D. L. "Buddy" Fowlkes
Member of the Atlanta Board of Aldermen
Eighth Ward, Position 2
In office
January 2, 1962 (1962-01-02) – January 7, 1974 (1974-01-07)
Preceded byGoodwyn "Shag" Cates
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Member of the Atlanta City Council
At-large Post 16
In office
January 7, 1974 (1974-01-07) – 1977 (1977)
Preceded byPosition established
Member of the Atlanta City Council
District 7
In office
1977 (1977) – December 14, 1993 (1993-12-14)
Preceded byGeorge Cotsakis
Succeeded byLee Morris
Personal details
Born
Douglas L. Fowlkes

(1928-01-18)January 18, 1928
Cincinnati, Ohio
DiedNovember 30, 2021(2021-11-30) (aged 93)
Atlanta, Georgia
SpouseVicki Meadows (m. 1982)
EducationGeorgia Tech (IM, 1952)
Coaching career
Playing career
Track and field
1949–1952Georgia Tech
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1965–1992Georgia Tech
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
12× NCAA (1984, 1988, 1992, 1993)
88× ACC
Awards
NCAA Indoor Southeast Coach of the Year (1985)
NCAA Outdoor Southeast Coach of the Year (1987)
ACC Outdoor Coach of the Year (1987)
ACC Indoor Coach of the Year (1988)
Georgia Sports Hall of Fame (1988)
USTFCCCA Hall of Fame (2005)
US Track and Field – Georgia Hall of Fame (2012)

D. L. "Buddy" Fowlkes (January 18, 1928 – November 30, 2021; Buddy Fowlkes) was an American track and field coach at Georgia Tech from 1965 to 1992, and a member of the Atlanta City Council from 1962 to 1993.

Early life and education

Douglas L. Fowlkes was born on January 18, 1928 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Claude and Faith Fowlkes.[1][2][3] He attended North Fulton High School, where he ran track. While at North Fulton in 1945, Fowlkes was a state champion in the 220-yard dash, and also competed in the 100-yard dash and the broad jump.[4][5] He was the "high-point man of the meet" with a total of 11 points.[4]

At Georgia Tech, under coach Norris Dean,[6] Fowlkes was the track and field team captain in 1949 (when Tech were the SEC outdoor track and field champions), and co-captain in 1948 and 1951.[7][5] He competed in hurdles, sprints, broad jumps, high jumps, and relays.[8] Fowlkes spent his off-seasons playing football, where he was a halfback.[9]

In 1950, Fowlkes won the long jump at the AAU National Indoor Championship with a mark of 24 ft 63⁄4 in (7.48 m).[10]

He was SEC champion in multiple events: the long jump in 1948 (21 ft 43⁄4 in (6.52 m)), 1949 (23 ft 5 in (7.13 m)), and 1951 (23 ft 111⁄2 in (7.3 m)); the 100-yard dash in 1947 (9.9 sec); the 220-yard hurdles in 1947 (24.1 sec) and 1949 (24.2 sec; the 220-yard dash in 1947 (22.2 sec).[7]

Fowlkes won high-point honors at three separate SEC meets—a feat only ever matched by Harvey Glance—in 1947 (18 points), 1949 (14 points), and 1951 (12 points).[11][7]

In 1951 at the Sugar Bowl track meet in New Orleans, Fowlkes set a record for the 100-yard dash at 9.7 seconds.[12]

He graduated from Georgia Tech in 1952 with a degree in industrial management.[13][14]

In 1960, at the age of 32, Fowlkes ran a 100-yard dash in 9.5 seconds.[15]

Coaching

Fowlkes coached men's track and field at Georgia Tech for 28 years, from 1965 to 1992.[16][5] He coached the women's team from 1989 to 1992.[17]

Notable athletes Fowlkes coached include Mike Armour, Derrick Adkins, Antonio McKay, and James Purvis.[18][10]

