10 Things that I learnd from the Tom Landry Exhibit

I really wanted to see this exhibit during the Fair, but the line was always so long. But the Dallas Historical Society reopened the exhibit in November and it goes until the Super Bowl. I went with my friend David who is a HUGE football fan. I would say he loves the Baylor Bears more than the Cowboys, but still a big Cowboy fan! He went but I wasn't so sure he was as excited about it as I was. He enjoyed it! I warned him when we got there that people don’t normally like going to historical things with me because I read everything! But he read just as much as I did so it worked out good.

I watched the Cowboys growing up with my brothers and dad and always loved Tom Landry.

1. He is from Mission, Texas. Never thought about him being raised in the Valley.

2. He was a Longhorn. :( Ssssssssss!!!! Gig’Em Aggies!

3. He was an assistant with the New York Giants. The team emblem was the NY Yankee emblem with the N and the Y.

4. He was such an innovative coach!

5. The baby blue jacket he wore on occasion was a gift from Billy Graham. I knew that he was a Christian, but I didn’t know that he was heavily involved with the Billy Graham Crusades and FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes).

6. His daughter died after a liver transplant. I knew that he was a supporter of organ donation, but now I realize why. She was pregnant and found out she had liver cancer or something like that and the doctors told her to get an abortion and start treatment. She refused and afterwards received a transplant in 1991, but eventually died due to complications in 1995.

7. Mike Ditka (Da Bears) was a coach for the Cowboys! Who knew? I did know that he was a player for the Cowboys, but didn’t know the coach part.

8. His first Super Bowl ring cost $1000! Crazy huh?

9. The large public funeral that took place at the Meyerson was on February 17, 2000. I was a junior in college and my parents threw me a surprise party in College Station on that day.

10. His wife is still deeply in love with him. Their first date was a blind date. He proposed to her on her birthday and they were married 14 days later. They were married for 51 years when he passed away.

I kinda want to buy a fedora now. They are in again! Just another factoid – did you know that Texas Stadium cost $35 million to build compared to 1.15 billion for the new Cowboy Stadium??? Go if you can! Pretty cool artifacts and just happy memories of such a class act kinda guy! The tickets are only 2 bucks!

Andi