John Alec Kimbrough (June 14, 1918 – May 8, 2006) was a college athlete, a member of the

Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...

, the star of two western movies and a rancher. His older brother Frank Kimbrough served as head football coach for the

Baylor Bears The Baylor Bears are the athletic teams that represent Baylor University. The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as one of only three private school members of the Big 12 Conference. Prior t ...

and the West Texas State Buffaloes.

Football

Kimbrough, an alumnus of

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

, was known as the "Haskell Hurricane" when he played

Texas A&M Aggies football The Texas A&M Aggies football program represents Texas A&M University in the sport of American football. The Texas A&M Aggies, Aggies compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the ...

team. He played fullback on the Aggie's undefeated 1939 national championship team. In 1940 he finished second to the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

's Tom Harmon in

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

balloting. According to his

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

biography, ''Jarrin' John'' was a punishing 6 ft 2 in tall 210 lb

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

known for breaking tackles with his high knee action who was honored with induction into that organization in 1954. Kimbrough was drafted in the first round with the second overall pick in the 1941 NFL Draft by the Chicago Cardinals. In 1941, he started along Tom Harmon in the

New York Americans The New York Americans, colloquially known as the Amerks, were a professional ice hockey team based in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the second to play ...

backfield in the third American Football League and became the team's primary running threat after Harmon left the team for

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

Acting

After the AFL folded in response to the

Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. At the tim ...

, Kimbrough parlayed his gridiron fame and athletic good looks into a Hollywood contract, though he only appeared in two western

motion picture A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...

s, '' Sundown Jim'' and '' The Lone Star Ranger'', both released in 1942.

Military

He later served as an

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

pilot in the Pacific Theater of Operations during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Return to football

Returning from military service, Kimbrough played for the

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 Los Angeles Dons season, 1946 to 1949 Los Angeles Dons season, 1949, and played their home games in the L ...

of the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many ...

; his second run at a professional football career was cut short by a series of

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

s that started when he was only 30 years old. He was forced to leave the game in 1948 after three seasons with the Dons.

Politics

Kimbrough was elected to the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

in 1953 as a Democrat.Texas Legislators Past and Present
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Death

Kimbrough died May 8, 2006, in Haskell, Texas. The cause of death was

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

References

* Staff and Wire Report. (13 May 2006). ''John Kimbrough, 87; Football Star, B-Movie Actor, Texas Legislator''
Los Angeles Times

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kimbrough, John 1918 births 2006 deaths Abilene High School (Abilene, Texas) alumni American football fullbacks American male actors Kirtland Field Flying Kellys football players Los Angeles Dons players New York Americans (1940 AFL) players Texas A&M Aggies football players All-American college football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives People from Haskell, Texas Players of American football from Haskell County, Texas Military personnel from Texas Deaths from pneumonia in Texas Second overall NFL draft picks 20th-century members of the Texas Legislature