Billy picked him up in the morning. And he did! I'm not much better than other people, but the timing might have been good on some things.. Married with three daughters, Bryant is known to be a student of American history, especially the Civil War. Billy tells Susie that he talks to the coach. Twenty-eight days later, on a Tuesday night, Billy's phone rang. Driving through Mississippi one night, they stopped at a catfish house. Her voice sounds exactly like that of comedienne Wanda Sykes, and Susie, in real life and in the pictures around the house, wears a little smirk, as if she knows something you don't know. ", Overhearing this exchange was yet another teenager, Bryant Denny Turner, whose parents dared to go even a step further and give their son the name of the legendary Alabama football coach and the name of the arena where the Bear did his homework, Denny Stadium. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Eight husky players carried Paul 'Bear' Bryant to his grave under a bare hickory tree and more than 8,000 mourners in two cities said goodbye Friday to the man they called the greatest football coach who ever lived. Others cried openly. Gov. As always, Varner stood in the background. Bryant did play high school basketball in Tuscaloosa, but in interviews he has said he was part of a great team and played only sparingly. Most afternoons, Bryant would slip into the bar and play cards with friends. 1983 Press Photo Alabama-Air view of cemetery at "Bear" Bryant's funeral. According to Social Security records, since 1959 there have been 1,403 Bryants born in Alabama -- so many that it piqued the curiosity of the Bear's original namesake, Paul William "Bear" Bryant Jr. After a lifetime of hearing "I was named for your daddy," it was Junior who approached the museum that honors his father with the idea of compiling a database of those whose names do the same. Each day brings its own reality. [3][7] He also served on the boards of trustees of the Alabama Heritage Foundation and the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia. Bryant's image. [1][2], Bryant graduated from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama with a degree in Commerce in 1966. There are also a ton of Pauls and Paulas. "Do you remember?". John C. Wyatt established and maintained the collection's original organizational scheme. He says something else, his voice deep, the sentences trailing off. [2], In 2005, Bryant founded the Bryant Bank. Paul never forgot the middle-class kids pointing and laughing at his mother. City Editor Ken Roberts contributed to this report. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Trustees blocked the hiring of good coaches, limited spending on facilities and opposed a new on-campus stadium for the football team, critics contend. It happens slowly but clearly. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Bryant has also had a couple of Labrador retrievers, but they passed away last year. Paul William Bryant Jr (born December 19, 1944 in Birmingham) is a Tuscaloosa businessman and chairman of the Crimson Tide Foundation. Perhaps more interesting, calls, emails and text messages to other trustees, senior UA system officials, and business associates seeking conversations about Bryant also went unanswered. All his memories are still in there, somewhere, only much of the time he can't translate them into words. He said he had to rest. "So little coming out of it. During an extensive interview a year ago with the Tuscaloosa News and executive sports editor Tommy Deas, Bryant talked about what Bama football meant to the university. Robert Witt has worked with Bryant for the last 10 years, first as UA president and more recently as chancellor of the UA system. Collectively, it saved 41,000 acres of battlefield land in over 120 states during Bryants board tenure. He was with him almost 24 hours a day.". Facebook gives people the power. We know Lombardi from David Maraniss' biography, "When Pride Still Mattered," and he comes across as smaller and therefore larger in the retelling, because his humanity is on every page. "I met a lot of business people through my parents," Bryant told Bloomberg, acknowledging the obvious connections his famous name brought. Throughout his time on the board, he was a member of the Physical Properties Committee including nine years as chairman, during which more than 360 physical properties projects were completed with a total value exceeding $2 billion. Alabama-Air view of cemetery at "Bear" Bryant's funeral. It was the first and only time he heard Bryant talk like that, and he realized that maybe his boss was a lonely man. A funeral procession three miles long, consisting of more than 300 cars and six buses carrying Bryant's last University of Alabama team and many of his former players, drove the 60 miles to Birmingham behind the white hearse after funeral services in Tuscaloosa. ", "Bryant " "Bryant " "Bryant " "Bryant ". He is a founder of the Civil War Trust in Washington D.C. and personally underwrote the merger with the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites that created the modern Civil War Trust. University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center. T (AP Photo/Joe Holloway Jr.), College football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, wearing black coat, observes his team Alabama Crimson Tide after they defeated Illinois 21-15 