92 years old!

Those of you who have never listened to 105.3 FM - KLSR radio out of Memphis, Texas have no idea who Joe Davis is.  If you have, you danged sure do!  

Memphis is a dot on the Rolling Plains of Texas; a place time could have forgotten ... if Joe didn't wake it up daily!

Joe and I are going to have a discussion about bison, bison's history up here, and more bison each Thursday morning from about 9:10 to 9:30, plus or minus.  Joe really does care and really is interested in bringing good content to his audience.  I advertised the Herd Wear Store for many years with Joe.  It was well worth the $300 per month for a crap-load of 45 second spots.  

Then he would just call out of the blue and we'd yak on air about what was going on with the store; what was new; how the bison were doing ... and more.  Joe is a good good guy.  But that is not the story here.  Joe is just 65.  He's been in Memphis for right at 45 years.  Oh, he is currently the Mayor .... and genuinely cares about the folks he lives around.

With our (hopefully) huge "Container Clearance Sale" going on the next two weekends I enlisted Joe's help in getting the word out.   He's right on it; did an on-air spiel Wednesday and recorded a couple more spots to blast the message out to all who might be listening.  

Joe was headed to Amarillo to get some mailing envelopes.  I had just what he needed so it saved him a couple hours of windshield time.   Joe also likes his beer (over ice of all things); so we killed some time here Sunday the 29th.  He wants me to call in about 9:10 Monday (which I did!!) to give another on-air blast about the sale (and the On-Line business).    

He tells me he has a standing Monday call with an old guy; 15 minutes of "fame" or at least a chance at it.  Says he and this older gent have been doing this every Monday for over 3 years now.  Every Monday!  The old guy is full of local history; wonderful tales of life up here as it was and is.  Joe intends to keep this "date" as long as possible.

"Delbert Trew", says Joe, "is a real wealth of historical information .... but it's getting harder to draw him out; I'm running out of questions".

"I know Delbert Trew", I say.  "Not personally, but through his books".  "Joe," I say, "He is a real authority of H.D. Bugbee".  From our library I grab two books ... both by Mr. Trew.   "Seen these ... or heard about them?"  I ask Joe.   He just looks at them in amazement.  "No" says Joe.  

So what's the big deal? 

Mr. Bugbee was perhaps the most famous and most prolific artist of this area from the mid 20's to the late 50's.  

 He did pen and ink drawings of ranch life, cowboys .... real working cowboys, horses, buffalo, ranchers and more.  He illustrated J. Evetts Haley's book on Charles Goodnight - (Cowman and Plainsman). 

He became Curator of Art for the Panhandle-Plains Museum (the Smithsonian of the West) in Canyon, Texas.  And so much more.   

Bugbee's work is very special to me.  It is special to a lot of people and Delbert Trew is one of them.

 

           He did the premier book on Bugbee ... self published with the largest collection of Bugbee drawings anywhere.  Then he did a book on his family's 3rd generation ranch - Trew Ranch.  

I loaned Joe both books to talk with Mr. Trew about them.

And more weirdness ... or closeness.  Joe's longtime lady friend - her family owns the Bugbee house and studio in Clarendon, Texas.  The same place Bugbee did so much of his sketching and painting.  

 

 

 

 

   H.D. Bugbee sketched, drew and painted "history" as it happened.  He saved it from fading out of site.  I love living in the history up here!   It doesn't get more real.