Tributes to Roz Webb and Pat Hininger

Excerpt from Hot Stove #243 (1/23/24).

Lonnie’s Jukebox – Roz and Pat Edition: This edition is dedicated to Rosalind (Roz) Webb and Pat Hininger, two sisters who played major roles in my life. Pat died in September of 2022 (at age 78), and Roz died earlier this month (at age 82; obituary here). Roz had a cameo in the Hot Stove posted on November 30, 2023, when I used one of the music selections in Lonnie’s Jukebox to wish her a happy birthday…

“Delta Dawn” by Helen Reddy. A favorite of Ray Webb’s. Coincidentally, today is Roz Webb’s birthday. Happy Birthday Roz!!

I met Roz and Pat in 1967 when high school pals Bill Lochman and Jim Graham recruited me to their Young Democrats club. Pat was then president of the YD club, and Roz had just married Ray Webb who I knew from law school. The next four YD presidents after Pat were Ray, Bill Lochman, me and Roz.

Our club was closely tied to the Committee for County Progress, which was successful in electing many Jackson County officials, including Presiding Judge Charles Curry, Eastern Judge Alex Petrovic and Collector Jim Aylward. Pat was the executive assistant to Judge Petrovic at the Independence courthouse. Roz worked for Charles Curry’s county counselor and then became the executive assistant for Jim Aylward at the downtown courthouse.

Over the next decade, our social and political lives were closely intertwined. In addition to local YD meetings and parties, we often traveled together to state YD functions and national YD conventions (Louisville and Little Rock). We worked on many campaigns together, including Ray’s unsuccessful campaign for state representative in 1970. Details from those fun years are chronicled in a tribute I wrote about Ray (RIP 1984).

Pat and Roz, the dynamic duo, in their blue YD blazers.

Ray and Roz with future Vice President Walter Mondale.

One of my treasured keepsakes is a note sent to me by Roz after Ray’s memorial service in 1984.

Lonnie,

Whatever I say will not be sufficient to express my gratitude for your help. As I knew you would, you did not for a minute hesitate when I asked if you would share your memories of your friend and former business partner.

Ray was never one to be jealous of his friends’ successes and always so proud to have known you when – and even prouder to have maintained that friendship over lots of years of personal and professional changes for you both.

His most frequent reference to you was that unlike himself, you were a person who found something to like about everyone he met. He marveled at that and many other things different about the two of you, often wondering himself how the two of you became close friends. I guess some things just don’t need to be analyzed – they just are what they are.

Thank you so much for making the service truly a celebration of life – exactly a fitting event handled so well by one who really cared and loved him as much as one man can love another.

Also, Rita should know that one of the events that touched Ray emotionally more than any I’ve heard him speak of was your wedding ceremony.

Thank you both for being there – then and now.

Love, Rosalind”

Love you too Roz. And Ray. And Pat.

Brewery Setlist: Our friendship was put to the ultimate test in early 1979. We went into business together. I had invested in the Brewery, a bar and restaurant in Brookside that opened in 1977. In early 1979, when the operating partner tired of the grind, Ray and Roz bought his interest and became my partner. We were willing to do this because we found the ideal person to manage the business – Pat Hininger. Pat did a great job, but in 1980, she got an offer she could not refuse – she became one of the first traveling saleswomen for Hallmark Cards. A little more luck then came along in the form of a buyer who paid enough to give us a modest profit.

The Brewery will now also supply the selections for Lonnie’s Jukebox. The Brewery had a jukebox (a real one) filled with good music that served as a soundtrack for our years there. When I hear any of these songs to this day, I feel myself inside the Brewery enjoying the customers, friends and employees.

“Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees (showing John Travolta in the 1977 movie Saturday Night Fever) and “Stayin’ Alive” (showing John Travolta as Santa Claus in the Capitol One/Quicksilver ad running during NFL playoffs this year – 47 years after the original).

“Night Fever” by the Bee Gees. Oh my, the dancing. There were several songs from Saturday Night Fever on the jukebox, but I’ll stop at these two.

“Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” by Crystal Gayle.

“Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad” and “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” by Meat Loaf. A tender ballad and a rousing rocker. The live performance of “Paradise” on the video matches what Rita and I saw when Meat Loaf played the Uptown in 1978 (worth the eight minutes).

“Blue Bayou” and “It’s So Easy” by Linda Ronstadt. Love Linda.

“Here You Come Again” by Dolly Parton.

“YMCA” by the Village People.

“Reunited” by Peaches and Herb.

“Lotta Love” by Nicolette Larson (raised in Kansas City). She and Linda Ronstadt in their early days sang backup together for Neil Young.

“September” by Earth, Wind and Fire.

“Slip Slidin’ Away” by Paul Simon.

“We Are the Champions” by Queen. A song I hope Kansas City fans are singing on February 11 after the Super Bowl.

