WHAT DO YOU KNOW...about Governor"Pappy" 0'Daniel?

-
WHAT DO YOU KOW about Governor “Pappy” O’Daniel? Wilbert Lee O’Daniel (1890-1969) was a businessman, politician, musician and showman. As a boy in Kansas he lived with his mother and step-father after the death of his biological father. He completed a two year business college (1908) and went to work for a flour mill (later owned his own mill). With his wife and three children, he left Kansas moving to New Orleans and then to Ft. Worth.________ In Texas (1925) he wrote songs and discussed religion on his popular radio show called The Light Crust Boys. His western swing band was named The Hillbilly Boys. Mixing music, flour and the bible, this rather attractive man acquired a huge rural audience encouraging him to run for governor in the one party state of Texas (Democrat in 1939). He had promised no capital punishment, no sales tax, no poll tax and a raise in old age pensions. On all this, he reneged.________ As governor he vetoed a record 57 bills, he likely didn’t understand. Twelve vetoes were overridden. Before his term was over he had attacked organized labor, packed the Texas University’s Board of Regents that fired U.T. President Homer Rainey and received a censure from the American Association of University Professors.________ Despite the Vaudevillian atmosphere, W. Lee “Pappy” O’Daniel was reelected in 1941. Office holders were allowed to run in special elections without first resigning. In a large field that included young congressman Lyndon Johnson, he pretended to support popular President Franklin Roosevelt and won the vacated U.S. Senate seat. His squeaky win was enabled by rural and elderly voters and political bosses who knew exactly how many votes it would take. It was believed that he would be less harmful for Texas in the United States Senate than leaving him as Texas governor. “You never found anyone who had voted for Pappy but he always won.”(*)________ The new senator from Texas worked against President Roosevelt’s run for his 4th term, embarrassing the Texas Democratic Party and dropping Senator Pappy O’Daniel’s approval ranking to 7 percent. Claiming a conspiracy of politically controlled newspapers and Communist labor leaders, he withdrew from launching another campaign and returned to ranching and real estate in Texas._________ Failing two gubernatorial primary comeback attempts, he died in 1969. Recognition of his music and Hillbilly Band gave him a posthumous induction into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame in 2015. (*) a quote in a Texas Monthly article: Texas History 101, Feb 2006, plus references from other sources. Carole Sikes 2/2021

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Carole's FEBRUARY BLOG

-
Image
GULF COAST SPLASH 30" x 30" Oil on Canvas This painting is the result of my sitting on a sea wall at a friend's house located on the intercoastal canal in Port Aransas, Texas. Staring at the splashes against the rocks is hypnotizing. Like snow flakes, no two splashes are alike. As a result of a trip to the west coast many years ago and watching the waves break on the beach, I painted a wave. This painting reminded me of that similar experience. Toni, do you remember buying that wave for your son's wedding gift? The colors on our Texas Gulf Coast can't compare with the incredible blue of the Pacific Ocean, but I borrowed a little of that color for my Texas splash. Artist'd Privilege! MUSEUM SHOW: At the GETTY CENTER in Los Angeles until February 28 is "Rembrandt and His Pupils: Telling the Difference". If you can't make the trip, do as I did. The interactive on the Getty's web site allows zooming in on the images. You can test yourself b
Read more

CHECK OUT THESE IDEAS & COMMENTS:

-
AUSTIN ART MUSEUM EVENTS      The Francisco Matto exhibition at the Blanton Museum is a great one for taking your children and grandchildren. But hurry, the show comes down September 27, 2009. Enter the Univ. of Texas parking garage on M.L.K. Street next to the Blanton or park across the street adjacent to the Bob Bullock Museum. It was fun taking Michael (6) and Angela (9) who returned home, discussed the show with their parents and made drawings of what they saw. They especially liked Matto's found-wood totems.      Chuck Close's digital pigment prints are at Austin Museum of Art on Congress Ave. through November 8, 2009. The artist was asked why he didn't use more models when producing the huge frontal portrait heads. He replied that he didn't like people around. We can ask Austin artist Sydney Yeager about this. She was one of his subjects.  There is also a variety of work from AMOA's permanent collection. NETFLIX SUGGESTION      We really liked THE VISITOR
Read more

DECEMBER BLOG 2010

-
Image
Almost one year ago I posted an image of a painting that I call MOTION on my January blog. I was never completely satisfied with it but liked it enough to continiue to look for solutions. I spent an inordinate amount of time sitting and staring at the painting. I hauled it ( it is 30" x 30") to a meeting of some Austin painting friends where we share criticism of one another's work. Then finally months later, I placed it on my easel, took brush in hand and modified it enough to call it done. I would love some feedback from you readers who would go to the http://www.carolesikes.blogspot.com/ , scroll down to the painting below the HAPPY NEW YEAR on last January's blog and tell me which version you like best. A common dilemma of many if not most painters is knowing when to stop. Often when one is having fun moving paint around, the painting can become overworked. This one was a great challenge and I like nothing better. Other paintings seem to slide right onto the can
Read more