Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Please purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Your current subscription does not provide access to this content.
If you already subscribe to our print edition, sign up for FREE access to our online edition. Thanks for reading The Henderson News.
Please sign up to subscribe to The Henderson News online edition.
| Rate | Price | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Day | $1.00 | for 1 day |
| 1 Month | $6.00 | for 30 days |
| 2 Months | $12.00 | for 60 days |
| 3 Months | $18.00 | for 90 days |
| Six Months | $30.00 | for 180 days |
| One Year | $50.00 | for 365 days |
I’m just an ole Cowboy at heart. My favorite movies are westerns. I never get tired of watching them, even the re-runs.
I recall my first newspaper Publisher’s job where I had a very small office in an old building in downtown Lindale. I worked for a corporate newspaper company that owned over fifty newspapers in the nation, with 15 of them here in East Texas at that time, with Lindale being one of those papers.
My very first visit by our regional Vice President was an interesting one. Right behind my desk on the wall was a three-foot longhorn mount. Just below it was a hanging rack that had a cowboy hat hanging on one end, a bullwhip on the other end, and right in the middle was a six-gun western holster that I had bought years ago in Mexico. In that holster was a toy six-gun but it looked real.
As my VP sat down in front of me, he began talking about the upcoming budget. I noticed that he seemed to get off track as he kept looking at the wall behind me. Finally, he stopped his mumbled conversation and looked me square in the eye, and said, “Is that legal?”
To which I replied, “Is what legal?”
“That gun in that holster on the wall, is that legal?” he said.
So, I thought I would have a little fun and said, “Sure, I have it handy just in case I get an unruly customer or a disgruntled reader and need to protect myself and my staff.”
The look on his face was priceless. No one ever told me you don’t kid around with the VP of a major company. Anyway, I finally told him that it was a toy gun and that I was just an ole cowboy. He didn’t appear to be amused. It’s a wonder that my newspaper career didn’t end right then and there.
Well, my newspaper career didn’t end that day, but I continued for 20 more years working at several East Texas newspapers, one on the Gulf Coast, and one in Arkansas. I got my start in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. I started out as an advertising salesperson and since then have served as Editor & Publisher, Manager of several groups of newspapers, and even owned my own newspaper.
Not bad for a cowboy who has no journalism degree. As a matter of fact, I have never had a degree of any kind, only a few college courses, great determination, hard work, and dedication to my job.
When I started in this business, I hung up my gun and holster but now the time has come for me to hang up my spurs and as of December 26, 2022, I will retire as Editor & Publisher of The Henderson News and the newspaper business. It has been a great journey, but the trail must end for me.
I want to say that I have the most understanding and dedicated wife that any newspaperman could ever have. She has moved around with me more times than I have fingers and toes and never complained. I remember one time that she came into my office at the newspaper we bought a few years ago (she worked with me there) and sat down in front of my desk and said, “How can you possibly love this business (newspaper)?”
I must admit there have been a few times I have asked myself that very same question. It’s a thankless job, you never please everybody, there’s long crazy hours, those daily deadlines, and even disgruntled readers and customers sometimes. But, in just a few days that will all be behind me.
When I came to Henderson five years ago, I never intended to retire here. It was just another stop along my career but as fate would have it, Henderson will be our final home, the place where this cowboy will hang up his spurs.
I want to thank everyone that supported me and my staff for those five years. Every advertiser, every subscriber, every single copy newspaper purchaser, every reader, and every encouraging comment. Thank you!
Finally, I want to thank my dedicated staff who has supported me and the mission of this paper even though I’m sure there were times they may have wondered, “What is he doing now?”
Happy trails to you and may you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Dan Moore is editor and publisher of The Henderson News. His e-mail address is <publisher@thehendersonnews.com>.© 2021, Henderson Newspapers Inc.
