In the sweltering heat of a Texas Friday night, a compact, 5’8″, 190-pound running back from Waco High took a handoff and turned the impossible into the inevitable. Defenders bounced off him like pinballs. He spun, cut, and exploded for yard after yard, breaking records and hearts along the way. To the crowd, Louis Fite was a phenom. To those who knew his story, he was a miracle.
Born in Compton, California, Fite’s early life was anything but charmed. “It was rough,” he recalls. “Fights and worse happening all the time.” By age nine, he was homeless on those same streets, surviving on school breakfast and lunch, scavenging from convenience stores, and trailing homeless adults for safety. At 12, his aunt sent him to Waco, Texas, where his family had inherited a house in East Waco after his grandmother’s passing. But stability proved fleeting.
By high school, Fite was homeless again—from ninth through twelfth grade. He slept in parks, including Little Lions Park and North Waco Park, or wherever a friend’s family would take him in for the night. Homework was a luxury he couldn’t afford. “I never had a stable place to study,” he says. “I had to go get something to eat, find a place to sleep. People said, ‘Louis Fite was dumb.’ I never had a chance.”
Fites wowed Fans in 1990, courtesy John Werner, Waco Tribune Herald
Yet on the football field, he was unstoppable. At Lake Air Junior High and later Waco High under legendary coach Johnny Tusa, Fite’s talent shone through the chaos. As a senior, he shattered the school’s single-game rushing record against Temple, rushing for nearly 300 yards in the first half alone. “I didn’t know anything about records,” he laughs. “Coach Tusa let it slip, and suddenly it wasn’t just a game anymore. I did it for Waco. For the teammates who didn’t make it.”
Dave Campbell, the iconic Texas football chronicler, called him the best high school running back he’d ever seen. Fite earned Parade All-American honors and Super Centex recognition. Coaches still light up describing him: “Unbelievable talent… quickest feet you’ve ever seen… could make a 2- or 3-yard run into something special,” said Tusa. “He could cut on a dime and give you nine cents’ change.”
Off the field, tragedy struck hard. While walking with his cousin James Silmon—one of the fastest sprinters around—a car hit James. Fite watched in horror as his cousin’s life ended that night. The memory remains vivid. “I can see it right now,” he says quietly. That loss, along with family struggles, only deepened his resolve. “I raised myself on right from wrong by watching other people’s mistakes.”
College recruiters eventually came calling, but Fite was navigating it blind. “I didn’t even know you could play high school football and go to college,” he admits. He signed with Baylor but academic issues led him to Navarro Junior College, where he rushed for an astonishing 2,788 yards. Stints at Fort Scott, Kansas, and eventually Texas A&M-Kingsville followed, thanks to persistent coaching from Don Pittman and Ron Harms.
At Kingsville, Fite became electric. In a nationally highlighted NCAA Division II game against Portland State, he scored by launching into a full forward flip over a defender and landing cleanly in the end zone. The play made ESPN and even David Letterman’s show. The next week, he tried it again and drew a penalty—much to everyone’s amusement. Teammates like David Lopez remember him as “the most electrifying player I had ever seen,” yet also the humblest: “Most studs were jerks… not Louis.”
Fite helped lead the Javelinas to Lone Star Conference titles and national championship contention. After college, he signed briefly with the Chicago Bears before thriving in the CFL with the Baltimore Stallions (Grey Cup champions) and Montreal Alouettes. He earned solid paychecks—up to $109,000 in his final season—and saved diligently. But after three years, a deeper calling emerged.
Louis Grey Cup Ring
While visiting high school practices, Fite overheard coaches dismissing lesser-talented kids. It hit him hard. “If I know it, you know it,” he decided. He walked away from playing to train the overlooked. Today, working alongside his wife—a record-setting volleyball coach from San Saba—he runs football camps and personal training out of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He has helped 22 kids earn Division I scholarships, many of whom others had given up on. “These were the kids they said couldn’t even play on my team,” he says proudly.
Fite still lives with the scars of his past—three knee surgeries, the loss of loved ones including a long-term partner in a car accident—but his outlook remains fiercely positive. “I live one day at a time,” he says. “You’re not guaranteed tomorrow.” He continues to house and clothe homeless kids, often giving away the shoes off his own feet, remembering the boy who once had nothing.
From Compton streets to Waco High stardom, from Kingsville flips to Grey Cup rings, Louis Fite’s journey is proof that talent and character can overcome almost anything. As Coach Harms told him years ago: “Do you know who you are? You’re Louis Fite.”
And that name still means something powerful—on the field and far beyond it.
Louis Fite can be reached through his Facebook page, Building Field Leaders, or at 817-877-7052. His story continues to inspire the next generation of Texas football players.
Ed Asner, he has left the building back in 2021. I did this interview with him back about 20-25 years ago. Really funny guy and very nice!
What is your all time favorite movie?
Ed – “Best Years of Our Lives”
If you had only one book, and you were on a deserted island, what would that book be?
Ed – “The Brothers Karamazov”
One place you haven’t been that you still want to go to.
Ed – Africa
Your five most interesting people at dinner, real or fictional, past or present – who would they be?
Ed – Abraham Lincoln, Moses, Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler and George Bernard Shaw
Apple pie – plain, or alamode?
Ed – Alamode
Casual or business wear?
Ed – Casual
Procrastination or ‘just do it!’?
Ed – Just Do it!
And now, the interview:
Paul – Mr. Asner, it’s rather intriguing that a kid from Kansas City should turn out to be a 7 time Emmy and 5 Golden Globe winner. Can you tell me a bit about your childhood and your family?
From Ed Asner’s childhood in Kansas City. Pretty sure I could have picked him out of a baby lineup. Photo courtesy Ed Asner
Ed – Sure, Paul. I was born in 1929 in KC, Kansas. We had a pretty big family – 5 kids. I was the youngest of the brood. My father was a junkman, so weren’t exactly the silver spoon bunch. I was raised as an Orthodox Jew. I was also what some people call a “Type A” in high school, you know – hard-driving perfectionists who hurry all the time, talk fast, interrupt other people, etc.
Ed Asner Wyandotte High School 1947, courtesy Ed Asner
Paul – When did you discover that you had a talent for acting?
Ed – After graduating from high school, I enrolled at the University of Chicago. I was a member of a campus group for dramatics. One of the people that directed me was a much younger version of Mike Nichols (Director of “The Graduate”, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe, “Postcards From the Edge” and others.)
Ed as part of the Second City comedy lineup, photo courtesy Second City Comedy
Paul – And what did your family think about your acting career?
Ed – My family was by no means impressed.
Paul – What were the most important things you picked up when you were attending the University of Chicago, and do you still have friends you stay in touch with from there?’
Ed – Oh yes, I still have plenty of friends from college that I stay in touch with. As far as what I learned, it would be something along the lines of how greatdt it is to be an intellect and an aesthete.
Paul – You spent a couple of years in the US Army. Can you tell me a bit about that period and how it affected the rest of your life?
Ed – I guess I was like most GI’s, there were a lot of highs and lows. It did get me to France, a place I’d always wanted to go. As for how it affected my life, I came out of the Army knowing exactly what I wanted to do with the rest of my life – and that’s to act!
Paul – Your career appears to have really started to take off after you left the Army. Where, when and how did your big break come about?
Ed – Actually I was still in the Army when I got my first break. While still stationed in France I received a letter from Paul Sills asking me to join his theatre company. We worked at the Playwright’s Theatre Club in Chicago with a group that was a predecessor of the famous “Second City” comedy circuit. My life pretty much began falling in place after that. I took off after a couple of years to head to New York City and worked some off Broadway gigs for a while, working with Jack Lemmon and others. I didn’t stay there too long – we packed up and headed out to California in 1961.
Paul – Who would you say had the largest influence on your early years?
Ed – Definitely my sophomore English teacher, my journalism teacher and later on, other actors from University of Chicago and the different theatres.
Paul – Without a doubt, your most well known character is ‘Lou Grant’. With a twelve year run starting with the “Mary Tyler Moore” show, and subsequently evolving into the “Lou Grant” show, the character of Lou seemed to take on a life of it’s own. How much of Ed Asner is in Lou Grant, and how much of that character is in Ed Asner?
Ed as “Lou Grant” courtesy Chicago Tribune, Bob Fila. Asner shaking hands with Chicago Tribune city editor Bernie Judge while researching his role.
Ed – Lou’s comedic side was based on two of my brothers. They were always cutting up. The more somber side of Lou was delving into my own, dark soul.
Paul – From what appeared on the screen, both shows appeared to be a fabulously fun bunch of talent to be around. Is that true, and was there the same camaraderie off camera?
Ed – I really loved those people. We had a great time working together.
Paul – Will there ever be a Lou Grant revival on the small or big screen?
Ed – Absolutely not. Not with me anyhow.lou
Paul – With the exception of Lou Grant, what has been your favorite role and why?
Ed – I loved doing Axel Jordache in “Rich Man, Poor Man”.
Paul – That was an incredible show. If I remember correctly it was the first real mini-series. You won an Emmy for your role, and it was also Nick Nolte’s breakout role.
