Mark White got elected Governor because he promised to make everyone's electric bill go down.

I remember going through Baytown around that time, and my recollection is the whole business district was boarded up.

$0.69 / gallon of gas on the video thumbnail. I filled up for $2.30 / gal today. Tracks almost exactly to dollar inflation.

Housing, cars, appliances, etc all quite differently priced but gas (at least of now) is roughly the same price in real terms.

No video of Texas in 1982 is complete without mentioning the shutdown of Braniff International in May.

If it was mentioned, I missed it.

MemphisAg1 said:

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91AggieLawyer said:

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The video kept referencing the "urban cowboy" look and lifestyle. That died out no later than 1980. There may have been some hangers-on in Houston and with those in the oil industry, but it certainly wasn't "mainstream" as the video suggests. People were still watching the TV series Dallas (fewer than a couple of years prior), but they weren't dressing like that anymore. For younger folks, the Magnum PI look -- polo shirts, etc. -- had taken over. Older (over 40) dressed conservatively.

The school "uniform" in those days was some shirt -- anything from a t-shirt (often a rock concert one) to a polo to a OCBD -- and...jeans. We would have killed to be able to wear shorts, even if it meant the longer variety that came out a decade later.

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Lol, that might have been the frat boy look, but Ropers and Wranglers were common all through the 80's and into the 90's for sure.

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I'm not saying they didn't exist. Trust me: I knew plenty who not only wore Ropers (actually, all kinds of boot styles) and Wranglers, but had the buckle and snap button shirts (not to mention the hat) to complete the look. I'm talking about people who's clothing/dress was influenced by the "times," so to speak. But don't think for a second that, at least in the early/mid-80s in North Texas (at least) that the western wear popularity was anything close to the casual Alex P. Keaton lite look, even if that mean simply a WCT t-shirt, jeans, and leather sneakers.

Maybe your experience/area of the state was different.

I was born in 1953 and graduated from A&M in December of 78, passed the CPA exam in May of 79, married an Aggie in June of 79. Big 8 (remember them?) job didn't start until August, so back to working derricks in the oilfield. By 1982, I had left public accounting and was working for a medium sized energy/real estate company, around 4,000 employees. They had wanted to hire me away from public accounting because of my field experience, but the HR lady was 15 minutes late to the interview so I said **** it and left.

About six months later, they tried again, almost doubling my salary, so I went with them. Times were good. They said since they started me at such a high salary, I would not be up for a salary review for a year. I said fine. After six months, they gave me a 19% raise and apologized for it not being more, lol. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. The company had four or five presidents (had separate lines of business) and I reported directly to two of them. I had a lot of responsibility, wrote a section in our annual report each year, all the big shots knew me. About two weeks a month, I only needed to be in my office about 15 hours a week, so I was, lol.

Around 83 or 84, I do not really remember the exact time, things went south in a hurry. Company went to ****, I wanted to get laid off so I would be vested in the retirement plan (anyone laid off with a year or less to go before vesting was automatically vested) but they would not do it. I volunteered several times, had a job waiting in public accounting with an Aggie CPA back in my hometown area, but I knew too much. They were afraid I might get pissed off and make some phone calls that would have been very costly to the company so they sat tight. The day I had 1,000 hours in the plan year, which vested me, I quit.

But yeah 1982 was an excellent year.

Jnsag said:

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Think a Rolls Royce dealership opened between Midland and Odessa in that era.

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It was the largest Rolls dealer in the world sales wise.

I came to Texas in 1987. The bust was fully happening.

BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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I was gonna say the next big one I know of was around 99. Gasoline was sub $1 for a while there. I think oil price got down to about $10/bbl.

TyHolden said:

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what year were the oil crashes?

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I was a freshman in the Fall of 1985. My roommate had a subscription to the Houston Post (RIP). Every day I read another article about how oil prices continued to drop and people were getting laid off.

BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Or 2020 during lockdowns

The Shank Ag said:

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BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Or 2020 during lockdowns

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Prices may have fallen under $1 in 2020 in select locations but the national average never fell below $1.84. Dont know how much of that was propped up by California.

