jimlowe

Jim Lowe, voice of Big Tex, dies at 73 Longtime DJ "howdied" generations of fairgoers.

Author/s: Joe Simnacher
Issue: May 30, 2000

James E. "Jim" Lowe Jr., who for nearly four decades greeted millions of visitors to the State Fair of Texas through the voice of his alter ego, Big Tex, has died.

Mr. Lowe, 73, died Sunday of cancer at his Dallas home.

A memorial service will be at 3:30 p.m. Thursday at Restland Funeral Home's Wildwood Chapel, 13005 Greenville Ave. Mr. Lowe will be buried at a private ceremony in Restland Memorial Park.

Although Mr. Lowe also was a well-known radio announcer and disc jockey, it was with his role as the voice of the 52-foot cowboy that he cast the biggest shadow. He defined the way Big Tex spoke and gave the State Fair icon his personality, said Nancy Wiley, the fair's vice president of public affairs.

"He defined what Big Tex sounded like," Ms. Wiley said. "He's the name and person we all identified with, not only being the voice, but he created Big Tex's personality. Jim, more than anyone, made Tex what he is."

Mr. Lowe's daily routine at the fair most often included a stop at Ms. Wiley's office, she said. He'd pick up his announcements. He'd get a cup of coffee. Then he'd head for the booth with his scripts for the day.

But sometimes, she recalled, Mr. Lowe would divert from his scripts, mentioning the weather or recommending an exhibit he enjoyed. It all helped develop Big Tex's big persona.

"When Jim was in the booth, he would use it an opportunity to slip a little bit of commentary into what Tex had to say," Ms. Wiley said. "Big Tex was liable to sort of, out of the blue, comment on anything he felt like."

Ms. Wiley said she learned late last week that Mr. Lowe's health was failing. In September, doctors removed Mr. Lowe's gallbladder. Dan Alexander, a local singer, replaced him behind the microphone.

"We knew he wasn't in real good health," she said. "It was not a total surprise.

"We all probably went through some of the initial stages of missing Jim last fall when he wasn't there," she said. "That's not to say Dan Alexander didn't do a good job. He did. Jim was just part of the fair. He's absolutely a legend. We will miss him."

Legendary Dallas Mayor R.L. Thornton Sr. gave Mr. Lowe the initial concept for Big Tex's slow speech.

In a 1982 interview, Mr. Lowe recalled that the mayor instructed him to make Big Tex talk like a cross between Gary Cooper and Santa Claus.

"I don't know if I ever sounded like that," Mr. Lowe said. "I think I may have even sneezed a couple of times."

What Mr. Lowe did was make his character's main line - "Howdy folks, this is Big Tex. Welcome to the State Fair of Texas" - as key an element of the fair as corny dogs and midway barkers.

From 1953 to 1981, Mr. Lowe was Big Tex, mostly hidden from view in a shack between Big Tex and the main entrance of the Automobile Building. Mr. Lowe relinquished his role as Big Tex's voice from 1982 to 1987.

He resumed the job in 1988, but had to drop out again for the 1999 fair when his health began to fail.

Mr. Lowe backed into a radio career in 1943 when he was a 17-year-old senior at Paschal High School in his native Fort Worth. During a school lunch period, he visited KFJZ-AM in search of records. George Erwin, who worked for the station, was impressed to find that the teenager had experience operating audio equipment and offered him a job playing music for two hours each morning.

The future State Fair fixture worked his way through Texas Christian University at KFJZ. In 1947, he helped start KXOL-AM in Fort Worth as an announcer and music director.

In 1950, Mr. Lowe moved to Dallas, where he began a 24-year career with WRR-AM. At the city-owned station, Mr. Lowe introduced Dallas listeners to rhythm and blues with his Kat's Karavan show, said longtime friend Roy Parks of Dallas.

"It was a big story of that time," said Mr. Parks, then on the WRR-AM sales staff. "He had a great following."

Mr. Lowe had a delightful, outrageous sense of humor, Mr. Parks said, and brought a number of innovations to the station, including the Library of Laffs, which played cuts from comedy albums throughout the day.

He also was a compassionate person.

"If you were really in trouble or had a problem, Jim had great empathy," Mr. Parks said.

Mr. Lowe also worked for WFAA-AM and KAAM-AM.

Mr. Lowe is survived by his two sons, Gary Lowe and James Lowe III, both of Dallas; a daughter, Peggy Crain of Dallas; and six grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to Friends of Fair Park, 1121 1st Ave., Dallas, TX 75210.

Staff writers Reese Dunklin and Ian McCann contributed to this report.

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