Ed – Yes, it was the perfect role for me and Nick was magnificent!
Paul – You’ve done a plethora of films and TV shows over the years. I’d assume that you’re able to select the roles you want. With that in mind, what do you look for in a script? Do you prefer comedy to a more serious role?
Ed – Well, what I look for now are roles that are interesting to me or comedic. Strangely enough, as I get older, I feel that I can get bigger roles in comedy. At least that’s the direction I’m looking
Paul – Do you have any favorite writers that seem to be able to capture your talent?
Ed – I really enjoy David Lloyd. He’s the fellow behind the comedy of shows like “Cheers”, “Frazier” and “Taxi.”
Paul – One of your roles that hit close to home for me was the one in an “Arliss” episode as a broadcaster who was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. It must feel incredible to touch people with a role like this. Patty (Mr. Asner’ s assistant) told me that you received quite a response. Can you comment on this, and how it touched you?
Ed – Well the “Arliss” role itself wasn’t that difficult as far as the Alzheimer’s and dialogue. The toughest part was learning to portray an ace sportscaster well. And it’s always good to know that you’ve touched someone’s life.
Paul – As you’re quite the accomplished voice actor, how hard do you feel voice acting is?
Ed – I truly love voice work. It’s not hard if you’re a reaonably good talent and somewhat intelligent. You really need a sense of flow and a sense of music to guide you. Some of the projects I’ve worked on are “Captain Planet”, “Batman”, “Gargoyles” and others – it’s something I really enjoy.
Paul – Who is the favorite voice character you’ve done?
Ed – Who else? God! I really love playing that the character of God, and/or someone in conversations with God.
Paul – Who are some of your favorite actors to work with?
Ed – Well, I could go on and on, but I really enjoyed some of the people from my earlier days – Mary Tyler Moore, Vic Morrow, Dan Travanti, Jack Lemmon and Ted Knight.
Paul – Who are some of your favorite producers, directors and/or crew to work with?
Ed – Allan Burns is near the top of my lists, he was the Executive Producer of “Mary Tyler Moore”, “Rhoda” and “Lou Grant” Another talent that I really enjoyed was Roger Young. He directed the pilot and some of the episodes of Lou Grant. He also did a couple more pilots that were picked up like “Magnum, PI” and “Hardcastle and McCormick” and a ton of other projects.
Paul – A few years ago, you were the President of SAG (Screen Actors Guild) How much has it changed since then? Where do you see the organization going?
Ed – SAG is enormous now compared to when I was the President. I know there are some difficult times due to assaults on unionism and runaway production. But of course nothing can top being a union actor.
Paul – When you answered the questions for the “Two Minute Drill”, of the five most interesting people that you would like to have at a dinner table, one was Adolf Hitler. Why would a man of your faith choose someone like Hitler?
Ed – I would really love to find out exactly what made him tick. You know he had this reputation as a dynamic and magnetic individual. Those kind of people fascinate me. And when you think of the other guests -Lincoln, Napoleon, Moses, and Shaw, well, I don’t think he’ll dominate the conversation.
Paul – What ‘glass ceilings’ do you observe to still be hanging around ‘the biz’?
Ed – Well, I suppose that women at the top are safer than those at the bottom.
Paul – If you could start your career over, and know what you know now, what would you do differently?
Ed – Save my money!
Paul – What’s the best advice you could give someone wanting to start an acting career?
Ed – Look elsewhere or get rich first!
Paul – Mr. Asner, I thank you for your time and wish you and yours the best in life.
"We auditioned Stevie Ray Vaughn to join Stycks as a favor to Jimmy Vaughn. I could tell he was a natural but we really needed somebody that could play the cover tunes. He was really good but we needed guys that could fit in our style, he was still a little wild. Then a couple of year later we are playing The Cellar and this band called Blackbird comes on and all of a sudden here comes Stevie. Wow. What a change. The guy was an absolute phenom.
That was the week before this happened. We were up at Louann's during the day trying to work in the new guitar player that we had just hired and had left all our equipment up there. This was April 1st of 1971. I get a call from a friend of mine telling me that 'Louanns burned down last night'. I tell him 'that's not funny' thinking its a April Fools joke. Turns out it was true."
The 25th of June 1979 was a warm day in Mesquite, children were out playing, enjoying their summer vacation and it was a relatively quiet day in the city. However that all changed the afternoon of that same day when six year old Tyra Heath left apartment #1051 at Cascade Park to play outside. Ten minutes later her mother Janice Heath called for her to come back to their apartment however she did not come home and a quick search turned up that she was no longer where she had been playing earlier.
"Tom Landry didn’t want to waste a No. 1 draft pick on a guy from a HBCU. That’s 'historically black colleges and universities'. So, Red Hickey and Gil Brandt challenged him and said he’s the best player on the board. So, Landry went with his scouts and picked me 18th in the first round on January 29, 1975. I was in a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere and the phone rang. My roommate answered and he said, hey man, it’s the Cowboys. The Cowboys are on the phone. There was no watch party. My family wasn’t dressed up like we were going to church. I got on the phone and it was Gil Brandt, and he said we just picked you in the draft, 18th, in the first round. He says can you get to the airport? This was about 10:00 in the morning. He hollered back at his secretary. Hey, what time is the nonstop coming from Oklahoma City and she goes 3:30. He said can you be there at the airport by 3:00. I go yeah, I can be there by 3:00 and that was my draft day."
Noblemen was my first band, then the Fantastics, Flag was also one of the early ones. Hard Rock band playing mostly cover tunes with very few originals. We opened for the Who at Dallas Memorial Auditorium June 1970, also Night Hog. We played mostly at The Cellar in Dallas and Vulcan Gas Company in Austin. Opened for Bubble Puppy at Vulcan Gas Company. I have a poster of that show that says 1970 so it was probably after Flag disbanded. Short lived band. Then Bullwinkle. Good tight cover band. We played the hot spots at the time, The Fog, Soul City, The Rickshaw Club etc. Only notable because the singer was John O'Daniels of Point Blank fame. He and I remained friends & connected until he passed away not long ago.
I guess Blackbird came after that. The original line up was myself, Jack Morgan on guitar. Tom Wagoner on Bass, and Christian Plique on Vocals. We replaced bass player Wagoner with Ric Webb. This was an awesome band. Band was mostly original versions of very old blues tunes. Christian Plique was originally in Blackbird with Stevie Ray Vaughn.
When Scot Aubuchon introduces himself, he does it with a wink toward history.
“My name’s Aubuchon — A-U-B-U-C-H-O-N. It’s French and loosely translates to ‘the cork,’ so I guess I had winemakers in my past somewhere,” he told me.
I laughed and offered my own: “Heckmann in old German means the guy that trims the hedges. Back in the old days, hedges were the fences in much of Germany. So here we are — a cork guy talking to a hedge trimmer.”
That lighthearted exchange set the tone for a conversation that traced the improbable journey of six fiberglass frogs — Bob “Daddy-O” Wade’s Tango Frogs — from a Dallas rooftop to truck stops, patios, and finally back home again under Aubuchon’s watch.
Three of the Tango Frogs on top of Chuy’s on Lower Greenville in Dallas. Courtesy Lisa Wade
From Busboy to Decor Manager
Aubuchon joined Chuy’s in 1986, just a few years after Mike Young and John Zapp opened the original restaurant on Barton Springs in Austin.
“I opened the second Chuy’s up on North Lamar,” he recalled. “I started off bussing tables and just kind of worked my way up. Been around ever since. I know where a lot of the bodies are buried, so to speak.”
Decades later, he became Chuy’s decor manager — the man responsible for bringing the chain’s quirky visual identity to life in new locations. “Basically, I worked with development on the construction side. New openings, new designs, all that,” he said.
It was in that role that he inherited an unusual side job: caretaker of Wade’s giant frogs.
The Frogs on the Move
Wade’s Tango Frogs first captured imaginations in the early ’80s, perched on the roof of Shannon Wynne’s Dallas nightclub Tango. When city officials debated whether they were art or signage, the frogs became local legends. Eventually, Mike Young bought them and brought them into the Chuy’s family.
That began a decades-long game of musical chairs, with Aubuchon as the reluctant frog wrangler.
“I’ve basically been a frog herder for 20 years,” he laughed. “I’ve moved these things six times now.”
Three of the Frogs on top of Chuy’s in Nashville, Tennessee. Courtesy Scot Aubuchon
This list is Scot’s road trip with the Frogs:
From Houston’s “Crystal Palace”, Chuy’s on Richmond, where they lived behind the bar,
To the Shenandoah Chuy’s building,
Then back to Austin for refurbishing,
Off to Nashville, where they topped the downtown location around 2012,
Returned to Austin once again for another refresh,
And finally, trucked back up I-35 for their homecoming at Chuy’s on Greenville in Dallas.
The Six Tango Frogs back together in the same Tango Swamp as 4 decades earlier. In front of the Truck Yard before moving to their “forever home” at Chuy’s. Reunited! Courtesy Scot Aubuchon, Faith Schexnayder and Lisa Wade
On that last trip, Aubuchon couldn’t resist turning it into a rolling spectacle. “We put them on a flatbed truck and toured 35 a little bit. We stopped at Carl’s Corner, and as soon as we pulled up, the women there said, ‘Oh, the frogs are back!’