Last time was 1998/1999 from November through March. Then you have to go back to January of 1994.

https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/leafhandler.ashx?n=pet&s=emm_epmr_pte_nus_dpg&f=m

rocky the dog said:

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fond memories Rocky. and back then you pumped your truck full of gas before paying for it.

MemphisAg1 said:

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91AggieLawyer said:

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The video kept referencing the "urban cowboy" look and lifestyle. That died out no later than 1980. There may have been some hangers-on in Houston and with those in the oil industry, but it certainly wasn't "mainstream" as the video suggests. People were still watching the TV series Dallas (fewer than a couple of years prior), but they weren't dressing like that anymore. For younger folks, the Magnum PI look -- polo shirts, etc. -- had taken over. Older (over 40) dressed conservatively.

The school "uniform" in those days was some shirt -- anything from a t-shirt (often a rock concert one) to a polo to a OCBD -- and...jeans. We would have killed to be able to wear shorts, even if it meant the longer variety that came out a decade later.

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Lol, that might have been the frat boy look, but Ropers and Wranglers were common all through the 80's and into the 90's for sure.

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This. Urban Cowboy was still a thing.

And Dallas was in the top 10 of TV ratings all the way up through the mid 80's. It wasn't until '87 that it started falling off but still managed to hang on until 1991 before it was cancelled.

I'm sure it depended heavily on what area of the country you were in. I'd guess in Florida it was the Miami Vice look more than anything. California was probably more Magnum PI-ish. But in just about all of Texas it was definitely still the cowboy fad without a doubt. I was only 6 but remember that much. I mean, Urban Cowboy was released in June 1980, so it definitely didn't die out in 1980.

tk111 said:

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BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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I was gonna say the next big one I know of was around 99. Gasoline was sub $1 for a while there. I think oil price got down to about $10/bbl.

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Yeah, I bought my first diesel around that time frame and I think diesel was running about $.96 per gallon back then. I remember if filling the tank up ran over about $30 it was an expensive fill up.

Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

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15 that year. I look back on that year fondly.

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Same Same

My Dad managed a plant that produced Sucker Rods. He went from running three full shifts one day to having his secretary run the overhead crane the next. Wild times.

Things bounced back when the Russians came to town and we took them to a "nice dinner" at Steak and Ale and then took them to a high school football game at Cowboy Stadium.

BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Truth. I remember filling up at the Texaco across from campus on Texas Avenue (where Barnes and Noble and Best Buy are located) around that time and paying .98 a gallon. Must have been 1998 or 1999.

From '85-'87 or so I worked nights and weekends cleaning foreclosed homes so they could go on the market. We saw some sad and crazy sights. Most people just walked away from their houses and left everything they couldn't carry. We'd see stacks of bills and late notices on the kitchen tables; kids' toys in their rooms; clothes and stuff in the closets; etc. Lots and lots of golf clubs left behind.

Some people would punch holes in the sheetrock and smash the faucets, angry at their bank.

We worked a couple of houses on a long cul-de-sac in Katy that was almost entirely vacant. Just a war zone. Houses just sitting there unoccupied. It was eerie.

Made pretty good money too until it turned out someone else had been claiming to work the same houses as us and the realty firm refused to pay us any more.

The 86 oil bust wiped out the S&L industry, which collapsed real estate. Lot of office buildings and houses for sale very cheap.

I started working in real estate at that time as I had just graduated from A&M and there were no jobs at the time.
I teamed up with 2 ladies in my office and we started listing foreclosed homes. There were months that there would be 2,000+ homes being foreclosed in the Houston area. We worked all over but primarily in Fort Bend County.

Saw the same things as well. People just walked out and left everything behind. Lots of damaged homes too due to upset foreclosed homeowners. I've got stories that are worthy of a book. I've seen it all and more than once left running out of a house due to the flea infestation.

We were listing and slowly selling decent 3 and 4 bedroom homes in the low to mid $20's price range. And it was block after block of the same thing. Wish I had money back then to buy up some of these homes as today these areas are easily priced from $250/300K and up. Could have made a tidy profit.