Fowlkes also co-founded the Atlanta Track Club, and served as meet director for the Georgia AAU track and field meets in the 1960s.[19] He chaired the first integrated Georgia Amateur Athletic Union track meet on May 25, 1963 at Grady Stadium; Fowlkes said, "We started getting some calls. I talked to some of them. We heard their side and they heard my side. A lot of them were hate calls. You would start to say something, and then they would make a derogatory comment and hang up."[20]

After leaving Georgia Tech in 1993, Fowlkes was replaced as men's track coach by Grover Hinsdale and as women's track coach by Wendy Truvillion; both were previously assistants within the program.[21]

Fowlkes was the ACC Coach of the Year twice, in 1987 for outdoor track, and in 1988 for indoor track.[10]

Other awards and honors Fowlkes received as coach include: NCAA Indoor Southeast Coach of the Year (1985), NCAA Outdoor Southeast Coach of the Year (1987), Georgia Sports Hall of Fame (1988), USTFCCCA Hall of Fame (2005).

In August 2012, Fowlkes was inducted into the US Track and Field – Georgia Hall of Fame.[17]

Atlanta City Council

The first election Fowlkes ran in took place on September 13, 1961, the primary to run for alderman for the Eighth Ward, Position 2.[22] The incumbent at the time was Goodwyn "Shag" Cates.[23] Speaking to the North Fulton Optimist Club in July 1961, Fowlkes said, "It is the responsibility of the public to see that only men with integrity, with honesty, and with high moral character run the city government."[24] He was endorsed by the Atlanta Constitution.[25] The day after the primary election, the race was still uncalled, with one precinct still yet to report as Fowlkes led Cates by fewer than 500 votes.[26] Eugene Patterson, writing for the Atlanta Constitution after the election, noted that "the Negro 'bloc vote' is usually alleged ... to be tantamount to election. Yet an incumbent alderman, Goodwyn 'Shag' Cates, took a majority of the Negro vote and lost to Buddy Fowlkes."[27] The general election for the city, in which no one on the ballot faced opposition, took place on December 6, 1961;[28] Fowlkes received a total of 13,718 votes.[29]

At the age of 33, Fowlkes was the youngest person ever elected to the Board of Aldermen when he was sworn in on January 2, 1962.[30] He recalled that then-mayor Ivan Allen Jr. "treat[ed] me like a kid. He wanted to pat me on the head like I was a little boy. I twisted his tail by sending some of his programs down the tube. He called and asked to make peace with me, and we got along okay after that."[31]

Fowlkes represented the Eighth Ward, Position 2 from 1962 until the council was reorganized in 1974, when he represented At-large Post 16.[32][33] Later, he represented District 7. In the 1969 and 1981 elections, Fowlkes was unopposed.[34]

When mayor Maynard Jackson requested that Fowlkes redirect city money away from Bobby Jones Golf Course to poorly-funded parks in the southside instead, it sparked an eight-year-long feud between the two.[31] Fowlkes was opposed to city ownership of Zoo Atlanta in the 1970s, calling it a "losing proposition".[35] When the People's Fair II was held in Piedmont Park in 1971, Fowlkes said "there were so many hippies that they are taking over the park."[36]

In 1977, as Atlanta became more liberal, Fowlkes decided to stop representing the city-wide At-large Post 16 and instead run for District 7, which was opening up as its incumbent, George Cotsakis, announced his retirement; Fowlkes's opponents were Hank Schwab and Lou Hohenstein.[37] Fowlkes said he wanted to "steer away from tremendous social programs".[38] Fowlkes won 49.8% of the vote in the general election, causing him to face Schwab in a runoff, which Fowlkes won.[39]

Fowlkes was a conservative and described as having an "exacting, no-nonsense style."[31] Sam Massell said of Fowlkes in 1982:

If Buckhead was a city, Buddy would be mayor. I always worked well with him, partly because everybody knows it doesn't pay to pick a fight with Buddy. The guy almost never accepts defeat. His power comes from the way he does research, goes after the facts and keeps working on a problem until he convinces people to help him solve it his way. Other politicians come and go, but Buddy is just too tough to fade away.[31]

