Title
Howell Heflin, 1921-2005
Subject
Politicians
Heflin, Howell, 1921-2005
Description
Howell Heflin was a conservative Democrat who represented Alabama in the United States Senate from 1978 - 1996.
Heflin was the nephew of politician James Thomas Heflin, known as 'Cotton Tom,' a vehement segregationist. Howell Heflin, however, supported civil rights legislation and was sometimes described as the conscience of the senate, serving on the Senate Ethics Committee.
Heflin was born on June 19, 1921, in Poulan, Ga. He graduated from Colbert County High School in Leighton, Ala., and earned a BA degree at Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham.
During World War II, Heflin was an officer in the United States Marine Corp; he was awarded a Silver Star for valor in combat and two purple hearts for his action in Bougainvilla and Guam.
After WWII, Heflin attended law school at the University of Alabama, graduating in 1948. He served as a law professor while practicing law in Tuscumbia, Ala.
In 1970, Heflin was elected to the position of Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, serving from 1971-1977.
In 1978, he was elected to the U.S. Senate to succeed fellow Democrat John Sparkman and was re-elected in 1984.
Heflin voted against fellow Alabamian Jeff Sessions when President Ronald Reagan nominated him to be a federal district judge. However, in 1996, Sessions, a Republican, won the Senate seat being vacated by Helfin.
Howell Heflin may be best remembered for once pulling a pair of ladies' underwear out of his suit's breast pocket and blowing his nose into it. Cameras clicked and flashbulbs popped, and knowing that the photos would be all over the media within hours, Senator Heflin issued an explanatory press release within an hour:
"I mistakenly picked up a pair of my wife's white panties and put them in my pocket while I was rushing out the door to go to work. Rather than take a chance on being embarrassed again, I'm going to start buying colored handkerchiefs."
When he died in 2005 at 83, Heflin was survived by his wife Elizabeth Ann and their son H. Thomas Heflin Jr. and two grandchildren.
Heflin was the nephew of politician James Thomas Heflin, known as 'Cotton Tom,' a vehement segregationist. Howell Heflin, however, supported civil rights legislation and was sometimes described as the conscience of the senate, serving on the Senate Ethics Committee.
Heflin was born on June 19, 1921, in Poulan, Ga. He graduated from Colbert County High School in Leighton, Ala., and earned a BA degree at Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham.
During World War II, Heflin was an officer in the United States Marine Corp; he was awarded a Silver Star for valor in combat and two purple hearts for his action in Bougainvilla and Guam.
After WWII, Heflin attended law school at the University of Alabama, graduating in 1948. He served as a law professor while practicing law in Tuscumbia, Ala.
In 1970, Heflin was elected to the position of Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, serving from 1971-1977.
In 1978, he was elected to the U.S. Senate to succeed fellow Democrat John Sparkman and was re-elected in 1984.
Heflin voted against fellow Alabamian Jeff Sessions when President Ronald Reagan nominated him to be a federal district judge. However, in 1996, Sessions, a Republican, won the Senate seat being vacated by Helfin.
Howell Heflin may be best remembered for once pulling a pair of ladies' underwear out of his suit's breast pocket and blowing his nose into it. Cameras clicked and flashbulbs popped, and knowing that the photos would be all over the media within hours, Senator Heflin issued an explanatory press release within an hour:
"I mistakenly picked up a pair of my wife's white panties and put them in my pocket while I was rushing out the door to go to work. Rather than take a chance on being embarrassed again, I'm going to start buying colored handkerchiefs."
When he died in 2005 at 83, Heflin was survived by his wife Elizabeth Ann and their son H. Thomas Heflin Jr. and two grandchildren.
Source
Tuscaloosa News Archive
Contributor
Betty Slowe (Description)
Type
Photograph
Identifier
881
Coverage
Tuscaloosa (AL)