They came out, hugged them, took pictures. Even the mayor came out. It was like a reunion.”
Stories from Carl’s Corner
That pit stop brought out stories of the old truck stop’s wilder days. “They told me Carl’s Corner used to have an RV park with a pool out back,” Aubuchon said, shaking his head. “They said it was kind of like a mini-brothel. Truckers would call ahead and reserve an RV.”
He paused, then chuckled. “Now, I don’t know how much of that they’d want published. But man, the stories people tell when those frogs show up…”
Frogs, Fish, and Big-Ass Art
Through the years, Aubuchon came to know Bob “Daddy-O” Wade himself. “He was just one of those guys who could make you laugh as soon as he walked in the room,” Aubuchon said. “I met him when we first refreshed the frogs. Such a creative spirit. You know, one time he even had one of his giant fish sculptures on top of the Knox-Henderson Chuy’s building. Today it’s sitting out in Lake Austin by the Hula Hut.”
Bigmouth Bass on display at The Big One, Dallas. Courtesy Lisa Wade and Daddy-0’s Book of Big Ass Art
Like Wade’s other oversized creations, the frogs weren’t just decoration — they were conversation pieces, roadside attractions, and living folklore.
The End of an Era
After 39 years with Chuy’s, Aubuchon’s time with the company is winding down. The chain was recently acquired by Darden, and his department is being phased out. “It’s a gut punch,” he admitted. “I even asked if I could buy the frogs. They’re too cool for Darden, if you ask me.”
Still, he takes pride in their journey — and in his role as their shepherd. “When we brought them back to Greenville, three blocks from their original spot at Tango, it just felt right. From a marketing standpoint, it was a no-brainer. From a cultural standpoint, it was bringing them home.”
For Aubuchon, the frogs represent more than rebar, structure, molding and paint. They are proof that art can take on a life of its own — moving across states, stopping traffic on I-35, sparking rumors in truck stops, and reminding people of Dallas nightlife in the ’80s.
“I’ve been their frog herder for 20 years,” he said with a grin. “Not a bad legacy to leave behind.”
Timeline for Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, Tango & the Tango Frogs
(Courtesy ‘Bob “Daddy-O” Wade’s Book of Big Ass Art, multiple news sources and all the folks interviewed for this piece. This is a living document, if you have updates, please send them to pheckmann@meminc.org)
Jan 6th, 1943 – Robert Schrope Wade born in Austin, Texas.
Family was in Hotel Management and moved every couple of years, from Corpus, to Waco, Galveston, to Beaumont, to San Antonio and finally settled down in 1954 in El Paso.
1961 – Bob designs the yearbook for his HS. He graduates and moves to Austin to attend UT. Joins Kappa Sigma fraternity and gets his lifelong moniker of “Daddy-O”. Makes friends with Monk White and others that he will keep working with over the years
1964 – Bob meets his new buddy, Kinky Friedman
1965 – graduates from UT and is accepted at Cal – Berkley
1966 – graduates from Berkley with a Masters in painting. Joins the original faculty at McLennan Community College (MCC) in Waco as the only art instructor.
Waco Bookmobile, spray painted library. Courtesy Lisa and Rachel Wade and Daddy-O’s Book of Big Ass Art, 1968
1967 – does a solo show, The Weenie Paintings at Atelier Chapman Kelly in Dallas.
The Funny Farm, in Waco, Collection of the Waco Arts Project, Courtesy Lisa and Rachel Wade
1968 – does first outdoor sculpture, Funny Farm Family for San Antonio World’s Fair. Now located in Waco, for the Waco Arts Project
1970 – becomes ‘Artist in Residence’ at Northwood Institute in the Dallas suburb of Cedar Hill
1973 – Becomes buddies with Dennis Hopper in Taos, New Mexico. Joins the Faculty at North Texas State University as Assistant Professor of Art
1975 – Sets up a photography darkroom in an underground silo bunker at NTSU. Meets the Texas Kid
1976 – His “Bicentennial Map of the United States” is featured in a 2-page spread in People Magazine
Bob’s Texas Mobil Home Museum for 10th Paris Biennale
1977 – His Texas Mobile Home Museum is featured in Paris at the 10th Biennale of Paris. Resigns from North Texas
1978 – Moves into old, wooden building owned by Monk White, which becomes “Daddy-O’s Patios”. Goes to Art Park near Niagara Falls in NY to start work on his massive Iguana. Sells the iguana to Lone Star Cafe in Manhattan. Meets NY Mayor Ed Koch and other celebrities during and after the installation on top of the Cafe.
1979 – Builds 40 ft Cowboy boots at Washington Project for the Arts. Boots are bought by Rouse and Company and shipped back to Texas to the North Star Mall.
1982 – Drives “machine gunned” Bonnie and Clyde car in the New Orleans Mardi Gras parade
1983 – Builds the Tango Frogs for his friend, Shannon Wynne. Tango opens
1984 – Bob moves his studio to Deep Ellum. Tango closes on March 7, 1984.
Daddy-O with his painting of The Texas Kid Boz commissioned for the interior of Boz Skaggs’ BLUE LIGHT CAFE in San Francisco 1985, courtesy Boz Skaggs, Monk White and friends
1985 – All six went to Carl’s Corner, and three went on an art tour all over the place. The other three were over the gas pumps.
1986-88 – Three of the Frogs went on an art tour all over the country, including a 1988 stop at Texas A&M. The other three remained at Carl’s, which would become Willie’s Place.
1989 – Bob and Lisa welcome their daughter, Rachel, into the world.
1990 – Carl’s caught on fire, the three Frogs over the gas pumps were fine. The three others were around back, out of the fire. They had some burned fingers, but that was all
Three frogs left Carl’s on their way to Austin first, then to Houston. The other three later leaped across I-35 into Carl’s home’s front yard!
They went from Houston’s “Crystal Palace” to Chuy’s on Richmond, where they lived behind the bar.
Then to the Shenandoah Chuy’s building
2010 – Approximately – Then back to Austin for refurbishing,
2012 – Three of the Frogs leaped up to Nashville, where they topped the downtown Chuy’s location around 2012,
2023-2025 – Returned to Austin once again for another refresh
2025 – And finally, trucked back up I-35 for their homecoming at Chuy’s on Greenville in Dallas.
2025 – On that last trip, Scot Aubuchon, Lisa Wade, and Faith Schexnayder couldn’t resist turning it into a rolling spectacle. “We put them on a flatbed truck and toured I-35 a little bit. We stopped at Carl’s Corner, and as soon as we pulled up, the women there said, ‘Oh, the frogs are back!’ They came out, hugged them, and took pictures. Even the mayor came out. It was like a reunion.”
