ABSTRACT

James Orvill Raines was born on September 6, 1918, in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, the youngest of seven children. His father died when Raines was quite small, and his mother remarried when Raines was twelve or thirteen. He was the only child still at home when his mother and stepfather moved to a farm near the town of Dover, Arkansas. Raines was unhappy and went to Dallas, where he lived with one sister and then another while finishing high school. After his graduation, he set out to make a living during the Great Depression. He went to work doing odd jobs at a Dallas radio station, WFAA. He became interested in broadcasting and found some mentors on the broadcast staff. The management of WFAA also owned the Dallas Morning News, and when a position opened for an obituary writer, Raines, who had acquired a reputation as a bright, hard worker, was "transferred." His ambition and dedication caught the attention of the night city editor, Kenneth Foree, who took an interest in Raines, loaned him books, and tutored him in reporting. Before long, Raines was off the obituary column and working as a full-time reporter.