An Abbreviated History of the O.U Club of Dallas
by Jack McKinney (12th Club President,1963)

As I write of the early days of the Oklahoma University Club of Dallas, you must remember that I was not in at the very beginning. Jim Stevens has always been recognized as the motivating force behind the Club's origination. It all began as a group of alumni meeting for lunch in downtown Dallas to discuss O.U. football and things in general about the University of Oklahoma. This was in the post World War II era of approximately 1948. Some of the early members were Jim Stevens, Earl Holden, Leo Baker, Sam Heilbron, Irving Higbee, Isham Pushmataha Nelson, Harold Shank and Doyle Crain. I was recruited by Jim Stevens in 1950. The first meetings that I attended were upstairs over a Mexican café on the "triangle" that separated the old Dallas Athletic Club building from the new Republic National Bank. We later moved to the upstairs meeting room of Vick's on Commerce Street. I should point out that practically all business at that time was located in downtown Dallas, and that our meetings were noon luncheons.

There were no dues, only a $10.00 initiation fee to swell the treasury. The only fund raiser for the Club was the "Beat Texas Dance" held on Friday night before the annual football game on Saturday at the Cotton Bowl. The first dance that I attended was in 1950 at the Crystal Ballroom of the Baker Hotel. For the princely sum of $10.00 you got a sit down banquet dinner and dancing to a national "name" orchestra. Chasers were provided free as this was in the BYOB (bring your own bottle) days. Additional decorations to the ballroom, such as red and white balloons and the table center pieces, were done on Friday afternoon by the members and some of their spouses. A hospitality room was provided by the Baker Hotel where the member crew and O.U. Alumni Office people refreshed themselves during their labors. Occasionally there was too much "refreshing", and a wayward member or two failed to last for that night's dance.

In the 1960's, the dance had become so popular with the visiting Sooners that larger quarters became a must. Harold Shank, the Dallas City Secretary was president then, followed by Sam Heilbron, Bill Scott and yours truly in 1963. A move was made to the new downtown Sheraton Hotel. In 1961 we had our first 1,000 attendance. We also junked the banquet style dinner and went to a one A.M. breakfast buffet served immediately following the dance. This enabled all of us who celebrated to over exuberance, to sober-up for the drive home.

The next move was to the brand new Statler-Hilton on Commerce Street. By that time the cost of serving became so expensive that the breakfast buffet regretfully had to be abandoned.

The Hilton dance became famous for the "tear gas" incident, where some misguided souls put tear gas in the air conditioning system causing the dancers to be evacuated outside on Commerce Street for a short while. It was never determined whether it was jealous Texans or rowdy Sooners responsible for the dastardly act.

The first O.U. Club scholarship was awarded in the very early 60's; the interview was held in Jim Stevens' insurance office. I had the privilege of serving on that first selection committee, and have continued to this date. It is a most difficult but delightful experience to interview these applicants, to narrow it down to one winner is almost an impossibility. When I say "winner", I want to stress that when these applicants reach the interview stage, they are all winners. Any one of them would make an excellent representative for the O.U. Club of Dallas. It would be difficult for people today to comprehend how all the above could be accomplished from the single fund raiser and no dues.

As I recall, my first meeting with Jack Williams occurred in about the early 70's; a chance encounter on the street at which time he asked me to help distribute some O.U. Club of Dallas material. This pretty much showed the club's deterioration from the tightly-run organization of the 50's and 60's. I hasten to explain that none of this was the fault of Jack Williams as he, through extreme effort, pulled the club through this difficult period. To put it bluntly, the club was teetering on extinction.

Before Jack came on the scene, all of the club's records had been lost, including how meetings were held, the annual "Beat Texas" Weekend, the Dance, the "Spring Thing", scholarships and elections. The club had made a promise in its recruiting of members in 1949 that a $10.00 payment for membership would be the total cost, there would be no dues. As President in 1963, I attempted to get the club to renege on that promise and institute a yearly $10.00 membership fee. It was soundly voted down!

While former President Harold Shank, Dallas City Secretary, was still active in the club, he loaned the use of one of his secretaries, Betty Patterson, to assist in the club's operation. Everything explaining the club's functions was outlined in detail in notebook form: how we elected officers, the Texas Weekend, the spring meeting (named The Spring Fling), scholarship selections, and best of all, my suggestion that rather than selecting the officers in a popularity contest, to have the Board of Directors draw up a slate and present it to the membership for approval. This plan is still in place today.

Now back to Jack Williams. When he came aboard only the shell of a club remained, with a dwindling membership. I'm sure Jack was dismayed, but he "hung in there" and stabilized the "sinking ship". After his presidency he took over a more daunting job, the "Beat Texas Weekend". Through his negotiations with the hotels he put the event on a profit-making basis on through the 80's and 90's. He also chaired the scholarship committee. Early selections and interviews were held at his Masonic Lodge near SMU.