It was a sad time for lots of folks. But slowly Houston and Texas pulled out of it. But there were some ugly and trying years for sure.

BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Or 2001/2 ish. Post 9/11 I remember it got to 1.00 flat in my area briefly.

Surely was under some places.

aggiehawg said:

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Since I was in law school back then but essentially living on my own, what a time! Then it all just crashed.

For those who were not around then, enjoy.

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I mean....still pretty similar today.

But that bust was VERY real. Moreover, it came at a time where the entire economy as shifting from traditional assets, like real estate and oil, to the stock market.

The 80s are really a lost decade in Texas. And it took until the 90s for things to turn back around.

rocky the dog said:

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That was the price in the early 90s in the RGV.

Ah, the good old days.

Quote:

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And it took until the 90s for things to turn back around.

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But then, especially in Austin was the dot.com bust. Hit commercial real estate market pretty hard. Half finished multi-story office buildings.

Reginald Cousins said:

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BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Or 2001/2 ish. Post 9/11 I remember it got to 1.00 flat in my area briefly.

Surely was under some places.

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National Average was $1.08 December '01, $1.10 Jan '02 and $1.11 Feb '02

I was referring to late 2001/early 2002.

Reginald Cousins said:

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I was referring to late 2001/early 2002.

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Lol. Those are the months I used but put the incorrect dates. Will fix it.

schmellba99 said:

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tk111 said:

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BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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I was gonna say the next big one I know of was around 99. Gasoline was sub $1 for a while there. I think oil price got down to about $10/bbl.

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Yeah, I bought my first diesel around that time frame and I think diesel was running about $.96 per gallon back then. I remember if filling the tank up ran over about $30 it was an expensive fill up.

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Remember back then when trucks came with two fuel tanks? Just flip the switch and boom reserve tank. I remember my dad loving the two tanks but griping when he had to fill both of them up. He got a new Ford in 1981, and it was the first new vehicle anyone had ever had in my immediate family.

My grandfather had a 1976 Ford Supercab with an extra long bed and camper shell on it with two tanks. used that truck to move back and forth from West Texas to A&M a few times without filling up.

aggiehawg said:

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My grandfather had a 1976 Ford Supercab with an extra long bed and camper shell on it with two tanks. used that truck to move back and forth from West Texas to A&M a few times without filling up.

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Yes ma'am, we moved around a lot in the 80's and never once used a U-Haul. All moves were made via cattle trailer. Ah, the good old days.

JB!98 said:

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aggiehawg said:

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My grandfather had a 1976 Ford Supercab with an extra long bed and camper shell on it with two tanks. used that truck to move back and forth from West Texas to A&M a few times without filling up.

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Yes ma'am, we moved around a lot in the 80's and never once used a U-Haul. All moves were made via cattle trailer. Ah, the good old days.

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Only time I rented a U-Haul was when I was moving out of state and needed to take furniture with me. Afraid I had more confidence than competence until I finally figured out how to use the bottom of the steering wheel to back it up.

I was 5-years old in '82. We had moved to BCS in '81 from Raleigh, NC as my father joined the faculty at A&M. I do remember throughout the mid-80s when the bust hit that lots of kids parents were losing their jobs. While being on faculty meant his career was never in jeopardy the bust really hit the funding for research grants, even in the College of Agriculture where he was. I remember more than a few friends moving away as their parents looked for & took jobs elsewhere.

As for the 99-cents/gallon gas, I drove an '84 Bronco with a 351 Windsor most of my time at A&M and I can recall filling up the tank for about $20 and gas being .98-.99 around '98 until I finished my victory lap and graduated in 2000.

Reginald Cousins said:

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BTKAG97 said:

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rocky the dog said:

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That pic could be from 1999. Believe it or not.

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Or 2001/2 ish. Post 9/11 I remember it got to 1.00 flat in my area briefly.

Surely was under some places.

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That pic is easily from that timeframe, maybe later. Zoom in on the vehicle at the gas station and especially the one on the far block and you can see these are later models, not 80s models.