Abilene – Dino Bob at the Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, 133 Cedar St. This sculpture once sat across the street from the Grace Museum. When it was slated for demolition, the schoolchildren of Abilene mounted a “Save Dino Bob” campaign, and the sculpture was moved to the roof of another parking garage, this one overlooking the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature. It’s a sculpture based on the 1988 children’s book Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo. Today, it’s located at 133 Cedar Street in downtown Abilene. It is part of the city’s Storybook Sculpture Project., courtesy BobWade.com
Dallas
Dallas – Six Frogs over Tango originally at 1827 Greenville Ave. Today, three sit atop the Chuy’s on Lowest Greenville and three atop the Truck Yard a few blocks away. Originally commissioned for club Tango, the frogs survived multiple relocations, including a stint at Carl’s Corner near Hillsboro, where they almost became Frog legs, sizzling on the grill when it burned to the ground. Three were outback and three on top of the gas pumps, which, through some act of God, did not blow up. Carl’s Corner housed two of Bob’s other projects, a truck-shaped billboard and a giant wooden nickel, both prominently displayed going South on I-35. Three frogs were sold to Chuy’s and eventually moved to Nashville, while the other three lived on top of Taco Cabana, then Starbucks, then Truck Yard. All six are now close to their original Dallas location, Courtesy Lisa Wade
Austin
The New Orleans Saints giant football helmet, made from a Volkswagen body.at Shoal Creek Saloon. The “Austin Home of New Orleans Saints Fans,” at 909 North Lamar Boulevard, courtesy BobWade.com
The Big One: Spitting Fish (both Austin and Dallas). First, at restaurant The Big One in Dallas, then the Hula Hut at 3825 Lake Austin Blvd in Austin, When Big One was sold, another restaurant, the Hula Hut, bought the fish. It sits in the Colorado River next to the tables closest to the river. For a couple of bucks you can “feed the fish,” which means you can watch it spit water and “bubbles” escape from its backside….courtesy BobWade.com
“Neck N Neck,” a two-headed longhorn at the County Line BBQ restaurant, courtesy BobWade.com
Ranch 616 restaurant’s rattlesnake, from a pencil sketch by Bob Wade, turned into neon by Evan Voyles
“The world’s longest longhorn horns” are currently hanging in the University of Texas Alumni Center. Courtesy Daddy-O’s Big Ass Book of Art
Muleshoe – Giant Prickly Pear Cactus on the Roof, Leal’s Mexican Restaurant, 1010 W. American Blvd. (no photo, shoot me one if you got one)
Wade built this life-like piece for a restaurant in Dallas. As he was driving back from New Mexico, he saw his Dallas project in Muleshoe. He had no idea when or how it was moved. It’s 30 feet high
San Antonio
San Antonio – World’s Largest Cowboy Boots at North Star Mall, Loop 410 at San Pedro Ave. Standing feet tall, these iconic boots were originally installed at the Washington, D.C. Arts Center before being relocated to San Antonio more than 30 years ago. Back in 1979, Bob’s big, oversized art had just taken off with his giant Iguana sitting on top of the Lone Star Cafe in Manhattan, NYC, and Bob was invited to build something interesting in a vacant lot in Washington, DC. Bob made the boots, ‘just to fit’ inside the lot. 40 ft high fake ostrich Cowboy boots. It took him a month and a half to build them; he was paid $7,000. Completed Sept 12, 1979. Bob laid claim to the “World’s Largest Cowboy Boots” – out of thin air! (It is…) He had no idea if that was true or not; it was just Bob being Bob. The boots only stood there for about 4 months before North Star Mall in San Antonio bought them, and they were moved back to Texas. The mall owners spent 80 grand in 2012 just to redo the tops of those boots. These boots are in the Guinness Book of World Records! Courtesy BobWade.com
San Antonio – Junkyard Dog, Alamo City Inc., 1201 Somerset Rd. Built from a 1966 Plymouth Fury balanced on its end, this sculpture was made for a buddy who left law to start a used auto parts business. It remains a quirky landmark. Courtesy BobWade.com
Houston
Smokesax at The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, 2401 Munger St. Originally built for Phil Kensinger for his Billy Blues Bar, in 2012, the Kensinger family donated the monumental sculpture to the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, due to the organization’s long-standing commitment to preserving Houston’s cultural icons. This massive sax was made from a Volkswagen body, an oilfield pipe, and has a surfboard as a mouthpiece. After over 20 years at its original site, it was relocated to The Orange Show Center. There were plans to move it to Kensinger Plaza at one time. Lisa Wade: “The Orange Show has been working with the Houston Parks Foundation and has the plans for a park, with a music venue and the sax. It’s going to be an incredible site; they’ve been wonderful to work with. Lots still going on, which is so wonderful and a tribute to Bob.” Courtesy FullOrangeShow.org
NYC/Fort Worth
Fort Worth – Iggy the Iguana at Fort Worth Zoo, on the roof of the herpetarium This 40-foot polyurethane Iguana, installed in 2010, was built for the Artpark in Upstate New York, and then it watched over the Lone Star Café in New York City for 13 years. “It was on Pier 25 in Lower Manhattan. The pier has a miniature golf course, and one of the holes is named for Bob and has an iguana on the sign.. Acquired by Lee M. Bass in 1999, it was later loaned to the Zoo to complement its new herpetarium.” Lisa Wade, Courtesy BobWade.com
Waco
Waco – Funny Farm Family at the Art Center at McLennan Community College, 1300 College Dr . Created in 1968 from colorful bomb casings and steel, this whimsical still life was originally made for HemisFair Park in San Antonio. It is Wade’s earliest public art piece in Texas. Plans are underway to move it to a new sculpture garden at 701 S. Eighth St.
Del Rio
Del Rio – Giant Six-shooter at Humphrey’s Gun Shop, 124 E. Garfield Ave. Constructed from a barrel, stovepipe, and stucco, this oversized revolver was built after Wade was invited to create a local piece during a lecture visit. Funded by the gun shop, the sculpture now appears in its online advertising. Courtesy HumphreyGunShop.com
“When I first saw the Frogs on top of Carl’s Corner Truck Stop in Carl’s Corner, Texas, my first thought was, ‘What the hell is Carl on? Now that I understand art, I realize what a genius Daddy O-Wade was.”
Willie Nelson
Thanks to so many folks for helping out with this Tango Frogs project, including the fella that kicked it off, Shannon Wynne, his brother and MemInc Board Emeritus Angus Wynne III, editing by Mike Farris, the Memories Admins Mark Cheyne, Chris Doelle, all of our 20ish Moderators, Lisa Wade and the spirit of her hubby Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, Scot Aubuchon formerly of Chuy’s, Faith Shexnayder, fixer extraordinaire, Tom and Laura Garrison of the new Stoneleigh P and of course Monk White, without whom a lot of this wouldn’t have come together!
Three of the Tango Frogs relocated to Dallas at Chuy’s on Lowest Greenville. Courtesy Lisa Wade
A Conversation with Monk White
If you’ve ever driven past a taco joint on Lowest Greenville in Dallas and seen giant frogs dancing on the roof, you’ve glimpsed the strange, wonderful legacy of Bob “Daddy-O” Wade—Texas’s unofficial minister of roadside art. But to truly understand the journey of the famous Tango Frogs, you have to talk to one of the men behind the madness: Monk White. Without whom, none of this might have happened.
Monk’s name kept surfacing as I interviewed the people who knew Daddy-O best—Shannon and Angus Wynne, Lisa Wade, and more. So I gave him a call.
“Monk White…” I began. “How do I know that name? Are you from Dallas?”
“I grew up in Fort Worth,” he said. “University of Texas. Then Wharton. Wall Street. Eventually, I came back to Dallas. Spent most of my life there before settling in Austin.”
“Sounds enough like a Dallasite to me,” I told him, mentioning my years in the nightclub scene—back when Greenville Avenue was all neon and attitude. Even did a one-year stint as maître d’ when the Playboy Club opened.
That got his attention.
“Oh my God, really? With Lenny Licht and Joel McQuade?”
“Yep. And a couple of wild years at Papagayo, too.”
He laughed. “Then we’ve definitely crossed paths. My crew ran with the Stoneleigh P crowd, or wherever Shannon or Angus were stirring things up.”
We were already speaking the same language.
Making Art Out of Chaos
I asked Monk how he first met Daddy-O Wade.
“We were connected way back at UT,” he said. “Later, when I returned to Dallas after working on Wall Street, I found Daddy-O a place on the east side. That’s when the art got real crazy. I bought him a shop on Lemmon Avenue—just down from Mother Blues. It became a circus. Half a dozen cars would roll up and we’d take the place over. I was in on most of Daddy-O’s big projects.”
Monk’s name appears over and over in Daddy-O’s Book of Big-Ass Art, a fitting tribute to the man who helped make many of those wild dreams a reality.
The Giant Iguana, sitting on top of Lone Star Cafe in Manhattan in NYC. Courtesy Lisa and Rachel Wade and “Daddy-O’s Book of Big Ass Art”
“Daddy-O was hilarious,” Monk recalled. “Just walk into a room and people would start laughing. He saw the world differently. I once brought back some little iguanas from Mexico—cheap tourist junk. He picked one up and said, ‘I want to build a 36-foot iguana.’ No plan. No hesitation. Next thing you know, we’re fundraising and that thing’s sitting in D.C., then on Wall Street, then on a NYC cafe and now back home in Texas.”
Enter the Frogs
The Tango Frogs started the same way.
“I brought back these little stuffed frogs from Mexico,” Monk said. “Daddy-O took one look and said, ‘Let’s make eight-foot versions.’ And that was that.”
Towering, grinning, frozen mid-boogie—these frogs became icons the moment they hit the roof of Tango nightclub on Greenville Avenue. But when Tango closed in 1985, the frogs went up for auction.
“I think I paid about $2,500 at the auction for them,” Monk told me.
“And Shannon said they cost around $20,000 to make. Sounds like a great deal!” Paul said
Willie Nelson Whiskey River Saloon, Courtesy Debby Pressinger 09-13-2009
Instead of stashing them away, Monk gave the frogs a new stage: Carl’s Corner, a funky roadside stop he co-owned with Carl Cornelius near Hillsboro. With Willie Nelson playing regular gigs there and truckers pulling over for gas, beer, and a photo op, Carl’s Corner became legendary. And the frogs? They fit right in.
Even after the building burned down, the frogs survived; three were out back, and three more were mounted on top of the gas pumps. Later, they appeared at Willie’s Place, then popped up in Houston, Austin, Nashville and then Dallas again—perched above a taco joint near the old Tango location. More on that journey in our blow-by-blow chronology in Part 3 of this series.
Willie, Weed & Unexpected Stages
Not all of Monk’s stories were about sculpture.
“One day, Willie’s tour bus pulled up,” he said. “Now, I’m not much of a smoker, but I took a couple of hits off the bong. Next thing I know, I’m being asked to walk upstairs—where all the sheriffs are—and end up on stage in front of 2,000 people. That boy could get you in trouble.”
We both laughed at that. Because of course he could.
Monk Today
Now 83 (though he swears he feels 65), Monk lives in Austin with his wife Joanne, not far from his two daughters.
“Lost my first wife, but I’ve been blessed to find happiness again,” he told me.
