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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, For more than 50 years, the Texas Prison Rodeo stood |
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as a beloved institution known throughout the Lone Star State and |
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beyond; and |
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WHEREAS, Established in 1931, the Texas Prison Rodeo took |
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place annually at the Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville, with |
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the event traditionally being held on each Sunday in October; the |
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rodeo was created by state prison system general manager Marshall |
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Lee Simmons to serve as a source of income for the penitentiary and |
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to provide entertainment for prisoners, employees, and their |
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families, but its popularity immediately exceeded all |
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expectations; the competition soon grew to become one of the |
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largest sporting events in Texas and helped reveal rodeo's |
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widespread appeal among the general public; and |
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WHEREAS, "The Wildest Show Behind Bars" was held on the |
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baseball field outside the "Walls" Unit during its early years; in |
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1950, a $1 million open-air arena with a capacity of over 20,000 was |
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constructed; the new venue was able to accommodate more people, and |
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attendance continued to surge, totaling close to 100,000 during |
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peak years; the profits from ticket sales helped fund education, |
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recreation, and medical programs for inmates across Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, In the early 1950s, the rodeo began featuring |
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celebrity entertainers during intermission; a host of legendary |
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stars took the stage through the decades, including Johnny Cash, |
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Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, and George Strait; in |
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addition, many inmates demonstrated their dancing and musical |
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talents for the thousands of spectators who filled the venue; and |
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WHEREAS, Above all else, the prison rodeo highlighted the |
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exceptional riding and ranching skills possessed by numerous |
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individuals in the corrections system; vying for the "Top Hand" |
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award, inmates from various units in Texas participated in tryouts, |
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and between 50 and 100 of the best contestants got the chance to |
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show their abilities in Huntsville each year; they took part in |
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standard rodeo events, such as bull riding, horse racing, and |
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bareback bronc riding, as well as in a number of novelty |
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competitions; these included wild cow milking, bull dogging, and |
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the perennial favorite, "Hard Money," in which participants tried |
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to snatch a tobacco sack filled with cash from between the horns of |
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a rampaging bull; the winners of these challenges were regarded |
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with great esteem, and those who didn't qualify had other |
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opportunities to get involved by serving as staff members or |
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assisting in making the uniforms worn by the competitors; and |
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WHEREAS, The end of the rodeo came in the mid-1980s, after the |
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arena was deemed structurally unsafe and it was decided that |
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repairs were too costly to undertake; the final Texas Prison Rodeo |
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took place on October 26, 1986, and the facility then remained empty |
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and unused for a quarter century until being demolished in 2012; and |
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WHEREAS, From the time of its establishment during the Great |
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Depression to its conclusion five and a half decades later, the |
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Texas Prison Rodeo was an unforgettable chapter in the saga of the |
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Lone Star State, and this fascinating event is indeed deserving of |
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special recognition; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby pay tribute to the history of the Texas Prison Rodeo. |