Brush With Fame II

Readers should be forgiven for not remembering the first “Brush With Fame” post, its having been posted nearly two years ago. They should also be forgiven for deciding that this “brush” isn’t nearly as exciting as being bear-hugged by Bill Murray. It isn’t. Still, it’s somewhat interesting, especially if you’re a watcher of politics, as I have been most of my adult life. Here’s the brief story behind this picture.

In the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, my grandfather served as pastor of Victory Park Baptist Church in McAlester, Oklahoma. During those years he developed something of a relationship with the congressman from Oklahoma’s third congressional district, the Hon. Carl Albert. My grandfather left McAlester in around 1964, but Rep. Albert stayed a resident, and stayed in the congress, where he was elected Speaker of the House in 1971.

In October of 1976, when I was five years old, my family visited Washington, D.C., and received a tour of the Capitol building that was guided by Speaker Albert himself. Apparently, his office was part of the tour, as I am here pictured seated behind his desk.

Too bad I don’t remember any of this. It would probably make for a pretty cool story if I were telling it from memory, rather than from an academic knowledge of my family history.