“Congratulations! Still waiting for mine.” I said. Before we ended the call, I said, “If we’d met back in Dallas, I think we’d have been good friends.”
“Absolutely,” he replied.
No doubt about it!
Frog’s get a do-over. Courtesy Faith Schexnayder and Flatfork Studio
The Frog Whisperer
Faith Schexnayder, Flatfork Studio and the Second Life of the Tango Frogs
By Paul Heckmann
The Tango Frogs have traveled a long way from their rooftop boogie days on Lower Greenville. Ten feet tall, mischievously grinning, and full of Texas swagger, they’ve danced their way into state folklore. But to understand how these fiberglass (well, not quite) legends were reborn, you have to meet the artist who gave them a second life: Faith Schexnayder.
I’d been chasing the story of the frogs for a while—talking with Shannon Wynne, Lisa Wade, and Monk White. Their tales were wild, but I knew I needed the rest of the picture. So I picked up the phone and called Faith to find out more about how the frogs were made.
“Faith, this is Paul Heckmann. I’m a friend of Shannon Wynne, Lisa Wade, Monk White… and I’ve been tracking the Frogs!” I said, half-laughing.
She chuckled. “Good luck,” she replied dryly.
“I’ve had these frogs almost going to Japan,” I joked.
“Not quite that far,” she said. “But they did make it to Nashville.”
From Film Sets to Folk Art
Faith’s own journey has been just as colorful as the frogs she revived. She began her career in the Texas film industry, working on big-name productions like RoboCop and television projects with Turner Network and Amblin Entertainment. But over the years, her creativity spilled over into new worlds—designing children’s rooms, building whimsical event installations, and restoring some of Texas’s most beloved pieces of pop art.
Faith and Bob Wade’s giant hamburger for Hilbert’s in Austin. Courtesy Faith Schexnayder
Her first collaboration with Bob “Daddy-O” Wade came in the mid-1990s, when he enlisted her to help repair a few of his offbeat creations, including the iconic Hula Hut fish in the river and a giant hamburger for Hilbert’s Burgers in Austin. Then, in 2010, the Tango Frogs came hopping back into the picture—weather-beaten, bird-nested, and in serious need of TLC.
“They were in bad shape,” Faith recalled. “I mean, missing pieces, flaking paint, nests in their heads. But we got them looking fantastic again.”
Frogs, Flip-Flops, and Faith’s Touch
Working out of her Austin studio, Flatfork Studio, Faith didn’t just restore the frogs—she reimagined them.
She gave one frog a pair of flip-flops. The female frog, previously barefoot, now sported bright red cowboy boots and a little “top tie” for flair. Faith added sculpted pads to their fingers for realism and replaced missing parts with weather-resistant materials. The eyelashes? Not just an afterthought—they’re made from actual Volkswagen Beetle headlight eyelashes, catching the Texas sunlight like winks from a cartoon dream.
“Bob did everything on the cheap,” Faith said with a grin. “So most of the hands-on stuff came down to me and a few others.”
Despite their towering height and show-stopping appearance, the frogs aren’t made of fiberglass, as many, including myself, assumed. Their internal structure is a blend of metal rebar, chicken wire, spray foam, and a durable rubberized coating. They’re sturdy—but moving them is no small feat. It requires cranes, careful planning, and a healthy dose of prayer.
A Traveling Troupe
The Frogs on their way back to Dallas to leapfrog onto the roof of the Chuy’s patio on Lowest Greenville. Courtesy Lisa Wade, Faith Schexnayder and Flatfork Studio
Over the years, the frogs have leapfrogged their way across Texas and beyond: from Dallas to Houston, from Austin to Nashville, and eventually back home again on Lowest Greenville Avenue in Dallas. They’ve lived at Carl’s Corner (where Willie Nelson once helped keep the lights on), graced rooftops of taco joints, and most recently, made their way to Chuy’s and the Truck Yard, just blocks from where they first captivated passersbys in the ’80s.
Originally commissioned by Shannon Wynne for $20,000, the frogs were later sold at auction and scooped up by Monk White for just $2,000. Today, Faith estimates it costs about $10,000 per frog just to refurbish them properly.
“They’re big,” she said, “and they’re built to last—but only if someone keeps loving them.”
The Iguana Mobile & What’s Next
The Iguanamobile, courtesy Bid.AustinAuction.com
Faith hasn’t slowed down. One of her latest projects? The Bambi Airstream, affectionately known as the Iguana Mobile. Originally built to promote Daddy-O’s Book of Big-Ass Art, the trailer is now being stripped down and redesigned as a mobile event service vehicle.
“We’re really bringing it back to life,” she said. “It’s going to be something special.”
More Than Just Frogs
As our call wrapped up, I told Faith she was my final interview for the project.
“Good luck with everything,” she said with a warm laugh.
She reminded me of something that’s easy to forget when you’re staring up at a ten-foot frog in flip-flops: these aren’t just roadside attractions. They’re living stories—full of personality, memory, and the odd bit of mischief.
“Walk past them today,” she said, “and you can almost see the stories they carry. The eyelashes catching the sun, the paint gleaming, the grin just daring you not to smile.”
In the end, the Tango Frogs aren’t just art. They’re Texas. They’re joy. They’re a little wink from the past, reminding us to keep dancing—no matter how weird the tune gets.
Thanks to Truck Yard and Lisa Wade and Faith Schexnayder, who pulled their truck up to the Truck Yard (TY’s Frogs on top of the roof) so that the family of Frogs could croak together for a final time before taking them to their forever (hopefully) home at Chuys on Greenville Ave.
If you want to learn more about Bob Wade and his art, visit www.bobwade.com or check out his books, Daddy’s Book of Big Ass Art and Daddy’s Book of Iguana Heads and Texas Tales. And if you happen to drive past Chuy’s in Dallas, or the Truck Yard just around the corner, look up—you might just catch the Tango Frogs watching over the city, as they’ve done for decades.
Stay tuned for Part 3, with Scot from Chuy’s and their trip through the eyes of the Chuy designer. Also the chronology of Bob Wade’s projects and his various other Projects.
If you missed Part 1, go to https://meminc.org/six-frogs-over-tango-part-1/
Thanks to so many folks for helping out with this Tango Frogs project, including the fella that kicked it off, Shannon Wynne, his brother and MemInc Board Emeritus Angus Wynne III, editing by Mike Farris, the Memories Admins Mark Cheyne, Chris Doelle, all of our 20ish Moderators, Lisa Wade and the spirit of her hubby Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, Scot Aubuchon formerly of Chuy’s, Faith Shexnayder, fixer extraordinaire, Tom and Laura Garrison of the new Stoneleigh P and of course Monk White, without whom a lot of this wouldn’t have come together!
The Six Frogs over Tango. On top of the club. Photo courtesy Internet included in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107.
Six Frogs Over Tango: Shannon Wynne
Shannon Wynne and the Tango
In the early 1980s, Shannon Wynne was looking to create something new in Dallas nightlife. “Video was still really new back then,” he recalled. “I wanted something different, so I built a club that had a room with 20–25 TVs in it. It was very innovative for the time.”
Tango wasn’t just his first nightclub—it became a destination. There was even a video DJ, or “VJ,” although, as Wynne admits, it was a far cry from today’s sophisticated setups. “They just played music videos that were MTV quality. They weren’t creating anything live. But David Bowie heard about it, and he came to see it.”
The old bank building that housed Tango shaped much of its character. Videos played in the vault room, adding a quirky layer to the atmosphere. But the club’s most iconic feature would be born out of a chance encounter in a friend’s studio.
Wynne had known the artist and Texas folk legend Bob “Daddy-O” Wade for some time, ever since helping him build the Texas Mobile Home Museum in 1976. He even had a hand in the creation of the giant ostrich-skin boots now standing in San Antonio, and later pitched in on Daddy-O’s Iguanomobile. By 1981, Wynne had already seen Daddy-O’s work on display in New York City, and while rummaging through his studio for inspiration, he spotted one of those curious stuffed frogs playing an instrument—an item often found in curio shops in Mexico.
The Iguanamobile, courtesy Bid.AustinAuction.com
“That would be cool,” Wynne thought aloud. Daddy-O agreed, and together they dreamed up “Six Frogs Over Tango,” (also known as “Six Frogs Over Greenville”), in deference to Shannon’s dad, Angus Wynne Jr., who came up with the world-renowned amusement park “Six Flags Over Texas.”
The frogs would be large, motorized, and ‘permanently’ perched atop Tango. Daddy-O set up a “frog factory” originally in an old warehouse on Lemmon Avenue owned by Monk White, then they were later moved to a warehouse on Greenville, gathering a crew to bring the vision to life. “Daddy-O didn’t really get himself dirty,” Wynne laughed. “He directed traffic.”
The final product—six massive amphibians, each eight or nine feet tall—cost around $20,000. Some were posed as if dancing, all set to canned music while their heads and bodies rotated above the street. The installation required a crane and a sign crew to hoist them onto the roof. The frogs even earned national attention, with mentions in Newsweek and People Magazine.