In March 1986, the Atlanta City Council passed an ordinance outlawing discrimination against gay applicants to city jobs, and that summer the Supreme Court ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick that Georgia's anti-sodomy law was not unconstitutional. That October, Fowlkes and fellow councilmember Richard Guthman sponsored a repeal of the law, which was ultimately unsuccessful by a 12–4 vote.[40]

Fowlkes was opposed to the I-85 to I-285 extension of GA 400, which was completed in the early 1990s; "I'm encouraged," he said in 1989. "People are starting to understand that there are alternatives to the Georgia 400 extension."[41] The same year, he was honored by Chastain Park, which declared June 10, 1989 as "Buddy Fowlkes Day".[42]

Airport bribery scandal

In 1994, Fowlkes was indicted in a bribery scandal involving the city's airport, which he oversaw as chair of the Transportation Committee.[43][44] In 1993, before Fowlkes's indictment, then-councilmember Bill Campbell said "I would be shocked if there were any truth to the allegation. I have known him to be a man of unimpeachable integrity."[45]

Fowlkes began to announce privately that he would resign in August 1993; two people ran for election to his seat, James Garcia and Lee Morris.[46] Morris won the election.

Fowlkes was suspended from office at noon on December 14, 1993 by a three-person state commission.[47][48]

On the stand in court, Fowlkes said "I am not guilty of the charge. I have never sold my vote, nor would I consider it."[49] After a jury trial before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Fowlkes was found guilty on three counts of income tax fraud and one count of accepting a bribe;[50] he was sentenced to 41 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, and fined $25,000.[51][52] The prosecutor was Sally Yates. In December 1995, Fowlkes was still free as his appeal worked its way through the courts.[53] The conviction was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in 1996, and by January 1998, Fowlkes was incarcerated.[54] Fowlkes's BOP Register number was 45419–019.

In 2006, it was reported that Fowlkes had nonetheless received over $200,000 in pensions since the trial and was once again living in Marco Island, Florida.[55]

Hip-hop group Goodie Mob mentioned Fowlkes and the scandal in their song "Thought Process" on their 1995 album Soul Food.[56] Big Gipp raps: "Makin' more deals than Buddy Fowlkes made with Hartsfield."

Personal life

Fowlkes had three children with his previous wife. He married Vicki Meadows on June 12, 1982; they were together for 40 years.[57][14]

Fowlkes was the official starter once for the Peachtree Road Race.[58]

Fowlkes died on November 30, 2021 in Atlanta at the age of 93.[14]

