Biography
From life as an auto mechanic's son on the wind swept plains of West Texas, Red McCombs has risen to become one of America's most successful businessmen, with varied interests in auto dealerships, oil, ranching, communications, and professional sports.
Born Billy Joe "Red" McCombs in Spur, Texas in 1927, McCombs' passion for sports took him at 17 on a hitch-hiking tour of schools of the old Southwest Conference as he tried to find a place to play football, the game he loved. He ended up playing ball at Corpus Christi Junior College, and after a stint as a student at The University of Texas, he took his talents to Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX, where he realized his dream of playing on a college team.
In 1950, he began his business career as a used-car dealer in Corpus Christi, TX. McCombs bought his first new car dealership in San Antonio in 1957 at age 30. From there, he built an auto dealership empire, which is the largest in Texas and the sixth largest in the country, with almost 40 franchises in over 25 locations. His success in the automotive industry earned him induction into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1996 with the Distinguished Service Citation, the most prestigious award given.
He parlayed his first dollars into a parallel career as a breeder of registered cattle. He is also the co-founder of Clear Channel Communications, the world's largest outdoor advertising company with operations in 26 countries and the world's second largest radio station owner with 626 stations. Clear Channel also owns or operates 22 television stations. In addition, McCombs is the sole owner of McCombs Oil Corporation located in Houston and through McCombs Enterprises, is involved in a variety of other business activities.
He entered professional basketball in 1973, bringing the Spurs from Dallas to San Antonio. In 1982, after selling the Spurs, he purchased the Denver Nuggets. He repurchased the Spurs in 1988 and orchestrated a turnaround that doubled per-game attendance and produced two conference championships.
The man who as a young car salesman once splurged $5,000 to buy a minor league baseball team, in 1998, purchased the Minnesota Vikings for $200 million. In his first season the club set new records on the field by going 15-1 and had the highest attendance in team history. McCombs restored "Purple Pride" to the community and the football team. For his efforts, he received Pro Football Weekly's Executive of the Year Award.
Along with his wife, Charline, Red has been a major benefactor to the University of Texas and Southwestern University. Annually, the McCombs Foundation contributes up to $8 million to more than 400 charities, colleges, and universities across the State of Texas. His major contributions to the University of Texas Business School prompted the renaming of the school in his honor. In addition, he has been recognized at both Texas and Southwestern with their prestigious Distinguished Alumnus Award.
Today, McCombs figures he spends about 35 percent of his time working on opportunities, about 35 percent on existing operations, and 30 percent on community interests. He once summed up his secret of success stating - "Make decisions, take chances!"
In San Antonio, he was instrumental in founding the Texas Research Park, helping create Sea World of Texas and launching the campaign to build the 60,000 seat Alamodome. Throughout his life, Red has contributed greatly to education and special programs with aid that assists students K-12 and a prison halfway house assisting released inmates.
Mr. McCombs has held many leadership roles on national, state and local levels including - Chairman of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, the United Way, and the San Antonio World's Fair. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Southwestern University and was past Chairman of the Board of the Visitors of University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He has received numerous recognitions including the San Antonio Citizenship Award and induction into San Antonio Business, Texas, Texas Philanthropy, and San Antonio Sports Halls of Fame. He was also named Minnesota Business and Opportunities Magazine Man of the Year.
Red and his wife, Charline, reside in San Antonio. They are the parents of three children and eight grandchildren.