Shannon Wynne, Count Basie and Tony Bennett at Tango back in the day. Courtesy Shannon Wynne
And guess what? Dallas City Hall decided they were advertising, signage of a sort which was prohibited, and said to take them down. Shannon and his neighbors disagreed. Shannon took them to Frog court and got the ban overturned as they were considered art! It was lampooned in the Dallas Times-Herald.
Courtesy Dallas Times-Herald, drawn by Scott Willis, TH Editorial Cartoonist
When Tango eventually closed, everything was auctioned off. Wynne remembered the question hanging over the six rooftop giants: “What are you going to do with six giant frogs?” Monk White had the answer—he purchased them for $2,500 and moved them to Carl’s Corner, the quirky truck stop he co-owned with Carl Cornelius. (more on that in the Monk White interview in Part 2)
Before they departed Greenville Avenue, Wynne and friends threw the frogs a big goodbye party at the nearby Fast and Cool Club. Photographs from the day show Wynne, Cornelius, Daddy-O, and Monk White standing proudly on the flatbed truck hauling the green troupe toward their new life.
Today, Wynne is just happy they’ve survived. “I’m really glad they’re both on Greenville,” he said of their current separate locations. “I’m sorry they’re not in the same place, but at least they’re still there.” At one point, he even tried to reunite them all for one of his ‘Rodeo Goat’ restaurant locations in the Taco Cabana building that stood on top of the old Tango property, but the building’s owners opted for a Starbucks instead.
For Wynne, the Tango Frogs aren’t just an eccentric decoration—they’re a reminder of a creative era when a handful of visionaries could dream big, build wild, and leave something unforgettable in the Dallas skyline.
Six Frogs Over Tango: Lisa Wade
The Hopping History of the Tango Frogs: A Conversation with Lisa Wade
When it comes to Dallas icons, few are as instantly recognizable—or as beloved—as the Tango Frogs. Perched high above buildings for decades, these six giant amphibians have hopped across Texas and beyond, leaving a trail of memories, tall tales, and quirky art history in their wake.
To get the real story, I spoke with Lisa Wade, wife of the late artist Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, the man who birthed the frogs. Over the course of our conversation, we traced the frogs’ unlikely journey, shared stories about the Dallas club scene in the ’80s, and talked about the friends and characters who kept the legend alive.
Bob Wade riding one of his 40′ tall ‘ostrich’ cowboy boots. Courtesy Lisa Wade and “Daddy O’s Book of Big Ass Art”
From Stuffed Iguanas to Giant Frogs
Lisa explained that the idea for the frogs didn’t start with frogs at all—it began with a stuffed iguana.
“Our friend Monk White brought a stuffed iguana back from Puerto Vallarta,” she recalled. “That’s what kicked off the whole thing.” Then the sculpture at Artpark was moved to the Lone Star Cafe in 1978, the Boots in 1979, all before the Frogs looked over Greenville Ave. (a timeline for the Bob Wade and the Frogs is being completed for Part 2)
At the time, Bob Wade had already built a reputation for creating oversized, whimsical public art—giant cowboy boots, a saxophone sculpture, the famous Iguanamobile. The frogs came to life in 1982–83 at the “Frog Factory” across from the legendary Dallas club, Tango. They first appeared in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Greenville Avenue, mounted on the back of a flatbed truck.
Daddy O surveying what the Frogs were seeing, installing them on the top of Tango, Courtesy Lisa Wade and “Daddy O’s Book of Big Ass Art”
Life Above Tango
Once complete, the frogs took their place atop the Tango nightclub, becoming part of the city’s nightlife identity. The ’80s Dallas club scene was wild, and Lisa remembers it vividly—clubs like the Starck Club, the Rio Room, and the Nostromo were all part of the cultural background.
“It was the ’80s,” she laughed. “People talk about how there was ecstasy at the Starck Club, just sitting in bowls on the counter, like mints. It was a different time.”
Bob wasn’t a partier, but he was an observer, and he noticed everything. The frogs became more than decoration—they were conversation starters, landmarks, and eventually, symbols of a certain Dallas era.
The Great Frog Migration
By 1985, the frogs’ rooftop residency ended. After appearing at the Fast and Cool Club, all six were moved to Carl’s Corner, the famous truck stop founded by Willie Nelson’s friend Carl Cornelius and Monk White.
Three of the Frogs on top of the gas/diesel pumps at Carl’s Corner. Courtesy Dallas.culture.com, 2020 article
“They survived a fire there,” Lisa said. “Three were up over the gas pumps, three in back. The ones up front got their fingers a little charred, but that was it. We were lucky those gas pumps didn’t go up.”
From there, the frogs began their decades-long journey:
Mid-1980s – Three frogs remained at Carl’s Corner, while the others traveled in a Texas sculpture show.
1990 article courtesy TAMU Battalion and TAMU.edu, Frogs on the art tour around 1987
Early 2000s – Some ended up in front of a Taco Cabana in Dallas, then moved to the Truck Yard.
2013 – Three were moved from Chuy’s in Houston to Chuy’s in Nashville.
2024 – Thanks to the efforts of “Sweet Guy Scot” from Chuy’s and artist Faith (who had refurbished other Wade works and we interviewed in Part 2), the Nashville frogs were returned to Dallas and restored to glory at a new Chuy’s location—just blocks from their original home.
Friends, Characters, and the Legacy
Names like Monk White, Mike Young, and Shannon Wynne come up often when talking about the frogs’ history. Lisa spoke warmly about Monk, calling him “the best” and sharing that he had been the best man at her wedding.
She also recalled the endless network of friends, artists, and characters that surrounded Bob Wade’s work. “Once you started working with Bob, you were irrevocably part of his life,” she said.
Traveling Frogs, courtesy Lisa, Rachel and Daddy-O Wade
More Than Just Frogs
Lisa sees the frogs not only as art, but as living pieces of history. “You don’t own the sculptures anymore, but you’re tied to them for life. You just hope people take care of them.”
Bob Wade’s art—whether it was the frogs, the Iguanamobile, or giant cowboy boots—was never just about the object. It was about joy, humor, and the way people connected to them.
“They’ve hopped around for over 40 years,” Lisa said. “Through fires, moves, and even corporate buyouts, they’ve survived. People love them.”
Still Hopping
Today, three of the Tango Frogs sit proudly above Chuy’s in Dallas, their green bodies gleaming from a recent restoration. They’re a reminder of a wilder, more colorful Dallas—and of the artist who believed in making art fun and unforgettable. The other three sit around the corner at The Truck Yard, all six are within a couple of blocks of their original home.
As Willie Nelson said when he first saw them at Carl’s Corner: “What the hell is Carl on?”
Now, Lisa says, “He understands. He knows what a genius Daddy-O Wade really was.”
If you want to learn more about Bob Wade and his art, visit www.bobwade.com or check out his books, Daddy’s Book of Big Ass Art and Daddy’s Book of Iguana Heads and Texas Tales. And if you happen to drive past Chuy’s in Dallas, or the Truck Yard just around the corner, look up—you might just catch the Tango Frogs watching over the city, as they’ve done for decades.
Stay tuned for Part 2, very soon with the prime suspect, the instigator Monk White, the repairer, painter and overall Frog fixer Faith Shexnayder and also Scot Abuchon, the designer for Chuy’s for several decades.
Thanks to so many folks for helping out with this Tango Frogs project, including the fella that kicked it off, Shannon Wynne, his brother and MemInc Board Emeritus Angus Wynne III, editing by Mike Farris, the Memories Admins Mark Cheyne, Chris Doelle, all of our 20ish Moderators, Lisa Wade and the spirit of her hubby Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, Scot Aubuchon formerly of Chuy’s, Faith Shexnayder, fixer extraordinaire, Tom and Laura Garrison of the new Stoneleigh P and of course Monk White, without whom a lot of this wouldn’t have come together!
Paul Heckmann: Hello there Troy. Paul Heckmann here.
Troy Dungan: Hi Paul, I just walked in the door.
Paul: Glad to finally catch up with you.
Troy Dungan and the crew at Channel 8, Iola Johnson, Tracy Rowlett and Verne Lundquist. Courtesy WBAP
Let me kind of start out for the folks that might have recently moved to Dallas or Fort Worth. Mr. Dungan was our Channel 8 Weatherman for many years. I know he goes back a bit before that, so I will let him fill you in.
Troy: I stopped doing this in, in 2007, so it’s been 18 years since I was a TV weather guy, but, but I did it for 45 years, 31 here in Dallas.
Paul: It’s quite amazing actually. You’ve been named the best television weathercaster by the Texas AP broadcasters eight times. The Dallas Observer had named you the best television weather caster five times. You’d received the Knight of the Press award and special recognition from the National Oceanic, atmospheric Association research flight facility for work on a documentary dealing with the subject of hurricanes. Additionally, The Dallas Press Club had bestowed the Kaia Award upon you. During the last week as Chief Weather Anchor, the National Weather Service gave, Troy an award for his service to the weather community.
I guess we should start this with your personal history. You were born in Ennis?