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tenn., on Dec. 30, 1982. "It's exactly like that," Hilburn added. That's what he called him, like it was a Southern debutante's double name. There are actions that tell of unseen turmoil and doubt, but Bryant is never revealed. Simply stated, Paul Bryant cares deeply for the university.. He died on Jan. 26, 1983, only a few weeks after his final game on the sideline, the '82 Liberty Bowl. Early life and family background. I remember all of them. "He's young all the time here," Billy says. "We hear about people really almost exclusively through word of mouth," explained Ken Gaddy, director of the Paul W. Bryant Museum, located in the heart of the University of Alabama's campus. He's been on the board for 13 years or so. Bryant's family and friends fiercely guard his legacy, but this omerta brings with it an accidental cost. He also was elected president of C&BA students. We're going into the stadium. "Don't tell me he's dead.". "Really? Paul Bryant was the 11th of Wilson Monroe and Ida Kilgore Bryant's 12 children born in Moro Bottom, Cleveland County, Arkansas. The number of people left alive who knew that Paul is small. [5] He also serves as the President of Green Group, Inc.[6], Bryant invests in "dog and horse racing, the insurance industry, cement making, catfish farming and banking. Stewart. "It's really important to the state that we have a successful football program. We had some guys behind us. [2] He went on to establish more tracks in Texas (for example in La Marque, Texas), Idaho, and Iowa. This isn't a celebration. Bryant's son, Paul Bryant Jr., remembers his father's birthday more than the anniversary of his death, but for most Alabama fans, everything changed "the day Bear Bryant died." Bryant coached the Tide for 25 years, from 1958 to 1982. The Leader was a Republican, society-based evening edition, and the Herald a more political, heavily Democratic morning edition. Health facilities -- Kentucky -- Lexington. It grows smaller all the time. "Well, that's my middle name!" His nickname stemmed from his having agreed to wrestle a captive bear during a theater promotion when he was 13 years old. He told me one time, if somebody comes up and shoots me, they're gonna shoot you first. "It's my daddy's middle name!" She was 19. Coach Bryant died Wednesday. Half a dozen helicopters carrying news photographers hovered near the cemetery, which lies at the end of a black community in southwest Birmingham. A decade ago, speaking of efforts by UAB to decrease its athletics department deficit, Bryant offered: "You can put any spin you want on it, but if you aren't selling tickets, the money isn't there.". The argument clearly did not convince Watts or trustees. I spend virtually all my time in Greene County, Bryant said. ", "You didn't play no football," she says. The farm spans hundreds of acres and has catfish farms, cattle and grounds for quail hunting. Bryant's inner circle, those who knew the man, is surrounded by reminders of this. just to see how many people would turn around. Alabama-"Bear" Paul Bryant funeral. He is chairman emeritus of the Civil War Preservation Trust, a Washington, D.C. - based organization which works to preserve historic battlefields. But I got it. He earned his degree in finance from The University of Alabama in 1966. Four loud slaps. Sometimes Bryant visits. The 69-year-old Bryant -- fairly or not, accurately or not -- is seen by supporters of UAB football, and maybe supporters of UAB period, as public enemy No. Currently, Bryant is president of the privately held holding company, Greene Group, Inc. which has operated a multi-state business engaged in reinsurance, finance, leasing, par-mutual racing, casino management, cattle ranching, aquaculture, catfish processing and distribution, fuel distribution, outdoor recreation, wildlife management, and concrete/aggregate construction. Former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath -- Bryant's most famous player -- former Oklahoma Coach Bud Wilkinson and Georgia Coach Vince Dooley were among those at the graveside, bathed in bright sunshine. Knowles began canceling the next two weeks of Coach's schedule. She plays it sometimes. When then-Gov. It's difficult to understand if you're not from here, but when football isn't doing well it kind of hurts, the whole state is kind of in a funk. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. They put him on night traffic, and that first winter, he caught pneumonia. Alabama-Man mourns at Coach "Bear" Bryant's funeral site. Paul W. Bryant's income mostly comes from and basic source is being a successful American businessman. That's the man I'll always remember.". Because of the overflow crowd, the service also was piped into the nearby First Baptist Church, which seated 1,300, and the Presbyterian Church, which accommodates 600. Which non-quarterback group will define each top-25 team's season? With the nomination tied up in the Legislature, trustee Frank Bromberg decided to resign, which allowed Bryant to fill the sixth district slot in April 2000. Bryant asked whether there might be enough for him. I always felt if somebody was after him, they'd come at him from the front. Like his boss before him, Billy Varner has come to the place where he must consider what he did with his time. When the bar was empty, the two men talked. It was a hand-me-down. They hoped that through him they might better understand the