References

  1. ↑ "67 Seeking Seats on City Council". The Atlanta Constitution. 30 September 1973.
  2. ↑ Gardner, Hugh (11 September 1963). "International Age List Revised" (PDF). Track Newsletter. Vol. 10, no. 3. p. 20.
  3. ↑ "Justine Smith Obituary". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 8 October 2017. Justine leaves behind 3 daughters, Dale Levenson, Cheryl Espenlaub and Missy Rhino, and 8 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and her brother Buddy Fowlkes and his wife Vicki.
  4. 1 2 "Spring Sports Summary: Georgia Class A". Southern Coach and Athlete. VII (10): 26. June 1945.
  5. 1 2 3 "Class of 1988". Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  6. ↑ Love Jr., James Erskine, ed. (1948). Blue Print (40 ed.). Georgia School of Technology. p. 400.
  7. 1 2 3 "SEC Men's Outdoor Track and Field Record Book" (PDF). Southeastern Conference. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  8. ↑ "Sports". The Georgia Tech Alumnus. XXVII (5): 19. May–June 1949.
  9. ↑ Tisinger, George (17 September 1948). "Anderson's Play Stands Out at Tech". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. LXXXI, no. 94. p. 17. Halfback Buddy Fowlkes, track star who is spending his off season as a halfback, continues to show that he has his share of football ability, in the opinion of coaches.
  10. 1 2 3 "2019-20 Georgia Tech Track and Field Information Guide" (PDF). Georgia Tech.
  11. ↑ "Douglas "Buddy" Fowlkes, USTFCCCA Coaches Hall of Fame Class of 2005". U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  12. ↑ "Fowlkes Lowers Sugar Bowl Mark". The New York Times. Vol. C, no. 33645. Associated Press. 1 January 1951. p. S-22.
  13. ↑ Sparling, Phillip B. (Fall 2016). "Let's Get Physical: A Mini Course in Movement Science". Georgia Tech.
  14. 1 2 3 "Fowlkes, Douglas "Buddy"". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  15. ↑ "Scorecard: Faces in the Crowd". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 12, no. 24. 13 June 1960. p. 13. ISSN 0038-822X. Buddy Fowlkes, Atlanta businessman, struck blow for aging athletes. A ripe 32, Fowlkes showed up his young track and field competitors by running 100-yard dash in 9.5 for Georgia AAU record, placing second in 220, fourth in broad jump.
  16. ↑ "Georgia Tech Celebrates the Life of Douglas "Buddy" Fowlkes". Georgia Tech. 1 December 2021.
  17. 1 2 "Former Yellow Jackets To Be Inducted Into Georgia Track Hall Of Fame". Georgia Tech. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  18. ↑ Landells, Steve (16 June 2017). "World Championships wonders – Derrick Adkins". World Athletics Championship. IAAF. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  19. ↑ "Hayes Wins Dash, But Unhappy Over Showing". Jet. XXVI (9): 57. 11 June 1964.
  20. ↑ Suitts, Phillip (6 March 2012). "Before the Georgia Dome, before Turner Field, Grady's facilities were home to Atlanta's first integrated games". The Midtown High School Southerner.
  21. ↑ "NCAA Record: Coaches". The NCAA News. Vol. 30, no. 21. 26 May 1993. p. 19.
  22. ↑ "Elect Buddy Fowlkes [Advertisement]". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 62. 28 August 1961. p. 2. Alderman • Eighth Ward • Position 2 • Citywide Election • Sept. 13
  23. ↑ "Muggsy Smith Pays Fee in Mayor Race". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 40. 2 August 1961. p. 6.
  24. ↑ "Must Elect Only the Best, Says Fowlkes". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 33. 25 July 1961. p. 11.
  25. ↑ "In Important Board of Aldermen Races We Endorse These 15 as Best Qualified". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 70. 7 September 1961. p. 4.
  26. ↑ Gaines, Marion (14 September 1961). "9 Aldermen Hold Seats; Massell, Evans in Runoff". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 76. p. 1.
  27. ↑ Patterson, Eugene (16 September 1961). "The Vote Meant Many Things". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 78. p. 4.
  28. ↑ Hancock, Herman (7 December 1961). "Allen is Elected in Light Vote". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 147. p. 1.
  29. ↑ "Allen Gets 17,498 in Final Tally". The Atlanta Constitution. 8 December 1961. p. 9.
  30. ↑ Hancock, Herman (2 October 1961). "City Hall's New Occupants Will Look Before They Leap". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. XCIV, no. 91. p. 12.
  31. 1 2 3 4 Rock, Maxine A. (18 April 1982). "Buddy Fowlkes Gets His Way". The Atlanta Constitution.
