Ben Graf Henneke
| Ben Graf Henneke | |
|---|---|
| President of the University of Tulsa |
|
|
In office 1958–1967 |
|
| Preceded by | Clarence I. Pontius |
| Succeeded by | Eugene Swearingen |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 20, 1914 St. Louis, Missouri |
| Died | November 13, 2009 (aged 95) Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Alma mater |
University of Tulsa University of Iowa University of Illinois |
Ben Graf Henneke (May 20, 1914 – November 13, 2009) was the president of the University of Tulsa ("TU"), in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States, from 1958 to 1967. A professor of speech and theatre, he wrote an early textbook on radio announcing, and was instrumental in the creation of the university's radio station, KWGS. Henneke also wrote the TU fight song when he was an undergraduate student at the school. Henneke has been cited as one of the most influential figures in the university's history.
Henneke was born in St. Louis, Missouri. After graduating from Tulsa Central High School, he enrolled at the University of Tulsa in 1931, with plans to become a journalist. In 1932, as a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, Henneke entered a contest, sponsored by a local clothing store, for a new fight song for the school's athletic teams, the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. Henneke won the contest and a $25 prize. He had not written a song before; he later said that the opening sounds of his composition were inspired by the sounds his family's Hoover vacuum cleaner made when he performed his household chores. His winning entry, "Hurricane Spirit Song" (now also commonly known as the "Hurricane Fight Song"), remains in use today.
Henneke graduated in 1935 with a bachelor's degree in English, and later received a master's degree in theatre from the University of Iowa and a doctorate in speech from the University of Illinois.
Offered a job with the Tulsa World after graduation, Henneke instead began teaching speech and theater at TU in 1936. He created a radio quiz show, "Going to College," which aired nationally from 1945 to 1952. Henneke was instrumental in the founding of a radio station for the university, which commenced operations in 1948 as KWGS, its initials in honor of Tulsa oilman William G. Skelly, who supplied the funding.
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