coach. Don Siegelman moved in 2000 to have Bryant considered for the board, some legislators protested, saying the vacant seat had been promised to be filled by an alumnus of the UA system's Birmingham campus, UAB. Neither man spent much time with his family. But unlike the others at the namesake reunion, his name wasn't merely a tribute. Billy Varner has been married to Susie for 57 years, and as her life was once spent waiting on him to get home from a job that didn't know hours or days off, now it's spent managing his dementia. Getty. Bryant established two dozen operating companies and over 50 real estate ventures and syndicates. Photo by Dave Dieter HVT, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. They have three daughters: Stella Gray Bryant Sykes, Mae Martin Bryant Murray, and Anna Laurie Bryant McKibbens, all graduates of The University of Alabama, and three grandchildren. John C. Wyatt Lexington Herald-Leader photographs. They're probably dead themselves because I was a fast gun. QB Bennett addresses off-field issues at combine, Stroud says he's top player, defends run ability, Alabama QB Young undeterred by size questions, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com. Susie is in and out of the room, doing laundry, listening to gospel music. To his right is the famous painting "315" that shows Bryant on the sideline as he breaks the all-time wins record, and down the wall from that is a pencil-and-ink drawing of Bryant as a young man. Bryant loved University of Alabama Crimson Tide football, and his son appears to love it just as deeply. His voice might be what affects her most. They reached the end together, sitting in a 14th-floor suite of the Memphis Holiday Inn. "That looks like him over there," Billy says. The Bear, the rough-faced legend on the video board, was predestined to be great. Alabama-Funeral-Young man gives final salute to Coach "Bear" Bryant. The family had asked that cameras be barred from the services. Bryant is a family man: He has been married to his wife, Cherry, since 1966, and they have three daughters all UA graduates and three grandchildren. "We knew he'd been offered a lot of money to write a book or help make a movie," says Linda Knowles, Bryant's longtime secretary, "and he would have none of that. Please update it here. "Well, we don't hardly know the details," he said finally. Patsy Abbott said it pointedly -- like, literally pointing at her grandson as he waited to build a bear. announced that the 2014 football season would be the last for UAB, Our view: We don't trust the process that ended UAB football, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. This photograph was published on Feb 24th, 1948 (1948-02-24) Photograph Number: 1.03-1497.01 He poured a drink and chatted with guests. NHL trade deadline: Winners and losers, including the Bruins, Devils and Bruce Boudreau? Paul W. Bryant Jr. sat down recently for a rare interview, giving insight into his involvement with UA athletics - both real and rumored - as well as a revealing glimpse into his personality, his background and the school's growth during his time on the board of trustees. But that's how it goes with family, and all those people out there today with Papa's name, that's what they are: family. Lexington (Ky.) -- Politics and government. At the end, when Bryant was sicker than anyone knew, Billy heard the private coughs. (Fie Photo/ The Huntsville Times) The Huntsville Times, Former Governor George Walalce attends the funeral of Alabama coach Paul 'Bear' Bryant at the First Methodist Church of Tuscaloosa on Friday Jan. 28, 1983. You can reach up and feel it. "Uh, uh. The sound gets louder. It's lunchtime. Later that night, she'd get the inevitable call. Alabama won the game against the University of Illinois at Urbana?Champaign, 21 to 15. The walls are covered with certificates and mementos of his service. Buy what you want, he told her, not what you need. He never talked about the private things he'd seen. Sure did. "What do you know about the story where Coach Bryant and Billy met?" I'd drive him. That's where he met Alabama's new football coach, and when Varner took the same job at the Indian Hills Country Club, where Bryant lived off the third fairway, they became close. If I'd changed jobs, I would have been making $50 more a month. All rights reserved. Joe Namath - Bear Bryant Funeral. PAUL BRYANT OBITUARY Paul Dean Bryant Jr., 47, of El Mirage, Arizona, passed away on April 15, 2006. Sometimes his mind is clear as a crystal. There is, always, a disconnect between the few people who miss Paul and the legion who worship The Bear. Tietosuojakytnnstmme ja evstekytnnstmme voit lukea lis siit, miten kytmme henkiltietojasi. All he has to show for two decades of service are his memories, and even those often hang just out of reach. Bryant was the son of legendary college football coach Bear Bryant and his wife, Mary. "I'm not sure I've enjoyed all of it. "If you're gonna be in, be all-in," explained James Turner, Bryant Denny Turner's father. TUSCALOOSA, Ala. Paul Bryant Jr., a native of Tuscaloosa, current trustee of The University of Alabama and graduate of the class of 1966, has given another $10 million gift to The University of Alabama, this time to the recently announced Crimson Tradition Fund Campaign for Athletics. The family of the late Kobe Bryant has agreed to a $28.5 million settlement with Los Angeles County to resolve the remaining