Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
2011.048.145 |
Collection |
Boyd, Betty |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Date |
circa 1995 |
Description |
Color photograph measuring 8" x 10" and depicting Oklahoma House Representative Betty Boyd at her desk at the Oklahoma State Capitol. Tulsans often remember Betty Boyd as the queen of Tulsa television. She informed and educated the public as a television news journalist for twenty-five years. Margaret Elizabeth "Betty" Carman was born December 9, 1924 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to parents Theodore Wood "Ted" Carman (1892-1962) and Victoria Marie Fairchild Carman (1895-1978). She grew up living at 511 North Santa Fe Avenue with her divorced mother, who worked as a school teacher. Betty Carman graduated from Central High School in Tulsa, and later attended University of Tulsa and Iowa State University. On August 31, 1943, Betty Carman married William Wray "Bill" Boyd, Jr. He was born October 11, 1921 in Chattanooga, Tennessee to parents William Wray Boyd, Sr. (1889-1956) and Hester Blair Boyd (1893-1958). Following their marriage, Bill Boyd served overseas in Italy in the Army Air Corps during World War II. During that time, Betty Boyd worked at the bomber plant of Douglas Aircraft Company in Tulsa. After the war, the married couple reunited and lived with Betty's mother at 511 North Santa Fe Avenue. Bill Boyd worked as a salesman with Kerr Glass. He later managed Bowes Distributors of Tulsa. The Boyds had two children: Beverlie J., born in 1947, and Barry, born in 1950. In 1955, the family moved to 746 North Xenophon Avenue. Their last residence was located at 11039 East 26th Place. In 1955, Betty Boyd joined KOTV Channel 6 in Tulsa as a television news journalist. She hosted the noontime, half-hour series "Women's Page" as well as the show "Hi Neighbor." She later became the station's public affairs director. After working ten years for KOTV, Boyd joined KTUL Channel 8 in Tulsa. Some of her well-remembered programs included the following: The Betty Boyd Show, Boyd's Eye View, Plan for Action, and Good Morning, Oklahoma. Boyd left KTUL in 1980 after a twenty-five-year career on television, but she still appeared on radio and television commercials occasionally. After her years on television, Boyd began several additional careers. She served as the director of information for Tulsa Vo-Tech. In 1991, she began a political career at age sixty-five as a member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from District 23. She served five, consecutive, two-year terms. At that time, she was the oldest member of the Oklahoma House, as well as the first great-grandmother to serve in the House. Boyd worked on a number of bills, one being the creation of Oklahoma State University-Tulsa. Boyd worked to pass legislation for improving education, literacy, and healthcare. She completed her last term in the House in 2000. Boyd remained active late in her life. She served on numerous boards such as the Tulsa Health Department, Friends of the Library, Area Agency on Aging and the Silver Haired Legislature. She also received a number of awards and recognitions, including induction into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Women in Radio and Television Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. She authored two books: Travels in My Green Country and Beyond and If I Could Sing, I'd Be Dangerous. Betty Boyd died January 6, 2011 at age eighty-six in Tulsa. Her body is interred at Memorial Park Cemetery in Tulsa. |
Search Terms |
journalists & journalism Oklahoma State Capitol politicians |
People |
Boyd, Margaret Elizabeth "Betty" Carman |
Place |
Oklahoma City, OK |