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Articles 1 - 18 of 18
Full-Text Articles in Oral History
Interview No. 1624, J. Halbert Gambrell
Interview No. 1624, J. Halbert Gambrell
Combined Interviews
In this interview, J. Halbert (“Hal”) Gambrell shares his memories of his colorful family, early El Paso, and his military experiences during both World War II and the Korean War. Born in El Paso in 1920, Gambrell entered this world in the family home due to his physician father’s decision to avoid local hospitals overflowing with Spanish Influenza patients. His father had recently returned from service in France during World War I; earlier he had served under General Jack “Black” Pershing during the latter’s 1916 punitive expedition into Mexico in Pershing’s ill-fated attempt to capture Pancho Villa. Gambrell continues to …
Interview No. 1626, Judith Leonard
Interview No. 1626, Judith Leonard
Combined Interviews
She goes over the various doctors that worked in El Paso; she recalls the various hospitals at the time, the building of Providence Hospital; mentions that there were few Hispanic doctors, and reveals that the medical society was closed to them except for a few from medical families; she remembers Dr. Kalikian that trained her husband; she explains why her husband’s group eventually moved their office to Murchison St, closer to Sierra Medical Center. Ms. Leonard recounts travelling for her husband’s work, describes the career and interests of her children; she goes over her family’s love of opera and talks …
Interview No. 1642, Louis Baudoin
Interview No. 1642, Louis Baudoin
Combined Interviews
He believes that his father being stationed in Oklahoma for a time during World War II where Coach Don Haskins is from helped convince his parents to accept his decision to go to Texas Western College; he describes how it was close to his family, had just created a Liberal Arts department and had a strong engineering program. Describes Don Haskins’ approach to basketball as simple, stressing proficiency in basic drills rather than relying on complicated plays; he describes practices as brutal and repetitive but that the team’s success on the court proved Don Haskins right. Mr. Baudoin believed at …
Interview No. 1644, Harry Flournoy
Interview No. 1644, Harry Flournoy
Combined Interviews
He was recruited by Coach Don Haskins from Indiana; his mother felt Coach Haskins would be a good mentor; he received good treatment from everyone in El Paso; he describes Coach Haskins practices as tough but stated that Haskins warned them in advance. Mr. Flournoy felt that at the time that the 1965-66 team was good and an improvement from the last year, but did not know whether they would make it to the NCAA Championship. He describes the poor treatment and racism he and other black players experienced from some of the crowds, as well as at restaurants and …
Interview No. 1652, Togo Railey
Interview No. 1652, Togo Railey
Combined Interviews
Togo Railey discusses his recruitment and experience playing for the Texas Western College basketball team. As a basketball player in Austin High School, he had two influential coaches who influenced his decision to attend Texas Western College. While in high school, he recalls the presence of Texas-Western’s basketball coach, Don Haskins, who actively promoted basketball in El Paso and was always looking for recruits. He discusses his admiration for Coach Haskins who he describes as well mannered, a taskmaster, and basketball enthusiast. Railey also describes his first impressions of the Texas-Western basketball team, who he knew would perform well because …
Interview No. 1645, Don Haskins
Interview No. 1645, Don Haskins
Combined Interviews
He played basketball at Oklahoma A&M; he played with the Artesia Travelers in the National Industrial Basketball League; he went to a coaching clinic in Albuquerque, New Mexico where Texas Western Head Coach George McCarty convinced Don Haskins to complete his degree; explains that in the interim he took a job coaching basketball and driving the school bus in Benjamin, Texas and later Hedley, Texas. Mr. Haskins recalls that while he was coaching at Dumas, Texas, George McCarty Dean from Texas Western College recruited him to be head coach. Mr. Haskins addresses his reputation as a tough coach by stating …
Interview No. 1646, Tyrone Bobby Joe Hill
Interview No. 1646, Tyrone Bobby Joe Hill
Combined Interviews
He was originally from Michigan but was playing at a junior college in Iowa where Don Haskins saw him play and recruited him; he was not familiar with the city or school, he was surprised by the size and warm weather; he mentions that Jim Barnes and Nolan Richardson showed him around town and people were friendly. He describes his initial impression of Don Haskins was that he was nice, but at practice found out that he was very disciplinarian; he mentions that he thought the 1965-66 team was good, but they had a quiet confidence; he addresses the story …
Interview No. 1650, Eddie Mullens
Interview No. 1650, Eddie Mullens
Combined Interviews
Eddie Mullens describes his career as a publicity director for the Texas Western College basketball team. When Coach Don Haskins first invited him to the campus, George McCarty, the athletic director, offered him a job. Mullens did not take the job at first due to the low pay, until he was called back days later with the offer of a higher salary. He believed Texas Western had a great team but did not foresee that it would make it to the national competition. Mullens is credited with giving nicknames to the team members such as Jim Barnes who he called …
Interview No. 1651, Richard Myers
Interview No. 1651, Richard Myers
Combined Interviews
Richard Myers discusses his background and experience playing for the Texas Western College basketball team that won the 1966 NCAA championship. As a native of Kansas, he discusses his optimistic first impressions of El Paso, coach Haskins, and his team. While his team attained notoriety for having five all-star African American players, Myers notes that their placement was due to their abilities, not because of their skin color. The media was responsible for placing such a heavy emphasis on his teammates’ skin color as the season progressed. He maintains that his team was not racially discriminated against as they travelled. …
