Red River rivalry still kicking (and passing, and running)

Today is the annual and storied Texas vs. Oklahoma football game at the Cotton Bowl. Rode my bike this morning down the Katy Trail to the American Airlines Center. Even at 7:00 a.m. the Victory Plaza was already being set up for the big screen showing of the game, which as usual was sold out. Lost count of the DART buses poised along the streets supplementing the light rail trains to take fans to Fair Park from the expansive parking lots near the Victory Station. Along the trail, the open-air beer gardens near Routh Street were likewise anticipating a busier than usual Saturday. On my way back while crossing Mockingbird Lane, I had a moment of trepidation when I saw an SUV adorned with red and white flags bearing down on me – wearing an orange shirt! It stopped with considerable room to spare; fortunately my orange wasn’t sufficiently burnt. One event was missing: the raucous "pep rally" that used to be held on Commerce Street the evening before the game in the days of yore has petered out over last several decades and what’s left of it has moved to the West End and Victory areas.

Fifty years ago today, the number one rated Texas Longhorns met the Oklahoma Sooners in the same venue. The men in burnt orange prevailed 9 - 6 for the fifth straight over the Big Red. Off the field, things got somewhat raucous, to wit:

 

In 1962 the Katy Trail was the MKT Railroad’s right-of-way. There was a passenger station just north of Knox Street. My mom tells me that when our family came to Dallas from Ohio in 1951, we arrived by a train that rolled over those tracks. The locations of the American Airlines Center and West End were warehouse and industrial areas. One familiar enterprise from those days located there was the Neuhoff Brothers packing plant. The Baker Hotel (across the street from the Adolphus) was the focal point of the informal "pep rally" mentioned above.
　

While the Longhorns were managing a close victory over OU in Dallas, the Jesuit Rangers were in Tulsa skunking Cascia Hall 14 - 0 for their 6^th win. The first TD came when Richard Jackson recovered a fumble at the Cascia 37 to set up a drive that ended with a 21 yard pass to Don Erler. Bob Neuhoff kicked the extra point. Jesuit ran for a second touchdown in the 4^th quarter.

In other football news, the AFL Dallas Texans beat the Boston Patriots 27 - 7 in Boston. The Cowboys bested the Philadelphia Eagles 41 - 19 on the overworked turf (natural, not astro-) of the Cotton Bowl.

In other news, tense relations with Castro’s Cuba and the Soviet Union continued.

Today, most only know R. L. Thornton as the name of a freeway.  He was the mayor from 1953 - 1961. The Dallas Morning News editorial page 50 years ago praised him for sticking up for Love Field in the face of FAA Administrator Halaby’s call for a regional airport.

　

Love Field is still here, as busy as ever.

Does anyone know what nation Halaby’s daughter became queen of by marriage? I’ll donate an extra $100 to Jesuit’s current Annual Fund if a ‘63 alum tells me by 6:00 p.m. (CDT) October 14, 2012. (Only one extra donation, I haven’t gotten rich yet.)