Troy: Yes, I was born in Ennis and my parents moved to Hillsboro when I was three. So I’m basically a local. I lived in Hillsboro from age 3 to 18, and then they moved south a few miles when I went to Baylor. So I was in this part of the country for most of my life until I started working
Paul: Sic’em Bears.
Troy: Yes, indeed. I went to Baylor and then I started working at KWTX Radio and TV in Waco where a lot of local guys started. KWTX is a very good radio and TV station, it’s a real pioneer. I think the TV station’s been the air since the early fifties, it’s a good product in a good market
Waco’s not a big city, but it’s a good radio and TV market.
Paul: Absolutely.
Troy: So, are you a Baylor grad as well?
Paul: I went to Baylor for a couple of semesters. I went to Texas A&I as I got a football scholarship down there.
So, when did you leave Waco for Orlando?
Troy: When I graduated in January of 59, I moved down to KBTX-TV in Bryan College Station at that time. Ladybird Johnson owned half of that station so it was a natural transition.
In 1959, Bryan Valley Station good, but I decided I wanted to see the world, so I went to Florida on vacation. I applied at several different TV stations there. At that time this one was called WDBO in Orlando, it’s now Channel 6, a CBS station.
And so I got a job there however it was not doing news or weather. It was what you used to call a ‘booth announcer’. That was the fella that announced all the station commercial logs. Then in February of 62 they said, ‘hey kid, we need somebody to do the weather at 11 o’clock. You wanna try this?” And I said, “Sure”. And then later on they added another cast at 6 PM.
And then a station in Houston called and said, they would provide me with an education in Meteorology.
Troy and Janet in the early days. Courtesy Troy Dungan
I moved to Houston to KTRK-TV, and for a year and a half to two years, I had private lessons every day from a couple of professors at the University of St. Thomas, a Catholic University in Houston. And they developed a TV meteorology curriculum based on what they taught me. So my background is quite unusual. I’m the only one I know that really had private lessons in meteorology. My degrees are in Radio, TV and Political Science. That private training really played off for me.
Paul: And was that the National Engineering Science Company?
Troy: That was just the University of St. Thomas. These two guys were college professors, Dr. Thomas and Dr. Goldwyn and they developed a curriculum based on what they taught me.
So that put me in good stead for seven and a half years at KTRK TV in Houston. It’s ABC 13 now.
Paul: That’s amazing. Isn’t that where you met your wife?
Troy: Janet and I met when we both worked at KTRK-TV in Houston. She was a behind the scenes staffer. Too bad she wasn’t in front of the camera. She was and still is beautiful.
Paul: That she is!
Now when did you leave for Philadelphia?
Troy Dungan at Ch 7. Photo courtesy Internet included in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107.
Troy: It was in 1972. They actually contacted me. CBS owned that station at Tough Times Networks, they only owned five network stations at that time.
One of them was in Philadelphia and this guy called me and he said, ‘I need somebody here’. So I went up and interviewed with them and sure enough, got a job doing weather in Philadelphia, which was big because at that point, Philly was the fourth largest market, it’s a big city.
It’s a wonderful place. It’s, it’s a tough town for sports fans, you know, they actually booed Santa Claus at a Eagles game. The winter’s not too bad, summer’s not too hot. I was there for a couple of years
Paul: And that’s when you developed current five day forecast system?
Troy and his brand new “5 Day Outlook”. Photo courtesy Internet included in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107.
Troy: That is correct. We were one of the first ones to do that.
Now they do it all the time. The forecast is really the first two days – and outlook is five days and anything beyond that’s an educated guess.
Paul: Tell me about WXYZ in Detroit.
Troy: I was in, in Philadelphia a couple years, and the guy that I had replaced in Philadelphia, whatever news, and after a couple years, they’re gonna bring him back, and so my spot kind of went away. So. I didn’t really look for a job in Detroit. That was not a place I was really headed for. But I went to New York and spoke with Al Primo at, ABC. He was developed a happy talk TV news and he, he leaned back in his chair and he said, I need someone in Detroit. So I go back to Philadelphia that afternoon and I’m a plane ticket for Detroit the next day.
Ah, the climate in Detroit. The people are great, but the climate’s awful. Anyway, the bottom line was I got this job in Detroit and for two years I did weather and environmental reporting there, but I was never really delighted to be there.
However, I met Marty Haag, who was the TV news director at WFAA in Dallas while I was still in Detroit. So it took us a while to work this out, but in the spring of 76, I came down to Dallas and sure enough, I got the job as well.
Paul: Now there is one big part of your journey yet to be told from WXYZ. Tell me about the evolution of your signature bow tie.
Troy: That is correct. Yes, it was, it was very cold and I was doing a story about ice fishing in the middle of Pontiac Lake. The ice was like eight inches thick and we all had these Channel 7 Blazers. And it had the logo on the pocket so we all looked alike, and you had to wear a high neck sweater because it was cold. Our ties would disappear underneath those sweaters. Anyway, Don Meredith was doing a Super Bowl for ABC, and he was wearing a bow tie. I said, ‘that’s interesting’, and when I tried it, you could still see the high neck sweater. So I bought three bow ties, wore ’em for three days, took a day off.
And after that, one of the anchors said, what happened to that bow tie? That was interesting. So I went and bought some more. That was 1974. So I started wearing bow ties and it became a trademark. It really says, here’s this guy and there’s everybody else. So it was, it was a good trademark for me. It still is.
Paul: And these were all hand tied bow ties too.
Troy: Oh yes, I said, if you’re gonna do this, you gotta learn to do it right. So I kept the instructions in my pocket for a long time just in case somebody came along and ripped it undone. I. And it’s still not easy. I have to stand in front of a mirror to do this, and I couldn’t tie one on anybody else. It’s still not an easy discipline, but it’s worth it because it just turned out to be my look.
Paul: Well, you know, something, I had the clip on bow ties and I had to stand still stand in front of a mirror to get it straight.
Troy: And also I’ll let you in another secret if Paul, there are two ways to wear a bow tie, the kind you hand tie. You can just have the kind of a double make hair look or it’s a little messy. Or if you’re anal retentive as I am, you’d like for the ends to match. So I take double sticky tape and stick the ends together after it’s tied and that way it looks neat.
Paul: Very cool! Okay then. Now you don’t wear a bow tie on Thanksgiving. Is there a story there?
Troy: Well, that’s, that used to be when I worked at Channel 8, I was the senior guy, so I could, I could work what holidays I wanted, but I wanted to be fair. So I always wanted to be off Christmas. So I always worked on Thanksgiving, which is a weekday of course.
And so on those days I would always wear a turtleneck. That’s kind of a protest of being there!
And I still have a, I have a drawer full of ’em. I’ve got 220 bow ties. I have a new client, a commercial, so I’m wearing a tie in that or whatever. So if I wore a tie there, I’d look like I was trying to stand out if I have a business meeting. Like a, a funeral or something. I still have those ties and, and I wear ’em and I don’t have any straight ties!
Paul: And Dallas is next. You arrive in July of 1976, tell me about what’s going on and how you got there.
Troy: Hardy Hague was the news director. We knew each other and as I said before, it took us a while to put it together. So he invited me down and we decided that we could do this. And my parents were in Ennis by that time, so they were happy They were living here and it’s the only place I ever worked where my parents could watch me on TV.
We had a daughter at that time who was a year and a half old. So also my parents got to watch my baby daughter grow up. Her name is Wyn-Erin
And we had three days to look for a house. We came down in the spring from Detroit to move here in July.
We, the third house we looked at third day, we bought that house in July of 1976, and that’s where I’m sitting right now. We still live in that house. Paul,
Paul: And your daughter?
Troy: She is married and. So I’m a grandpa. So, but, but you know what, we had two older kids as well, and think about this. This is the house where they grew up. Mm-hmm. And that doesn’t really happen anymore. You know, this is people move around. But since we’ve been here for half a century in this house, well, those kids grew up here, so it’s home. Janet and I love that place.
Paul: So you’re, you’re back in Dallas. Was this only at 6pm?
Troy: actually, I did the, the weather at five, six, and 10: And for 30 years I did that. And then I was gonna retire at after those 30 years, I was certainly there long enough to retire, but they talked me into staying another year. So, Pete Delkus entered the picture. I had been responsible for getting my own replacement, so I talked to him into coming down from WCPO in Cincinnati. We worked together for a year. We kind of split duty. And then the last was there, the 31st year. I just did the six o’clock weather. Pete did the five and the 10. So after that, I stopped in July of 2007, and that’s been 18 years now. I haven’t looked back.
Paul: An amazing career.
Paul: While we are on Ch 8, let’s talk about Dale Hansen, your station’s sports guy. Dale claimed weather was an easy job…
Troy: I said, ‘It’s not quite like forecasting all the sports stories five days ahead.’
And he said, he said, ‘Okay, you got me there.’
Paul: Dale was known to spout a little bit.
Troy: Oh, Dale’s one of those guys. He’s got no filter on his brain. Whatever’s out there just comes out his mouth.
Paul: He is a character for sure.
Troy: He is indeed.
I just had a wonderful career, but you know, I said I’ve done this long enough and I wanna stop before somebody tells me to!