Interview No. 1653, Nevil Shed
Interview No. 1653, Nevil Shed
Combined Interviews
Nevil Shed discusses his experience playing for the Texas Western College basketball team. He discusses his initial prospects of working in the fast food industry but then decided it was not a career path he wanted to follow. Shed was recruited into Texas Western College basketball team thanks to a recommendation made by a former player of the team who recommended him to Coach Don Haskins. He then describes his first impressions of El Paso, its mountains, and its friendly atmosphere. Unlike other college campuses, he enjoyed that people talked to him to ask how he was doing. Coach Haskins …
Interview No. 1648, David Lattin
Interview No. 1648, David Lattin
Combined Interviews
David Lattin describes his recruitment into the Texas Western College basketball team. He began as a student at Tennessee State but was unhappy there and then later transferred to Texas Western College. Mr. Lattin describes positive experiences with his new team and coach, Don Haskins. He also describes hardships and fears he encountered in the team; since he played alongside others who were taller than him, Lattin feared that someday the ball would go over his head when it was passed to him. Lattin became less weary of this as he began to build trust amongst his team members. Another …
Interview No. 1649, Jean H. Miculka
Interview No. 1649, Jean H. Miculka
Combined Interviews
Jean H. Miculka begins by describing how he attained his job as an assistant coach for the Texas Western College basketball team. He describes his first impressions of the team as promising since the freshmen consistently beat the varsity students. As a coach, he confronted various challenges that emerged as Texas Western gained notoriety; they confronted various teams who placed all their efforts in trying to defeat them. Nevertheless, it was his team’s ability to score points and to cripple the others’ defense that overcame this challenge. He never felt discrimination whenever his team played against others from the Southwest …
Interview No. 1641, Jerry Armstrong
Interview No. 1641, Jerry Armstrong
Combined Interviews
Mr. Armstrong briefly explains how he got recruited from high school to play basketball for Coach Don Haskins; he explains that his desire to leave Missouri was to see a different part of the country; he describes the campus, climate, and friendliness of locals in El Paso and Texas Western College. Mr. Armstrong describes Don Haskins personality on and off the court as demanding but fair; he describes the 1965-66 team as very good and confident; he mentions how teams in the western U.S. did not receive the same coverage as eastern college teams at the time. Mr. Armstrong recounts …
Interview No. 1643, Willie Cager
Interview No. 1643, Willie Cager
Combined Interviews
He describes how he had to finish up courses in New York and later in El Paso in order to attend Texas Western College; he goes over how local recruiters selected him based on his basketball ability. Mr. Cager mentions that he had to adjust to the desert but that he had no real culture shock due to the diversity of his native New York City. He recounts having to adjust to Coach Haskins due to him stressing defense where he focused more on offense; he states that he was versatile and could play guard, forward, or center; he explains …
Interview No. 1647, Moe Iba
Interview No. 1647, Moe Iba
Combined Interviews
Moe Iba was an Assistant Coach for the 1965-66 Texas Western College basketball team that won the 1966 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament; Don Haskins played for his father at Oklahoma A&M; Mr. Haskins hired him out of college; he mentions that he did not know if they would go to NCAA Championships but freshman from the previous year were now eligible to play for the varsity team and Bobby Joe Hill was getting better giving him confidence in the 1965-66 team. Addresses statement that Don Haskins called the 1966 team the worst team at the beginning of the …
Interview No. 1623, L.A. Gladstone
Interview No. 1623, L.A. Gladstone
Combined Interviews
He describes professors that influenced him during these early years, as well as his adaptation to speaking English. He returned to El Paso in 1956 to practice medicine. He worked as an intern at Thomason Hospital for several years. He also discusses being interview by Steven Spielberg in association with the movie Schindler's List and a museum built in Hollywood to house the stories of Holocaust survivors. Dr. Gladstone also discusses his courtship with his wife during his med school years in Dallas, and life in the fraternity. After returning to El Paso, Dr. Gladstone served as physician for a …
Interview No. 1625, John Hick Johnstone, Lady Ruth Johnstone
Interview No. 1625, John Hick Johnstone, Lady Ruth Johnstone
Combined Interviews
In this interview, conducted primarily with Dr. John Hick Johnstone (b. 1909), he discusses his World War II experiences as a physician traveling with the Advance Command Corps; in addition, he speaks at length on El Paso’s mid-twentieth-century medical scene, including the state of the hospitals and the practices of the medical community. At the start of the interview, both John Hick and Lady Ruth share memories of their early years and courtship in Eldorado, Illinois. On their 1940 honeymoon the couple passed through El Paso where they encountered some trouble at the international border due to the narcotics in …
Interview No. 1627, Gordon Mcgee
Interview No. 1627, Gordon Mcgee
Combined Interviews
He describes residency in internal medicine, due to his absences from family went into pathology; he recalls moving to El Paso in 1965 to work at Southwestern General Hospital; he explains how he met his wife, describes three children; he recounts President Kennedy being brought to his hospital in Dallas when he was shot, his opinions on his medical care. Dr. McGee discusses his early involvement with the TMA; he reveals origin and breakup of the Rainbow Group, combined pathologists and radiologists in El Paso; he mentions working with his partner in their laboratory business and goes over time as …