  32. ↑ Merriner, Jim (1 January 1975). "City Council, 1974 Not a 'Rubber Stamp' for Jackson". The Atlanta Constitution.
  33. ↑ "Alderman Denies Bias" (PDF). The Atlanta Inquirer. Vol. 3, no. 4. 1 September 1962. p. 1.
  34. ↑ Lee, Joyce C. (2 October 1981). "More Than 50 Vie for Council Seats". The Clark College Panther. Vol. XXXIII, no. 2.
  35. ↑ Desiderio, Francis (Winter 2000). "Raising the Bars: The Transformation of Atlanta's Zoo, 1889–2000". Atlanta History: A Journal of Georgia and the South. XLIII (4): 7.
  36. ↑ Huffaker, Mary (15 August 1971). "People's Fair II". The Great Speckled Bird. Vol. 4, no. 33. p. 7.
  37. ↑ Lawrence, Jay (20 August 1977). "Six More After Seats on Council". The Atlanta Constitution.
  38. ↑ Lawrence, Jay (23 September 1977). "Fiery Fowlkes Trying to Turn Back Clock?". The Atlanta Constitution.
  39. ↑ Allen, Frederick; Lawrence, Jay (17 October 1977). "City Council Runoff Races Heated Up By Charges, Name-Calling". The Atlanta Constitution.
  40. ↑ Clendinen, Dudley (12 October 1986). "Brothers' Rift on Homosexuality Reflects a Division in Atlanta". The New York Times. Vol. CXXXVI, no. 46925. p. 26.
  41. ↑ Newton, Jim (18 April 1989). "Aides to Mayor Fail To Round Up Votes Needed for Ga. 400". The Atlanta Constitution.
  42. ↑ "For fans only". The Atlanta Constitution. 10 June 1989.
  43. ↑ Applebome, Peter (5 January 1994). "Atlanta Watches Nervously As Corruption Trial Begins". The New York Times. Vol. 153, no. 49567. p. A-10.
  44. ↑ "Former Atlanta Official Convicted in Airport Corruption Trial". Associated Press. 22 January 1994. Former City Councilman D.L. 'Buddy' Fowlkes and Jackson, Miss., businessman Dave Gammill were named in separate indictments related to the scandal. They have not yet been tried.
  45. ↑ "Airport: Vendor Linked to Bribery". The Atlanta Constitution. 24 March 1993.
  46. ↑ Coleman, Seth (21 October 1993). "District 7 hopefuls agree: The key issues are ethics, taxes and public safety". The Atlanta Constitution.
  47. ↑ Harris, Lyle V.; Blackmon, Douglas A. (21 August 1993). "Fowlkes tells supporters he's resigning". The Atlanta Journal. p. B1.
  48. ↑ Hiskey, Michelle (15 December 1993). "Fowlkes suspended from office". The Atlanta Constitution. p. C3.
  49. ↑ Blackmon, Douglas A. (18 August 1994). "'I Have Never Sold My Vote,' Fowlkes Says". The Atlanta Constitution. p. C-1.
  50. ↑ Blackmon, Douglas A. (23 August 1994). "Fowlkes guilty on 4 counts". The Atlanta Constitution. Vol. 127, no. 47. p. 1.
  51. ↑ "Fowlkes v. United States, No. 96-1566 - Brief for the United States". Supreme Court of the United States. June 1997.
  52. ↑ Monroe, Doug (February 2004). "Where the Wild Things Are". Atlanta. 43 (10): 207–208. ISSN 0004-6701.
  53. ↑ Helton, Charmagne; Williams, Mike (24 December 1995). "Convicted Officials Have Yet to Serve Prison Time". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. G3.
  54. ↑ Scruggs, Kathy (24 January 1998). "Airport Scam Felon Says Jail Could Kill Him". The Atlanta Constitution. Former city councilman D.L 'Buddy' Fowlkes was among the seven city officials, lawyers and concessionaires convicted in the scandal. All but Paradies are serving or have served their sentences, Yates said, adding that all but one are in their late 60s and 70s.
  55. ↑ "Prison doesn't stop pensions for Atlanta ex-officials". Associated Press. 1 September 2006. They include Ira Jackson, a former aviation commissioner who has been paid about $700,000 and former Atlanta councilman D.L. 'Buddy' Fowlkes, who has collected more than $200,000. ... Jackson now lives on Hilton Head Island, S.C., and Fowlkes now lives on Marco Island, Fla.
  56. ↑ Bradley, Regina N., ed. (October 2021). An OutKast Reader: Essays on Race, Gender, and the Postmodern South. Athens, Georgia: The University of Georgia Press. p. 43. ISBN 9780820360140.
  57. ↑ "People: City Councilman Buddy Fowlkes..." The Atlanta Constitution. 10 June 1982. City Councilman Buddy Fowlkes will tie the knot Saturday with Vicki Meadows, an employee with J.A. Jones Construction Co.
  58. ↑ Holder, Jay (16 August 2018). "How it All Starts". The Peachtree 50. Executive Director Julia Emmons; race founder Tim Singleton; and founding members Buddy Fowlkes, the Georgia Tech Track and Field Coach, and legendary Westminster coach Paul Koshewa all started the race at least once.
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