Jack had the "blarney", or "gift of gab", of a true Irishman. He forever called the ladies "Young Damsels". His favorite advice to the scholarship winners was to not overload their course load that first year, by saying "You won't even know where the restrooms are located".

His tall good looks and dignified manner belied a sparkling wit. He actually enjoyed chairing the club's functions during the terrible times; he persevered and was a very important reason that the club attained it's rating as the University of Oklahoma's top Alumni Club. We are forever in his debt, may he enjoy his retirement in Granbury Texas. In 1997 the club's scholarships were renamed the "Jack Williams Scholarships" in his honor.

You must remember that these thoughts cover nearly forty years, and if I have been remiss in omitting names and dates, blame it on an old man's faulty memory.

Jack McKinney, Historian

Note: In 2000, in appreciation for Jack McKinney's efforts and dedication the Board elected to rename one of the four scholarships in his honor. They now are: the Jack Williams, the Jack Mckinney, the Director's Choice, and the Paul and Judy Kaye Massad Scholarships. Thank you Jack and Jack for the fun and memories!

A bit of history on Jack: Jack's parents came to Norman Oklahoma in 1904. Three years later George McKinney was made the prairie town's first fire chief. Jack was born November 21, 1917. He attended O.U., class of 1941. He entered the Army in February 1942, serving until November, 1945. He moved to Dallas, then married Winnie Hubbard in 1947. They have two children - Jack Norman McKinney and Rita Grace McKinney; Jack has four children. Jack's (SR) main interest is the University of Oklahoma; he is active in alumni affairs, he was club President in 1963, and has served on the board of directors for twenty years. Jack's other passion is the history of Norman; he's the author of a 33-page account of Norman in the 1930s, entitled "The Norman We Knew and Loved." An interesting excert follows. (The Norman Transcript, Sunday, February 23, 1996)

In 1920 a secret organization was formed by a group of students in the engineering school. It was called the L.K.O.T. The Loyal Knights of Old Trusty. The purpose of L.K.O.T was to honor Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland (and of engineers). A student in the School of Electrical Engineering, Ira B. Watkins, lived at my grandmother's house on East Duffy Street. He was the principal force and a founder of the organization. The L.K.O.T members wore black robes with a hood masking the face and white numerals on the robes for member identification. The costumes were sewn by Mrs. Lee and her daughter, my mother, Mrs. George McKinney.

A civil war cannon was obtained and called Old Trusty. St. Partick's Day was the main occasion for firing the cannon although it was also fired during the night and at other times during the year. This was against the rules of the University and if the members were identified it meant expulsion from school. Therefore the names of the members were only made public after graduation. Watkins is listed as number one on the plaque that hangs in the engineering building. Number seven is George P.L. McKinney, then Norman Fire Chief and the only civilian member. When a shoot was planned, Chief McKinney rented a flatbed truck from McIntire's Livery and Old Trusty was installed on the truck. The cannon was kept hidden to keep the engineer's rivals, the School of Law, from stealing it. Lawyers will steal anything, as we all know. One hiding place was a burial in the South Canadian riverbed, the other was the basement of the McKinney's house at 122 W. Eufaula. The University authorities, in particular Dean Felgar, were vehement in their efforts to quash this group and their threat to decorum. Dean Felgar and his cohorts pursued the flatbed truck through the streets of Norman and the surrounding countryside. They were never successful. In later years, the L.K.O.T. was legalized by the University and is composed of honor students from the engineering school. Each year one student is chosen to be Saint Partick and a queen is elected. Margaret McKinney had the honor of presiding at the dance and the firing of the cannon on Saint Patrick's Day in 1923.

Chief McKinney's association with L.K.O.T. led to a decision on how to increase the number of firefighters without additional cost to the city. I like to characterize this idea to increase volunteers as a process in awarding scholarships. These scholarship volunteers greatly increased the manpower especially on the night shift. The selected students (I suspect were L.K.O.T. members as they were from the engineering school) were provided quarters on the second floor of the fire station. Another room was cleared for them as a study hall. The Hub Cafe's back door was adjacent to the fire station and located just across the alley. I am told that Chief McKinney and John Anderhub, owner of the Hub Cafe, combined to come up with the meal tickets. This was done at no cost to the city, provided additional fire protection, and helped needy students. Local men also served as volunteers. Two that I remember were John and Bill Bumbarner. Bill was the father of James Bumgarner who much later made it big in television and movies as James (Maverick) Garner. Jim attends our three class reunions for the the classes of 1950 and before.

Jack McKinney, Historian