The Chiefs with Roz, Ray and Pat: In the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, we sat together with other Young Democrats as part of the Wolfpack in the North Stands at Municipal Stadium. Two key memories from that fandom…

A High: Super Bowl of 1970 in New Orleans. We watched on TV at the home of Lou and Millie Philpott (Roz and Pat’s parents). In the third quarter, I took a restroom break. There was a roar from the living room. I had missed one of the most famous plays in Chiefs history – Len Dawson to Otis Taylor to clinch the victory in Super Bowl IV (clip here).

A Low: Christmas Day 1971. Divisional playoff against Miami at Municipal Stadium. We were in the North Stands and saw the Chiefs lose in double overtime in the longest game in NFL history (82+ minutes). The final score was 27-24. Hall of Fame kicker Jan Stenerud missed three field goals (29, 32 and 42). [Up-to-date Trivia: 2024. The Chiefs won their divisional playoff last Sunday, 27-24. The difference was the Bills kicker missing a field goal. ]

Excerpt from Hot Stove #211 (11/28/22), Pat’s involvement in the 1972 primary election:

Third District Seat – 1972 Primary Election: I met Mike in law school, and we both became young lawyers at trial firms downtown. I knew he was interested in environmental issues, but it was a surprise when he told me he was going to run for office.

Since this was an election for the first legislature under the charter, there were no incumbents. This led to crowded races in the primaries, and Mike’s third district was no exception. His district was in southwest Kansas City, and the key Democratic political organization was the Committee for County Progress (CCP). The CCP had been formed in the mid-1960s by former Presiding Judge Charles Curry, and it had a successful track record in county politics.

Mike had an immediate problem. A long-time CCP board member was running for the third district and was virtually assured of getting the CCP endorsement. Mike planned to run without CCP support, believing he still had a good chance in the crowded field. I was on the CCP board and encouraged him to go through the screening process. Even though he was not likely to get the endorsement, he would still want the CCP to know he was a strong candidate. If he won the primary, he would have built up some good will that would help in the general.

The CCP screening committee handling the third district was chaired by former Eastern Judge Alex Petrovic. He was a mentor to our Young Democrats club and told me that the committee was likely to endorse the CCP board member. Also on the committee was Pat Hininger, a friend from the Young Democrats. Although she liked Mike, she didn’t hold out much hope. But Mike charmed the screening committee, and an excited Pat Hininger called me with the news that Mike was the unanimous choice. This carried over with the full board, and Mike had the CCP endorsement. The CCP member dropped out of the race.

On August 8, Mike won the primary. He got 3,282 votes (33%). His two top opponents got 2,532 (25.5% ) and 1,992 (20%). The other four candidates each got less than a thousand. Mike was on his way to the general election.

[Mike would go on to win the general election by one vote (14,071 to 14,070). Below, at a ‘50s party at home of Lonnie Shalton. Ray, Roz, Kay Tenenbaum and Mike White.]

Excerpt from Hot Stove #185 (2/7/22), in a tribute to Charlie Hart:

We [Charlie Hart and Lonnie] both eventually drifted from active politics, but never lost touch. We loved talking about the old days in politics, and we took this to a delightful level when we started making annual pilgrimages to Sugar Creek to visit with Alex Petrovic. These started in about 2010 and continued until Alex died in 2015 at age 92. We were joined in these visits by Pat Hininger who adored her old boss.

Alex could still do hilarious impersonations of Curry, Wheeler and other politicos. He had a story for almost every candidate we worked with back in the 1960s and 1970s. On one visit to Sugar Creek, Charlie brought memorabilia from the CCP days, including Charles Curry’s campaign scrapbooks and the CCP incorporation papers (Charlie had been the lawyer filing the papers). Alex added them to the archives he was donating to the Jackson County Historical Society. Below, a photo of Pat and Alex from one of our visits.

Excerpt from Hot Stove #117 (1/30/20):

January 11, 1970 – Super Bowl IV: In 1969, the Chiefs had another good year…The Chiefs headed to Tulane Stadium for the Super Bowl…The opponent was the Minnesota Vikings, a 13-point favorite. I watched the game with some of my friends from the young Democrats, including Pat Hininger and Ray and Roz Webb. We were hosted by Millie and Lou Philpott, the parents of Pat and Roz and coincidentally owners of what passed for a big-screen TV in those days…The play I remember most is the other Chiefs touchdown. The Chiefs were ahead 16-7 in the third quarter. I don’t know if a timeout had been called, but I was in the restroom. As I walked back, everyone was screaming. I had missed Lenny Dawson hitting Otis Taylor for a 46-yard touchdown. The beauty of the play, as I saw it in replay, was that the pass was only about six yards, the rest being an amazing bit of running by Taylor (see it here)…The Chiefs won 23-7.

[Lonnie shooting pool in the Philpott basement after the Super Bowl in 1970 (Photo sent to Lonnie by Pat).]