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The Biography of Patrick Holman Flynn

Picture and biography courtesy of Michael Flynn Pulsipher.
With permission of Jerry Flynn from the Patrick Holman Flynn's Genealogy Page*

 

Patrick Holman Flynn

Patrick Holman Flynn was born on the nineteenth day of October 1906, in Hutto, Williamson County, Texas. He was the first child of Patrick Hardy Flinn and Clara Leta Vaughan Flinn. The delivery doctor was his uncle, Dr. Joe Flinn.  Patrick Holman's mother and father met when Leta’s father was sent to Hutto to be the Methodist preacher there. Later, the Reverend Stephan James Vaughan was transferred from Hutto to Colorado City, Texas. Patrick Hardy soon followed and married Leta in the Colorado City church where Leta’s father preached. Sometime after their marriage, Patrick Hardy changed the spelling of their name from Flinn to Flynn. This was because Leta preferred the spelling "Flynn" as she thought it to look "prettier" in writing.  Newspaper clippings of the marriage stated that Patrick Hardy was "of Hutto, Texas". It is believed that the newly married couple lived in Hutto for awhile tending to the Flinn family farm. Leta’s father owned a farm in Floydada, Floyd County, Texas. After the Flinn farm was sold, Reverend Vaughan allowed Patrick Hardy and Leta to move there and try to earn a living on his farm. It is not known how long Patrick Hardy worked the Floydada farm but he later owned the town’s Butcher Shop.  Mildred Frances Flynn was born in Floydada on the tenth day of August 1909, just one year after her sister, Laura Mae was born and died the same day in 1908. Sometime after Mildred was born, Leta became ill with the flu and almost passed away. Her husband sold his Butcher Shop and moved the family to Plainview, Texas, where Leta could be closer to her doctor and where Patrick Hardy could spend more time at home with her and nurse her back to health. Leta remained weak and fragile after her recovery, and they were told she could have no more children.  Patrick Holman began his schooling in Floydada, and continued in Plainview. Later, the Flynns moved to Canyon, Randall County, Texas, where Patrick Hardy had bought a small parcel of farmland. The Canyon High School was overcrowded and used some of the empty rooms at West Texas State College located there to conduct classes. This was as close to a college education as Patrick Holman would get as he left high school before he graduated. Although Pat, as he now called himself, had little formal education, he was an avid reader of all sorts of books. He proved himself to be a self-educated man in his later professions as a newspaper reporter and radio personality.  While Pat was still living in Canyon he met Velma Cleo Cazzell who lived in nearby Amarillo, Texas. The two married on the twentieth of September 1924, a month before Pat's eighteenth birthday. Velma was twenty years old. After their marriage, Pat and Velma settled in Amarillo and had three children; two girls, Patricia and Michael and a boy, Jerry.  Pat and Velma divorced on July 30, 1947 after being separated for several years. Pat married Elma Sanders Curlin on August 1, 1947. Pat and Elma had two sons, Timothy Pat Flynn, born November 20, 1948 and Terrance Kelly Flynn born May 18, 1950. Pat and Elma divorced on October 15, 1962.  Pat began his career as a newspaper reporter for THE AMARILLO TIMES, the smaller of two newspapers then in Amarillo. He quickly established himself as a valued newsman and eventually moved over to the larger newspaper, THE AMARILLO GLOBE NEWS. Pat worked as a newspaper reporter through the nineteen thirties and early forties. Pat was also a talented promoter. He helped with the promotion of old Highway 66, was active promoting war bond drives during World War II and was involved in promoting a celebration of the city of Ft. Worth, Texas to name a few.  Pat left THE AMARILLO GLOBE NEWS in 1945 to be a radio news correspondent and talk show personality. He worked for a time at radio station KFDA in Amarillo and then moved to another Amarillo radio station KLYN where he stayed until he retired in 1956. Pat was very proud that he was Irish and could speak with a convincing Irish brogue. Typical of a true Irishman, Pat loved poetry and sang with a deep, rich voice. His favorite song was "Just A Little Blue For You" which he sang often with his wife, Velma and their daughters. Pat was also a gifted writer of poetry. During his career in radio, Pat was known as "The Mad Irishman" which he dubbed as "The worst fifteen minutes in radio". Pat was a popular figure in Amarillo and the surrounding area during his career as a newspaper man and radio personality but was best known as "The Mad Irishman".  Several years after his retirement, Pat became ill and was diagnosed with lung cancer. He passed away on January 31, 1971 and is buried in Llano Cemetery, Amarillo, near his mother and father.