Penn State sports historian Lou Prato died Tuesday at the age of 87.
Prato, responsible for the creation of the Penn State All-Sports Museum, which launched in 2002, as well as seven books about Penn State football, was the sports editor for the Daily Collegian in 1958.
From there, he spent more than four decades as a broadcast news director, working in Detroit and Dayton.
He also directed the Washington, D.C. branch of Northwestern’s journalism school and was an instructor/guest lecturer for journalism classes at his alma mater. For his efforts, the Bellisario College Alumni Society Board recognized Prato with its Alumni Achievement Award in 2016. The award, per Penn State’s athletic website, is “presented to a graduate or friend of the college whose significant contributions to the college and/or University, in terms of time and talent, have brought distinction to themselves, the college and the University.”
Prato was also a contributor to Nittany Nation overtime and WTAJ News.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.He spent more than three decades with the Radio and Television Digital News Association spending 20 of those years as the treasurer on the Board of Directors.
In a statement, PSU AD Pat Kraft called Prato “the authority on all things Penn State athletics history.
“From the moment I met Lou,” Kraft wrote, “I could tell how much sharing the stories of Penn State meant to him and how important it was to him to keep those stories alive. His passion for this University was only matched by his love for his family. There will never be another Lou Prato and we will miss seeing him around our Penn State Athletics events. Our thoughts are with Carole and Lou’s children during this difficult time.”
Prato is survived by his wife, Carole, son, Scott, and daughters Vicki Rearrick and Lori Keating.
