Chicken Ranch report no. 70: Zindler's Zany Zeal pt. 4

A few weeks ago, KTRK (ABC 13) out of Houston ran a couple of stories I helped them put together (here and here) about the infamous Chicken Ranch of La Grange, Texas, which served as the inspiration for the Broadway musical and subsequent film, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. In addition to the new segments, KTRK's producers dug up old broadcasts from 1993, the 20th anniversary of the closure. This is the final installment of the five broadcasts, and I'm offering my thoughts, two decades removed.

This one starts with a recap of the previous videos. Nothing really new here, although there's a rare photo of Austin County Sheriff Truman Maddox at the 1:06 mark (Sheriff Maddox didn't take Zindler's media circus as personally as Sheriff Jim Flournoy did, which is probably why few people remember him today. But Sheriff Maddox was a colorful character in his own right). There's also a brief image of La Grange clergy in the recap, which I'm assuming was included in the fourth retrospective segment, which was cannibalized for the new "43 years later" segment. Obviously, KTRK did not believe enough material remained to make it worthwhile to post the original Zindler piece online, but I find that reasoning disappointing, from a historical perspective. And I have to say, using Charles Durning's "Sidestep" dance number as filler is entertaining, but doesn't bring anything new to the subject. Of more interest is Governor Briscoe's press conference. Bits and pieces of it exist here and there, but I've not been able to find a complete recording of it. The next segment is interesting. It shows Zindler visiting the (closed but still-intact) Chicken Ranch in December of 1974 after it'd been closed for a year. The caretaker made the KTRK crew leave the property as soon as he realized they were there. I like the fact Zindler's puffing on a big cigar and gets a closeup shot of his finger ringing the doorbell. That's a nice touch. Of course, their next stop was downtown La Grange and a fateful encounter with Sheriff Flournoy, one of several events which guaranteed the Chicken Ranch a kind of bizarre, pop culture immortality. Oh! And at the 2:56 mark there's a sign on a gate that says "Closed due to complaints of Marvin Zindler." A screen grab of this image can be found online, attributed to the Chicken Ranch, but this is in fact the sign at the lesser-known Wagon Wheel brothel outside of Sealy. Finally, I find it amusing that Zindler ends this retrospective with a mini-rant about the fact that many people have made money off The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, but that he didn't share in the profits. This is a wee bit disingenuous, as the whole scandal boosted Zindler's profile (not to mention lifting KTRK out of its perennial third-place finish in the ratings) and--if it didn't make his career, certainly cemented his place as a Texas celebrity. Zindler did profit, and profit greatly, but his benefits accrued indirectly.

Watching these videos makes me a little melancholy. Not for the closure of the Chicken Ranch, mind you--that's ancient history and there's no turning back the clock. No, I'm frustrated that the station manager at KTRK I spoke with five or so years back chose not to make any of this archival footage available to me. Zindler's original film broadcasts were stored in a warehouse outside the city, and there was no viewing system set up, etc., which made it impractical, if not impossible, to get me access to them. Clearly, these retrospective videos show that the station did have a significant portion of those broadcasts archived for easy access. It would've been nice had I been able to review and incorporate them when researching my book, but I guess it was easier just to put off the peon writer with a partial truth. The reporters there I've worked with have been great, mind you. I just wish the station had been more generous back before they needed something from me.

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Various artists Putamayo Presents Brazilian Groove
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 69: Zindler's Zany Zeal pt. 3

A few weeks ago, KTRK (ABC 13) out of Houston ran a couple of stories I helped them put together (here and here) about the infamous Chicken Ranch of La Grange, Texas, which served as the inspiration for the Broadway musical and subsequent film, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. In addition to the new segments, KTRK's producers dug up old broadcasts from 1993, the 20th anniversary of the closure. I was a young reporter in Temple at the time, so this is the first I've ever seen the broadcasts. I'm going to share them here and then offer my thoughts, two decades removed.

I just love the footage here of clients waiting to access the Chicken Ranch. These clips were filmed by cameraman Frank Ambrose, who was hiding (but not very well) in the back of an "undercover" van he and Larry Conners had driven to La Grange. Now here's where fiction and truth come together: Herb Hancock, who was an assistant AG under John Hill, approached Marvin Zindler on his own. John Hill had no idea he'd done so, and Hancock worked hard to keep it that way. Hancock, for his part, had been convinced by others that the Chicken Ranch was a nexus of organized crime and corruption in the state. Remember that the internet and Twitter and instantaneous social communication didn't exist back then. Heck, long distance telephone calls were generally avoided because of the extra cost involved, so there was no easy way to do quick, wide-ranging fact-checking or investigation of sources. The facts presented to him were either accepted or rejected depending on the perceived veracity of the source, and in this case Hancock had no reason to believe he was receiving biased information (which he was).

