDaniels returned to Kansas City this year to teach at UMKC.

Pellom McDaniels reads from his book My Own Harlem, about the 18th and Vine district, at the Jazz Poetry Jams on Tuesday, November 20, 2007, at the Blue Room at the American Jazz Museum.

This story was produced for KC Currents. To listen on your own schedule, subscribe to the KC Currents Podcast .