[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 9 (Thursday, January 13, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H83]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  COMMEMORATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE GRAND OPENING OF GILLEY'S

  (Mr. WEBER of Texas asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WEBER of Texas. Madam Speaker, on March 29, 1971, in Pasadena, 
Texas, Mickey Gilley opened a honkytonk bearing his name and changed 
the world of country music forever. Gilley's reputation grew so much 
that Hollywood took notice with the hit movie ``Urban Cowboy,'' filmed 
in and around the Pasadena location. Man, was it a hit.
  Inspired by the real-life romance of a pair of the club's patrons, 
``Urban Cowboy'' put Gilley's on the map, revived music careers, and 
launched others. It introduced two-stepping to a whole new audience and 
created a lifestyle which has been adopted by millions.
  Madam Speaker, 40 years later, America's love of Wrangler jeans, 
cowboy boots, and pickup trucks underscores that lasting cultural 
legacy.
  Although the club is no more, Gilley's is certainly not forgotten. 
Its memory lives on decades later through music and film, of course, 
but even, more importantly, through the lives and loves of those who 
frequented Gilley's. And you always knew when someone had been to 
Gilley's because they had the bumper sticker to prove it.
  Thank you to Mickey Gilley for introducing our way of life to the 
world. Thank you to the Galveston Chamber of Commerce--at 177 years 
young, Texas' oldest chamber of commerce--for honoring the 50th 
anniversary of our great southeast Texas true country club and Mr. 
Mickey Gilley.

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