Aside from that, it's great to see Larry Conners get some screen time. He's the overlooked hero (or villain, depending on your point of view) in the great Chicken Ranch investigation. Conners did almost all of the actual investigative leg-work, while Zindler presented the material as only he could, in his distinctive, bombastic way. I love Conners' interview with Sheriff Flournoy. Flournoy answers pretty much every question in a mumbling, monotone growl. I imagine he'd have preferred to have been just about anywhere else at that point in time. And it's true that Colonel Wilson Speir, head of the DPS and Texas Rangers, called Flournoy and had the Chicken Ranch temporarily closed down during politically sensitive times, such as elections. That may be hard for people to believe, but Texas really was a different world from what we're used to today. Zindler teases an interview with madam Edna Milton in the next installment, but that's not available online--mainly because KTRK used a bunch of that footage earlier, in ABC13 Revisits the Chicken Ranch 43 Years Later.

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Postmodern Jukebox Historical Misappropriation
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 68: Zindler's zany zeal pt. 2

A couple weeks ago, KTRK (ABC 13) out of Houston ran a couple of stories I helped them put together (here and here) about the infamous Chicken Ranch of La Grange, Texas, which served as the inspiration for the Broadway musical and subsequent film, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. In addition to the new segments, KTRK's producers dug up old broadcasts from 1993, the 20th anniversary of the closure. I was a young reporter in Temple at the time, so this is the first I've ever seen the broadcasts. I'm going to share them here and then offer my thoughts, two decades removed.

"Yes, we called it a bawdy house back then," is one of the more amusing lines in this piece. Everything Zindler or another reporter says "bawdy house" it sounds to me like they're saying "body house," which isn't far from the truth. They couldn't say "whorehouse" back then (and today it's iffy) but had nobody back in 1973 heard of the word "brothel" or even "bordello"? Seems to me those would be acceptable for the 10 p.m. newscast. Oh, here's John Hill again, pretending he was the guiding hand behind efforts to close the Chicken Ranch. I wish he'd have been honest about his role in the affair--these quotes of his are just embarrassing. At the 1:28 mark, we get another look at the Wagon Wheel. I'm quite surprised at how few (read: none) photographs of the Wagon Wheel I came across from the time it was open for business. Lots of history at that location--most of it unknown.

"After 20 years, Kitzman is still hostile, and wouldn't talk to me," Zindler says on the film. And you know what? That's not a Zindler exaggeration. I interviewed former district attorney Oliver Kitzman, and he did not radiate fondness for Zindler. Kitzman spoke of his interactions with Zindler and the two brothels with a kind of bemused resignation, not quite believing anyone could take Zindler's grandstanding seriously. Kitzman's comments to Zindler, including his dismissal of any organized crime involvement, closely match what he told me nearly 40 years later. It also matches information I received from other sources--including the next star witness, former assistant attorney general Herb Hancock. Hancock turned out to be the lynch pin of the entire Chicken Ranch affair, as he is the one who--without Hill's knowledge or approval--recruited Zindler to the case. To watch Hill kiss up to Zindler, praising his exposure of the Chicken Ranch, is downright cringe-worthy. Look, from all my research shows, Hill was a fundamentally honest man, but closing down the Chicken Ranch was never a priority for him as AG. For him to claim otherwise after the fact is just painful.

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Señor Coconut Around the World
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 67: Zindler's zany zeal pt. 1

Last week, KTRK (ABC 13) out of Houston ran a couple of stories I helped them put together (here and here) about the infamous Chicken Ranch of La Grange, Texas, which served as the inspiration for the Broadway musical and subsequent film, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. In addition to the new segments, KTRK's producers dug up old broadcasts from 1993, the 20th anniversary of the closure. I was a young reporter in Temple at the time, so this is the first I've ever seen the broadcasts. I'm going to share them here and then offer my thoughts, two decades removed.

Well, Marvin Zindler certainly is his old bombastic self, isn't he? Zindler wastes no time in bringing up the old "organized crime" accusations, which, 43 years later, still remain unproven. Here's something interesting--at around the 1:40 mark, we see some rare (if poor-quality and low-contrast) footage of the oft-forgotten Wagon Wheel brothel outside of Sealy. In all honesty, until I saw this, I had never realized the individual "cabins" had been linked together in one long chain by connecting car ports. My earliest memory of the Wagon Wheel dates to maybe 1979, noticing it on a trip to Houston or somesuch, and by then the car ports were gone and the main lobby was mostly gutted.

Enter former Texas Attorney General John Hill. Wow, talk about revisionist history. Let me be clear here--Hill had nothing to do with the closing of the Chicken Ranch. I got that directly from sources within the office of Governor Dolph Briscoe and the attorney general's office as well. In fact, Hill was deliberately kept in the dark because these efforts to close the Chicken Ranch had not been approved by the AG. Note that Hill's comments are very general and vague, offering no details specific to the Chicken Ranch itself. To me, this comes across as Hill attempting to cover for himself, not letting on that he'd lost control of his own organized crime task force for the better part of 1973. I don't know about you, but were I the Texas Attorney General, that'd be a pretty embarrassing admission, even two decades later. For the record, I do think Zindler fully believed Hill was behind the so-called "anonymous tip" that started the whole affair (which wasn't all that anonymous to begin with, as we'll soon see).