claims in a lawsuit over deputies and firefighters sharing grisly photos of the NBA star, his 13-year-old daughter and other victims killed in a 2020 helicopter crash, attorneys and court filings said Feb. 28, 2023. The roots of this bond, like many things with Bryant, are full of mystery, myth and misinformation. Early life and family background [ edit] Paul William Bryant Jr. was born circa 1945. In addition, he chaired the committee that hired Dr. Robert Witt, past President of The University of Alabama and retired Chancellor of The University of Alabama System. Mrs. Bryant was dressed in a simple black dress and veil. Despite his famous name, business success and longtime influential role at the University of Alabama, Paul Bryant Jr. has stayed out of the spotlight. She'd always ask: "When y'all coming back?". The database includes around 700 names, and the museum manages to track most of their whereabouts via both old-school correspondence and newfangled social media. He'd get out. Paul Bryant Jr., a banker and the coach's only son, says his father established the fund in 1973. . In his late 20s, Bryant helped organize Peoples Bank of Tuscaloosa, which was merged into AmSouth in the early 1980s, with AmSouth later merging with Regions Bank. 1983 Press Photo Alabama-Mourning fans at Paul "Bear" Bryant's funeral. We probably don't pump that as much as we should, Bryant said, but we're real proud of that. A few days before the game, as a television crew interviewed him, Bryant walked by and cracked, "Don't rush yourself, Billy, I'll bring the car around. It was perhaps the most oddly attired gathering of mourners the cemetery had ever seen. ", They'd known each other for more than 20 years by then. Because this is my wife and it's her middle name! The living room takes up the front of the house, with a television at one end and, on the wall, a poem about footsteps in the sand, which ends with God telling a follower: "The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.". She settles in front of the exhibit of his office, the soft black-and-white couch players hated because they'd sink further and further down, the white telephone, the wide wooden desk. -- Kentucky -- Lexington. A member of the board since 2000, Bryant has said little publicly about UAB football. ", T A diamond of belly shows through the puckered front of his shirt. Bryant was held accountable for the demise of UAB football because of a letter Gene Bartow . nyttksemme sinulle kohdennettuja mainoksia ja sislt kiinnostusprofiileiden perusteella, mitataksemme kohdennettujen mainosten ja sisltjen tehokkuutta. XFL Week 3 preview: Can AJ McCarron, Battlehawks continue their fourth-quarter heroics? Over the years, various accounts have given him different titles, but essentially, he was a fixer. Billy was Bear Bryant's driver, bodyguard and valet, one of the few remaining people who knew him as a human being. The 68-year-old son of late football coaching legend Bear Bryant has had successful business ventures in everything from catfish farming to concrete, from dog tracks to casinos and from banks to reinsurance. I'm not as big on killing stuff as I am finding it with the dogs. The Birmingham News. Regularly, he refuses to believe that his old boss isn't at home waiting for a ride. "At the University of Alabama it's really important," Bryant told Deas. Whatever order was brought on by the photographs disappears. As she stands by the office exhibit, the speakers to her left loop audio of Bryant reading that devotional: "What I do today is very important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it. another $13 mil or so, in fact, which now . In 1973, the newspapers were purchased by the Knight-Ridder Corporation and in 1983 were merged into a single, morning paper that is still published as The Lexington Herald-Leader. He spends a long minute staring at the remote control, trying to figure out how to turn up the volume. I didn't use it but one time. He spent his youth in Lexington, Kentucky; College Station, Texas; and Tuscaloosa, Alabama the towns where his father coached. Bryant entered Druid City Hospital in Tuscaloosa on January 25, 1983, after feeling chest discomfort. Rutledge played for Bryant's first team and was an assistant on his last, and when he realized that he would be sharing new information, he clammed up. Billy found a phone and called ahead, telling Susie to make her good cornbread. he man Billy Varner is remembering has very little in common with the Bryant who is beloved by so many Alabama fans. Often, Coach read the paper aloud. Bryant's son, Paul Bryant Jr., remembers his father's birthday more than the anniversary of his death, but for most Alabama fans, everything changed "the day Bear Bryant died." There's even a song . She liked Bryant, thought he had a good heart, even if he did almost always call her Sally. Over 10 years, Bryant Bank has grown to over $1.5 billion in assets, becoming the largest family-owned bank in the state of Alabama. Today his memories seem to orbit around the idea of protecting Bryant from some unseen enemy. "He's there in the black," he says. He got his bartender a badge and a gun. That led to jobs, bartending at parties and running errands, and by the late 1960s, around the same time the coach traded his brown fedora for a hat with black-and-white checks, Billy began working for Bryant full time.
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