Paul: Well, looking back in your youth, I bet you never thought about doing the weather..
Troy: In high school I was interested in journalism and was a paid reporter for the local newspaper in Hillsboro when I was in high school. I had the idea of majoring in journalism at Baylor and I kind of fell into broadcasting and wound up a degree in, in Radio and TV Communications, and I had room for a second major. So I chose Political Science. So I started out to be in the news business and the weather just kind of came to me by chance. You have to be ready for whatever life brings you and turned out it was gonna be weather. So I did that for 45 years. It was very good to me.
Paul: ‘Dance with what brung ya’ as I think Darrell Royal said.
Troy: That’s true. Worked out very well.
Paul: Worked out very well.
Troy Dungan VHA Toy Drive WFAA Ch 8 Santa’s Helpers, courtesy Tim Seaman
Who were some of your favorite co-hosts to work with?
Troy: Well, Tracy Rowlett and I are still friends, I’m having dinner with him and his wife plus another couple next week, We’ve known each other, of course, for over 50 years, and Tracy and I have worked together on several different occasions.
And we talk about things that happened behind the camera and some of other people. The late Chip Moody was just a real character. We got a lot of good stories and, of course I worked with Dale Hansen, we were acquaintances. We were never really close friends because he only showed up in the studio to do the sports and he was back in his office. I also worked with Verne Lundquist who’s retired now, he worked for CBS sports for many years. He’s still a good friend as well. But I don’t see him very much.
He spends a lot of time in Steamboat Springs, which would be his first home now. So otherwise, we’ve just had a good bunch of people over the years. Uh, some people whose names you wouldn’t recognize from on the air, but we’re still friends and see each other and, and still enjoy friendships ’cause life’s about relationships. And if you can maintain those friendships, that’s a very important part of life.
Paul: Absolutely. I still have friends from nearly every job I’ve done in my life, and there were a lot of them!
So who might be the best producer that you worked with? Who was the most fun?
Troy: Well, you know what? That would be hard to say, but I will say that one of the producers later became a really close friend, his name is John. We call him “Sparky” as his last name was Sparks.
John worked at most the stations in Dallas, he was also the executive producer at WNDC TV in New York for four years. But he moved back here. Well, in 2013 and 2014 there was a little startup station, channel 47, they put on a show called, Texas Daily. A number of us who had been in TV, they called us back to do that show.
It was an hour long show. Tracy and I were the anchors for two days of the week. And you could just, you drink coffee with your buddy 30 minutes before the show, say whatever you want for an hour on the show, and then you go home. Well, “Sparky” John Sparks was the producer. And we really connected and found our spiritual connection. We wound up going to church together and we are still good friends. We see each other very often. They’re very high on our list of social friends, that’s the producer that really jumps out to me.
Paul: Iola was on that Ch 47 show, I believe.
Troy: John Criswell was also there. He passed away in 2023.
Paul: I worked with John Criswell’s daughter when she was a Playboy Bunny at the Playboy Club of Dallas. Very lovely lady.
Troy: Yes she is.
Troy’s retirement cake at WFAA. Courtesy Lane Luckie and laneluckie.com
Paul: Tell me about the Skeeter meter.
Troy: Well, the mosquitos are a bit of a problem in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. At that time the City of Dallas was releasing a report every day predicting what mosquito activity would be. There are all sorts of diseases that mosquitoes can bring. Our art director came up with this meter and it says, mosquitoes green, yellow, and red, with a dial. And we put that on the screen behind me and. It would show what we expected the mosquito activity to be; Red, yellow, or green.
You know what, I asked about that the other day? I think that one of those is still exists at Channel 8, somewhere in the back room of engineering. I don’t really know anybody down there anymore, but I need to get down there and see if we can unearth that, that would be an artifact.
Paul: Oh yeah. I love those artifacts. We collect them for Memories Incorporated, we have a storage locker for them up in Carrollton. I just got one from somebody that you probably know, Bud Buschardt.
Troy: Yes, Bud was a, he was a really good guy. Unfortunately, we lost him recently. He was a great loss, but he was a good guy. Very well thought of in the business.
Paul: I got to interview him and went to his house about four or five times. It was filled to the brim with records. I’ve never seen so many records in all my life.
Troy: Ha. That’s right. That was Bud.
Paul: And he had a full turntable set where he could play and record anything he wanted to there. And he had the actual original turntables from the Something Else show.
Chip Moody watches Troy Dungan & Gloria prepare for Chip’s annual Beni Hana Celeb Chef’s fundraiser for Children’s Med Ctr. Courtesy Gloria Campos
Troy: Oh my. The Ron Chapman show.
Paul: Exactly. Yes. That’s another one.
Troy: Ron Chapman was another dear friend and a really good guy. And unfortunately we lost him recently also. But, as you know, we all have egos in this business, so did Ron. But let me tell you that behind the scenes, Ron was a very sweet man who did a lot of good for a lot of people. He never publicized those good deeds. He was really a good guy. And he’s missed.
Paul: Did you ever have to cover for another anchor, like sports or something else?
Troy: No, I never did that. But you know, that wouldn’t be easy to do because if somebody told Tracy Rowlett to go do the weather, that’s not something that’s going to be easy because you’re not used to it. And if same by the same token, I don’t think they would ever let me do that, ’cause they probably wouldn’t think I’d be serious enough about it. But sometimes it did happen. One time the news anchor didn’t show up on a Saturday. I was filling in for somebody doing the weather. And George Reba had to do the sports and the news. You know it’s not easy when it’s something you’re not used to doing.
Paul: At least if you’re sitting down at the desk, maybe you could read off the teleprompters there.
Troy: Well, you probably know when you do the weather, you use a teleprompter, you’re prepared the data, so you just kind of talk about what you figured out all afternoon.
Paul: You also have to figure out what’s behind you on the green screen.
Troy: Exactly, yes.
Paul: You REALLY have to know what you are doing to do green screens correctly. What year did you start using green screens?
Troy: I think that was 1983. At that point, we began to have some computer products, and if you wanted to show that and still be in the picture yourself, you could use what we then called chroma key. So John Coleman, who was a weather guy in Chicago, and I kind of dispute about who invented that. It was one of the two of us. It was not the same time, but I was one of the first one or two people to use it for sure. And of course that’s the way they do it now. And now, until now, some stations, including one in the Fort Worth area, just have a video wall behind them. So the pictures are really there. Yes. But before that, you have to look at monitors off to one side or the other and create the illusion that there’s something behind you.
Paul: Wow. It’s amazing.
So tell me about the family. Are they all Baylor Bears?
Troy: As for Leah and Dana, Janet had those two little ones when we got married.
They were nine and five. Leah lives in California. Unfortunately, we, we lost Dana about a short time ago to liver disease. He was 53. But to answer your question, neither one of them. She went to North Texas and he went to a private school and was in the Air Force, but our daughter, Erin did follow me to Baylor and did study communication.
She had her Master’s in Communications and she was a TV director at KWTX TV in Waco. And then, she got married in Oklahoma. And was a TV director. And then she got tired of getting up at two in the morning because in TV, you know, you work one end of the clock or the other. I always worked at night. She always directed the morning news. So finally she got a job at the University of Oklahoma Medical School as a Baylor Bear working surrounded by the Philistines at OU!!
In Norman, it’s downtown by the capital. So she wound up being in charge of all online and on demand, programming for classes. But when she had her first, child 15 years ago, (our first grandchild), my wife said, you see you need to retire and take care of those kids. And so she did. So she does some work from home for some people, but she got off TV as well. So nobody else in TV in the family nowadays.
Paul: So sorry for your loss, may Dana rest in peace.
Well is there anything else you’d like to add to to this we haven’t talked
Troy: Thank you. And no, I think I’ve told you about everything I know and everyone I know!
Paul: When we first started talking about this, it was interesting because I’m from a little town about 10-15 miles west of Waco, and Troy’s from a little town 20-25 miles north of Waco. We were in the same district when I played football in high school. When we said ‘let’s go into the city’, we were talking about Waco, not Dallas.
Troy: Yes. Dallas was almost an overnight trip. In those days, it’s 60 miles. It was, the shops were open late one night in the big cities, so off and on Thursday we’d go down to Waco and have dinner at the Piccadilly cafeteria and go shopping at Cox’s!
Paul: Piccadilly’s downtown was an every Sunday after church for us. Got my fried fish and chocolate Ice Box pie there
Troy: Exactly. Then once in a while we’d come to Dallas as my dad owned a laundry, direct cleaning plant, so we would go north to buy supplies and we’d go to lunch and sometimes come to the Dallas Eagles or Fort Worth Cats baseball games in the summers.
So we enjoyed the cities. But yeah, Hillsboro was a great place to grow up. The school system was wonderful. Prepared me well for college. I still know a few people there, down there once in a while. Of course my parents are gone for a long time now, but it was a great place to grow up.
Paul: Yeah. Well, listen, thank you so much for all your time here.
It’s been really informational and I really appreciate it. Thank you so much.
Troy: My pleasure. Thank you for thinking of me, and I hope this works out well for your non-profit!
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