Texas

Episode 11: The Governor and the Colonel: A Dual Biography of William P. Hobby and Oveta Culp Hobby

After establishing himself as a pioneer in the news media industry in Texas, Will Hobby served as Lt. Gov. of Texas from 1915 until September 1917, when he became Governor. He led Texas’ effort to support the American military during World War I, and he had to resolve significant political and social issues that swept the state and the nation, including lawlessness and corruption on the state’s southern border, and heated battles over prohibition and women’s suffrage. Will signed the bill giving women the right to vote in primary elections, and he subsequently played a role in the ratification of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

During World War II Oveta took her place on the national stage as the celebrated founding commander of the Women’s Army Corps. In recognition of her extremely difficult but outstanding performance during the war, she received the Distinguished Service Medal, the first woman so honored. In 1953, Oveta became only the second woman in U. S. history to serve on a presidential cabinet when Eisenhower appointed her as the Secretary of the newly established Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. While head of the HEW, Oveta directed the effort to expand the number of Americans covered by Social Security, and she oversaw the development and controversial distribution of the Salk polio vaccine.

The “Hobby Team” of Will and Oveta quickly forged an intimate personal and professional relationship leading to the establishment of an influential media business that eventually included ownership of the Houston Post and Houston’s pioneering KPRC Radio and KPRC TV.

On this episode, we interview Don Carleton, the Briscoe Center’s executive director. Don joins us to discuss his most recent book, a dual biography of Will and Oveta Hobby, The Governor and the Colonel.

Will signs the suffrage referendum act in the Texas Capitol, while skeptical Minnie Fisher Cunningham looks on from his left, February 5, 1918

Will and Oveta Culp Hobby with US Representative Edith Nourse Rogers after Oveta was sworn in as director of the WAAC, 1942

Oveta Culp Hobby being sworn in as commander of the WAC, 1943. Generals Marshall (middle) and Somervell (far right) stand behind her.

Will Hobby appearing before a joint session of the Texas Legislature shortly after becoming governor following Ferguson’s impeachment, 1917.

Oveta Culp Hobby and President Lyndon B. Johnson at the dedication of the Oveta Culp Hobby Library at Central Texas College, Killeen, December 1967.

Episode 8: Photographing Conflict: The Carolyn Cole Archive

Americans have been shocked by the stream of visual information that has flooded the news and social media over the past year. We have also witnessed the deplorable treatment of many journalists covering these events. In this episode, we’ll hear from Carolyn Cole, a photojournalist with the Los Angeles Times whose archive is part of the Briscoe Center’s collections. Despite her lengthy experience working in combat zones, she didn’t expect to be targeted as a journalist in her own country. In June 2020, Cole was temporarily blinded with Mace when she covered the “Black Lives Matter” protests in Minneapolis following the vicious murder of George Floyd. In this episode, she discusses the Minneapolis protests, the importance of portraying the human cost of conflict, and her conscious effort to record history.

Carolyn is interviewed by Alison Beck, the center’s director for special projects, and Ben Wright, the center’s former associate director for communications.

Below are a selection of photographs taken from Cole’s work covering the Minneapolis protests.

This episode of American Rhapsody was mixed and mastered by Sofia Salter and Morgan Honaker.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA —MAY 29, 2020—Minnesota State Patrol officers spray journalists with pepper spray and fire rubber bullets while they are working, despite their exemption from the curfew on Saturday. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)

Episode 5: Teaching Texas Slavery: The Natchez Trace and other collections

Don Carleton speaks with Daina Berry, chair of the Department of History at UT Austin. Her research and teaching—which focuses on the history of the enslaved—has utilized many of the Briscoe Center’s collections, in particular the Natchez Trace Collection, a which documents life in the Lower Mississippi River Valley from the 1760s to the 1920s. Dr. Berry was also the chief consultant for Teaching Texas Slavery, an educational K-12 resource that launched in 2019 and features items from the center’s collections.

This episode of American Rhapsody was mixed and mastered by Morgan Honaker.