"My first thought would be that they'd say, 'That's that old guy that's been around forever. Unfortunately, O'Connor almost didn't get an opportunity to use his new Rolodex entries. It's about the excitement. "The way to make money is to offer a drive-through viewing. After graduation in 1963, he decided to tempt fate and stay in-state, attending Monterey Peninsula Junior College. That venue closed after Direct Events filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Aug. 2013, with debts of $3.5 million and assets of zero. He was of the Catholic Faith. Absolutely not. Tim O'Connor, who died in July, had two dogs, Bobbie Nelson and Yoyo Nelson. Copyright 2003 - 23 J.E. And to some degree, it's also about admitting what I've done wrong. "Clubs might argue over one act, once a year or so," he says. One night they'd be working against nuclear weaponry, the next for prison reform. At one point, it wasn't unusual for booking agents working the local market to get 40% more than their asking price after compiling competing bids from Direct Events, Liberty Lunch, and Stubb's. O'Connor's contract with one of the country's largest promoters is due to expire in December. While this cost Direct Events some independence, the contract reserved O'Connor's right to promote 140 acts on his own that he had longstanding relationships with (artists such as Willie Nelson or Little Feat.) There was other drama as well: He'd been caught attempting to steal a WWI cannon from the town post office. And yet, Attal says he's not waiting in the parking lot for O'Connor to show up with the paperwork. I believe it's given me an edge as a competitor and given us a distinct advantage as a company.". Willie had found his man! "I thought that was the way it was done, but Ms. Martinez at the IRS totally disagreed with my position," says O'Connor of the six-figure penalties he accrued. . "I've never had a customer tell me I should cut down a 400-year-old oak tree because the sightlines would be better," he says. The Dignity Memorial brand name is used to identify a network of licensed funeral, cremation and cemetery providers that include affiliates of Service Corporation International, 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas. Called an Ice House for the Arts, La Zona Rosa was a special place, opened by Marcia Ball and husband Gordon Fowler in late 89. Twitter). That wouldnt last long. He went on to receive and Associates Degree from TSTC. Former baseball star Kelly Gruber and realtor wife Tosca owned La Zona Rosa for awhile, but it continued to lose money until OConnor took over in 1997. Send a note, share a story or upload a photo. While at the San Francisco airport, after making it out of Japan without sparking an international incident, O'Connor and Nelson discussed opening a club together. TRAPRS helped provide boarding, rehabilitation and training for Bobbie and Yoyo. He is survived by his wife, Beverly, of Austin; son Michael OConnor of Houston; Olive OConnor of Houston; daughter, Loraine Moulder and husband Jim of Cedar Park; three grandsons, Brian Poolman of Austin, TX; Daniel Poolman of Austin/Houston; Sean Poolman of San Marcos, TX; Granddaughter, Melanie Diggins, Great-Granddaughters Adrienne Diggins and Alix OQuinn; a brother, Donald OConnor ( Helen), of Plattsburg, MO; four sisters, Loretta Broderick (Tom), Plattsburg, MO, Juanita Thornton (Jim), Liberty, MO; Charlene Swope (Emerson) of Joplin, MO, Peggy Evans (John) of Smithville, MO; twelve nieces and nephews, all of Missouri, and several cousins, living in the Midwest.. Can't keep up with happenings around town? Although O'Connor believed he could build a venue that reflected "Old Austin," his venue was at least 15 minutes away from downtown. I'm not sure if I said it or not, but I knew right then that I was willing to carry this guy's guitar to hell.". In 1960, after eight months of marching with a weighted backpack and an M-1 rifle, O'Connor and several other cadets broke ranks, literally running away and leading police on a manhunt. "You have to create a niche that's so protected and specialized that it doesn't draw too much attention. Tom will be remembered at a memorial service at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, October 16, 2010, at the Cook-Walden/Chapel of the Hills Funeral Home on Anderson Mill Road. I stuck around Willie like bad penny.". As cryptic as his warning may be, it's notable that O'Connor also refers to his new alliance