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Crowded House Together Alone
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 66: Texas Roadtrippers part 2

"Texas Roadtrippers," the spring feature series from KTRK-TV reporters Pooja Lodhia and Steve Campion aired the much-anticipated Chicken Ranch installment of their La Grange adventure last night, during the 10 p.m. newscast. There's a nice shout-out for my book, Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch and some great archival footage. It was fun talking with them and bringing this little bit of Texas history to life. If you don't live in the Houston media area, or haven't had a chance to see it yet, they've kindly made the segment available online for viewing:

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Original Broadway Cast Recording Spamalot
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 65: Texas Roadtrippers part 1

"Texas Roadtrippers," the spring feature series from KTRK-TV reporters Pooja Lodhia and Steve Campion aired the first installment of their La Grange adventure last night. I know a bunch of people watched, because about 150 people from the Houston area visited my website right after it aired. This segment only has a small teaser about the Chicken Ranch (and yours truly in my Lone Star shirt) but tonight's piece, set to air during the 10 p.m. newscast, is entirely devoted to the Chicken Ranch. It should be interesting--don't forget to set your DVRs!

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: The Hooters Nervous Night
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 64: KTRK redux

Remember a few weeks ago, when a news crew from KTRK-TV out of Houston met me at the ruins of the Chicken Ranch in La Grange for a story? Well, I'm now informed by a producer at Channel 13 that the piece is scheduled to run this Friday, April 29, during the 10 p.m. newscast!

Those of you who know your Chicken Ranch history know why this is kind of a big deal, circle-of-life kind of thing. KTRK was the home of the legendary Marvin Zindler, a crusading consumer affairs activist whose bombastic, on-air reports about the Chicken Ranch operations forced the closure of the brothel in 1973. A year later, Zindler returned to La Grange to do a follow-up story and had an unfortunate encounter with Sheriff Flournoy and the rest, as they they say, is history.

In any event, Pooja Lodhia and Steve Campion were a lot of fun to work with. The story itself will air on Channel 13 (ABC) in Houston, but should be available on their website at some point and also via the ABC13 Houston mobile app.

Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse is now listed on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com for pre-order.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing: Martin Denny Exotica
Chicken Ranch Central

Chicken Ranch report no. 62: KTRK-TV

Guess where I spent yesterday morning? La Grange! I swear, I've visited La Grange more times in the past couple years than in all the 18 I spent growing up right down the road in Columbus. They're going to have to make me an honorary La Granger if I keep this up.

Let me back up a little. On Monday, I received an unexpected email from Pooja Lodhia a reporter with KTRK-TV out of Houston. For those of you not familiar with H-Town broadcasting, KTRK is better-known as Channel 13, the former home of the late Marvin Zindler. Yes, the television personality who shut down the Chicken Ranch in 1973. Can you see where this is going?

Pooja explained that she, Steve Campion and a cameraman were putting together a little road trip to do a series of feature stories for the spring. I suspect they were looking for an excuse to get out of Houston and just have a little fun traveling around. They pitched a trip to La Grange to their producers and were approved, so Pooja wanted to know if I could meet them when they arrived in La Grange and talk a little about Marvin Zindler and the Chicken Ranch.

After explaining that I didn't actually live in La Grange, I agreed to meet them in the late morning. Then I did them one better--I got permission from the property owner to give them a tour of the actual Chicken Ranch ruins. Let me tell you, they had a great time seeing what remained of the historic site, learning some of the background of those infamous events that happened before any of them were even born. When they drove up looking for a place to park, I told them "Drive up there a piece, then hang a left at the bluebonnets." Campion exploded in laughter, insisting "That is the most Texas thing I've ever heard anybody say." You can see we started off on the right foot. We talked for close to two hours, and by the time they had to leave to make another interview appointment in Luling, they said a lot of the myths surrounding the place made a lot more sense to them now. They also seemed genuinely enthusiastic about Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch (forthcoming August 1 from the History Press) and said they want to do something with me for broadcast in Houston once the book is out. Which I'm entirely in favor of, since I have a sneaking suspicion this topic will find a ready audience there.

In my time I've dealt with reporters who've been pushy, disorganized, disinterested... you name it. Pooja and Steve were the exact opposite. They were fun and engaging and downright pleasant to spend time with. I believe the technical term is "Good People." They promised to let me know as soon as the segment is scheduled to air, and when I know I will pass that information along here. Even if you're not in the Houston area, the piece should be available online or via the KTRK mobile app. I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Title: Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse
Author: Jayme Lynn Blaschke
Publication Date: August 1, 2016
ISBN: 978.1.46713.563.4

And remember, Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch is still available if you just can't wait for August 1 to get here:

Ghosts of the Chicken Ranch by Jayme Blaschke & Lisa Blaschke

Now Playing:
Chicken Ranch Central