Jack Graves Favor, also known as Cadillac Jack Favor,[3][4] (November 30, 1911 – December 27, 1988) was an American rodeo performer.[5][6]

Jack Favor
Born
Jack Graves Favor[1]

(1911-11-30)November 30, 1911
DiedDecember 27, 1988(1988-12-27) (aged 77)
OccupationRodeo performer
Spouse
Ponder Favor
(m. 1940)
[2]
Children3[2]

Biography

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Early life

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Favor was born on a ranch in Eula, Texas.[1][2] He attended and graduated from Abilene High School.[2] While at high school he won his first rodeo competition as a bronc rider in Cameron, Texas.[2]

Later life

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Favor served in the United States Navy from 1929 to 1932, returning to Texas after his discharge.[2] He worked as a truck driver for a plumbing company in Abilene, Texas.[2] Favor later settled in Fort Worth, Texas,[1] before returning to the Navy in 1941.[2]

Favor continued to compete in rodeos, retiring in 1961 to live in Texarkana, Texas and work as a salesman.[2]

Conviction, imprisonment and acquittal

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In 1967, Favor was convicted of a double murder after being accused by a hitchhiker he had picked up. He served eight years in Angola prison before being acquitted in a retrial.[1]

After his release, Favor was the subject of a book by William B. Moody titled In Jack’s Favor, and appeared on the late-night television talk show The Tomorrow Show and a radio show hosted by author, presenter and sports journalist, Howard Cosell.[2]

Death

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Favor died in December 1988 of complications from cancer in a hospital in Arlington, Texas, at the age of 77.[1] He was buried in Parkdale Cemetery.[1]

Legacy

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In 1998 Favor was played by actor and musician Clint Black in the television film Still Holding On: The Legend of Cadillac Jack.[4] Black also wrote a song titled "Cadillac Jack" with country guitarist and songwriter, Hayden Nicholas.[3] Favor was posthumously inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame in 2009.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Jack Favor, 77, rodeo champ who fought for prison reform". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Fort Worth, Texas. December 29, 1988. p. 15. Retrieved March 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j ""Not Guilty"" (PDF). The Christian Ranchman. 2012. pp. 1, 12–13. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved March 24, 2022 – via Wayback Machine.  
  3. ^ a b "American Cowboy (Vol. 3, No. 6)". American Cowboy. Active Interest Media: 32. Mar–Apr 1997. ISSN 1079-3690 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ a b Miller, Daryl (April 28, 1998). "'Cadillac Jack' Rides Down a Well-Worn Country Road". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
  5. ^ "3 Men Indicted In Double Killing". The Town Talk. Alexandria, Louisiana. October 14, 1965. p. 18. Retrieved March 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ "Settlement Reached". Reading Eagle. May 17, 1976. Retrieved March 24, 2022 – via Google Books.  
  7. ^ "Inductees by Year". Western Heritage from the Texas Trail of Fame. Archived from the original on November 4, 2021. Retrieved March 24, 2022 – via Wayback Machine.
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