Call me Ted

The Mouth of the South turns 75 today.

I've always like Ted, especially in his early Captain Courageous days.  My twin cousin was a congressional lobbyist for him at the time. She was/is young and cute and declared him the most odious man on the planet.  I refused to believe.

Not long after Turner's boat won the America's Cup I asked if she would have Ted sign a copy of the photo below for me. I've never known Smith girls to talk like that.

I still like Ted.  For whatever his faults his legacy will live on through his children and his philanthropy.  Guided by their old man's generosity, his children have become stewards of the finest farm and ranch land in the U.S..  

We finally met several years ago.  A client of mine has a bison (buffalo) ranch, Ted came to call, and I got to stay. After our introduction he paused and said "I used to have a girl working for me in Washington with that name."   Just call me Ted.

Happy birthday sir.

Toad