as "solidarity by design of defense." That was unique, and I think a lot of that came from working with Willie. And despite the fact that Direct Events had grown nearly 300% in 1994-95 and was on the verge of bankruptcy, O'Connor agreed to buy La Zona Rosa in 1996. All three venues were wildly successful, with Tim bringing more high-calibre talent to Austin in the 90s than the Armadillo did in the 70s and Liberty Lunch in the 80s and 90s. In fact, O'Connor was to retire from day-to-day operations January 1, 2001. Comfort the family with flowers or a sympathy gift. Not only would the building at 200 Academy provide them with a 56,000 square-foot main building, the two would also be buying 218 apartments in 17 different buildings, stretching from the corner of the Travis Heights neighborhood to South Congress. With the $60,000 those lots sold for, the Austin Opera House was up and running. Maybe it's yet another O'Connor business strategy. Yet for all the yelling, he's known real pain of his own: He's lost a testicle to cancer and a daughter to drugs. Sign up for service and obituary updates. He was surrounded by family and friends. Although it's been mostly by his own design, the great irony of Tim O'Connor's career is that it took 30 years for his story to reach his customers -- the people of the city he loves catering to. It doesn't take much asking around for folks to recall the first time he screamed at them, or the first time they witnessed him either stand on his desk to make a point, or clear it with the sweep of an arm. Funeral Home Se. After roughly 26 months in an adoption facility, he was adopted and given the surname O'Connor. Comfort the family with flowers or a sympathy gift. exceeds goal to save at-risk pups. Ann Richards in shorts, reading the New York Times most every Sunday morning. Help tell the story of your loved ones unique life. REX/Shutterstock. There will be a reception following the service. AUSTIN, Texas Tim O'Connor, owner of The Backyard, Austin Music Hall and other live music venues in Austin, died on July 30 from Hodgkin's lymphoma. "It got me thinking.". By flying around the country to meet with agents and sending follow-up packages of barbecue, Attal has earned a reputation within the industry as a dedicated player. "It wasn't what they wanted to hear," remembers O'Connor, "but I told them they had a very awkward room that I'd close and start completely over with. Eric Goodman's Austin FC column, other soccer news. "There would be many times we'd be screaming across the table at each other, and 20 minutes later it would be hugs and kisses. Who Receive obituaries Alfred Herman Bohot February 25, 2023 (93 years old) Tim sold his share in 1990, too soon, and became an independent promoter, doing shows at City Coliseum and the Palmer. 's website. He saw the acts being booked at the Creek- John Prine, Guy Clark, Steve Goodman, Steve Fromholz, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker, etc.- and knew his songs were right for the room. Somewhere along the way, O'Connor started a band in Laguna. Charles "Charlie" M. McLemore 81, passed away Tuesday February 21, 2023. But even after all that, OConnor refused to retire, working on a venue in Driftwood until that deal fell through. It started with a love of music.James Timothy OConnor, his adopted name, came to Austin in 1972 to open Castle Creek with his Colorado buddy Doug Moyes. "My relationships are based on the old way of doing business, where theirs are on a new, more aggressive, streamlined, let's-buy-the-tour or region approach. What Jones learned from OConnors example is that you do what you say you will. During the same period, he rented Laguna Beach High's gym for $50 and threw a concert featuring a semi-popular local band. Both are now available for adoption. He'd bought Nelson out two years earlier, just before the singer's tax situation got messy, but it wasn't long before O'Connor himself wound up in a bit of IRS trouble; since buying the Opera House in 1977, he'd been filing corporate taxes, but not personal taxes. "Mark my words, if you think it's difficult now, give it 24 months. (Austin Pets Alive! In any scenario, Jones and Attal say it would only take a drive to their office to unload the lease to the Austin Music Hall. Customer Engineer Specialist and Sr. OConnors best decade was the 90s, when his Direct Events opened the Backyard in 93, the Austin Music Hall in 94 and revived La Zona Rosa in 97. ", "It