Vol. 1 No. 46 Gail Hodgson, a fast miler from South Africa and U. of Oklahoma

Hi George

Just to tell you that I have been getting all your fabulous emails over the previous months.....maybe even years !!!!!!!!. Sorry I haven't replied sooner. I just marvel at all the info that has stayed alive, and it;s thanks to your efforts that have made it so interesting and meaningful.

I am a semi-retired architect after practicing in Rustenburg South Africa for the last 40 years or so, and am now in Johannesburg trying to come to terms with doing mostly nothing most of the time. My Children.......all grown up now are still in the States.......Denver, and San Marcos. My daughter Kim from Denver is doing real well with my genes and is running great long distant events all over the country.

When I was in Norman I had a rock & roll band called The Twisters.......me on piano and vocals. We backed up guys like Chuck Berry, and Johnny Cash, and I personally backed up the Inkspots, and I personally met Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald by inviting them to perform at OU in about 1960.

I haven't run since getting back to South Africa, but have helped with a bit of coaching over the years.

Thanks again for all the GREAT news......my email is gailarch1@ mweb.co.za.

All the very VERY BEST Gail Hodgson.......OU 1957 to 1960

Hello, Gail,

George forwarded your email to his entire email list, and it was good to get an update from you.

You may remember that I was the one that called you from a hunting ranch up north around Messina 4 or 5 years ago. I was a first semester freshman walk-on when you were in your last semester of eligibility, running cross country in the fall of 1960. You were kind enough to give me some pointers about running form during our first workout on the old golf course, which advice I badly needed.

It has been interesting to see the responses that George Brose has elicited from his various mailouts. I claim a lot of credit for his work because a few years ago at a track meet in Norman I suggested that he start up the OU Track Website, which he did. It turned out to be a lot more work than he thought it would be. But I think that beginning has led to all this.

I had forgotten about the Twisters, but your email to George brought it all back. I saw your group perform a couple of times. Later I worked with one of the members of the band, David Nelson. He was head dorm counselor from about 1963 to 1965 in Washington House (you may remember, it was the "new" jock dorm in those days, reserved for football and basketball players). In his last year there I was an assistant counselor on the third floor (freshmen footballers). He talked a lot about the days the Twisters were performing. I specifically remember him saying that after he had been playing for some time (years?) with the band you paid him the ultimate compliment: you told him he was actually getting pretty good on the bass guitar! It obviously meant a lot to him, coming from you.

David went to law school at OU, and the last I heard was practicing law in Norman. I am a lawyer, too, but am trying to retire and finding it somewhat difficult to turn loose.

If you ever get over here to visit your daughter in San Marcos, be sure and let me know. I live in Austin, only 26 miles away. It would be great to see you.

Best regards///walt mizell