Hard Heads and Half Gales: Tales from Tarpon, Texas
$20.00
NOW AT LOWEST PRICE EVER!
In Hard Heads and Half Gales, Jim Wiggins presents a delightful look at the strong, self-reliant, and often eccentric folk who make up this small, island community in the years between WWII and the 1970s. In lovely vignettes, he reflects on how the forces of nature, from the amazing beauty and bounty of the surrounding bays and gulf to the powerful forces of wind and water, sculpted the landscape, the town, and the people who live there.
Hard Heads and Half Gales: Tales from Tarpon, Texas, made its public debut during the Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association’s annual fundraising dinner and auction. A special leather bound edition, book #1, presented in a custom wooden box built out of wood from the Farley tarpon fishing boat Manny, raised $7500 for the Museum and Farley Boat Works during the live auction.
This is the second book published by PAPHA, the first being The Mercer Logs: Pioneer times on Mustang Island, Texas. Like the Mercer Logs, Hard Heads and Half Gales gives us a look at an earlier Port Aransas. With this book, however, many readers might find themselves reflecting on their own memories of life on this barrier island as they turn the pages.
Wiggins commissioned Ivan McDougal to paint 10 beautiful watercolors to illustrate this fine collection of tales about his favorite place in the world to spend time with those he loved.
About the Author
James Osborne Wiggins, Jr. (1920-1998). James Osborne Wiggins, Jr. was born in 1920 in Beaumont, Texas. He started his career in radio and moved to San Antonio, where he enjoyed regional success as host of the Noonday Jamboree, a popular live country-music show. The station, 50,000-watt clear channel AM, was KABC. Along the way he was the play-by-play announcer for the San Antonio Missions, a farm team for the Baltimore Orioles, and was also a member of the Exxon Southwest Conference football announcing team for nearly two decades. In addition to being involved in radio, Jim owned and operated an advertising agency in San Antonio for over thirty years. Port Aransas was his favorite locale, and he and his family fished, boated and swam, having the best of times together there. He was a homeowner three times in Port Aransas; two were destroyed or damaged by hurricanes, and the third stood the test of time (so far!). He and local real estate broker, Mark Grosse, became successful business partners by building hundreds of boat sheds for boat owners. Jim was constantly amused, bemused and impressed by the good people of Port Aransas. He collected, wrote and re-wrote these stories over many years at the end of his life. We hope you will glimpse through these stories the joy he had for life, the unshakable faith he had in the Lord and his deep love for his family and his friends in Port Aransas.
Ivan McDougal (1927-2005). Ivan McDougal was born in Lometa, Texas, in 1927, and attended school in San Antonio and Kerrville, Texas. After service in the Navy, he attended Trinity University in San Antonio, as well as The American Academy of Art in Chicago. He was one of the founding members of the Watercolor Gang of San Antonio and served in leadership positions in several professional watercolor organizations including the Texas Watercolor Society. He was a charter member of the San Antonio Watercolor Group.
The Watercolor Gang was formed 40+ years ago and still meets on the 1st Friday of each month to discuss, critique and encourage each other in their artistic pursuits. The four remaining members, Lee Ricks, Clay McGaughy, Finis Collins and E Gordon West, continue to travel together throughout the world, including Port Aransas, to paint.
Book Details
- Hardcover: 106 pages
- Publisher: Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association (2013)
- Editor: Cameron Pratt
- Illustrated by Ivan McDougal
- Contributors: Cameron Pratt, Mark Grosse, Lee Ricks
- ISBN-10: 0988278308
- ISBN-13: 978-0988278301
- Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