was the holdout," says Henry Gonzalez, who first worked at the Armadillo and later stage-managed the Opera House. He loved all of his family and the times they spent together. Celebrate the life of Maureen O'Connor, leave a kind word or memory and get funeral service information. More importantly, the Opera House provided an alternative to the Armadillo. Sign up for service and obituary updates. Now, as his relationship with SFX, the country's largest concert promoter, nears contractual completion, the impact of O'Connor's retirement on the local promotions pool is unknown. Seeing an opportunity, O'Connor began inviting them to play his bar in exchange for free lodging in the bungalows below. He was born on June 14, 1983, in Santa Rosa, California. "Do I want to try and change my image? Private Messages I might be tattered and torn up, and a lot of people may be lying behind me, but my attitude is, if you're not helping, get out of the way. Moving into Michael Martin Murphy's house on 54th across from the DPS and forging fast friendships with musicians like Jerry Jeff Walker and Jimmy Buffet, O'Connor quickly made Castle Creek's bookings competitive. He left behind his two dogs,. Log in, Steel Guitar Forum LLCPO Box 237Mount Horeb, WI 53572 USA. And yet, even after being yelled at by $25-a-day roadie, Nelson answered with typical calm. Aesthetically, [the Opera House] and Liberty Lunch were the only ones to carry over the Seventies vibe into the Eighties decline.". ', "I thought I had done well, but what I was really doing was screwing every relationship he'd established in every little town in Texas and Louisiana. Tim O'Connor, Direct Events, The Backyard, The Austin Music Hall, La Zona Rosa, Castle Creek, The Austin Opera House, Pace Concerts, SFX, Willie Nelson, Information is power. "I cleared a few hundred bucks easy," O'Connor says. Thanks also to Seton Medical Center Austin for the care given the many, many times he was a patient there. "When Willie and I needed to deal with banks, we'd be sure to pull up in front with the bus," explains O'Connor. O'Connor claims it's a mystery to him why the deal came off the table, but he maintains the negotiation process hinged on design. Late last year, however, SFX's purchase of the Backyard was a week away from being completed when it was called off. Age 81. When OConnor passed away from Hodgkins lymphoma in July 2021 at age 76, the music community went into mourning. Charlie is preceded in death by his parents Felix Durward . I'd like to pass through whatever time I have left in this industry and in my life and be able to sit back in the rocking chair, should I get that opportunity, and say 'Tim, you didn't do too bad.' TIMOTHY O'CONNOR OBITUARY. "The first chance he had back in Austin, he fired me," reveals O'Connor. "The town had just gone from zero to 65 clubs in 18 months," says Eddie Wilson of the city's early-Seventies live music boom. Help I'll never forget Willie's answer. The other rooms he rented. Why don't we wait a little while and maybe we'll catch up with you. It started out as Acropolis dance club, then was Blind Alley for a couple months, and then saw the return of promoter Jim Ramsey with Rivers Edge. "I don't know if you could quite call us enemies," Attal demurs. "Once upon a time, we were all fighters that ruled our own little neighborhoods," says Threadgill's Eddie Wilson, who once competed with O'Connor at the Armadillo. Travis Heights wouldn't be free of O'Connor until 1990. Attempted burglary charges led to 27 days in jail, a trial in Salinas, and six years of probation. Timothy O'Connor Stanton Timothy O'Connor Stanton, born in Ottawa, Illinois on March 3, 1951, passed away June 2, 2008 after a lengthy and courageous fight. After owning five record stores, French Smith controlled Austin's outdoor events, staging Pecan Street and a half-dozen or so other annual festivals while also renting the Opera House for the occasional indoor show. Learn More. We never called them 'benefits,' but we both knew the deal. Skeptics, on the other hand, said concertgoers wouldn't drive that far for a show, particularly from North Austin. "Can you imagine sending a guy like me over as an ambassador of goodwill?" Timothy Joseph (Tim) O'Connor, 53, of Toms River, NJ, passed away peacefully at home on December 26, 2022, after bravely battling cancer. Then came the mall that swallowed our idyllic music setting. 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