The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1954-03-02
BY JAMES DEVLIN

NEW YORK Up - A fabulousl,
rich Texas GILMAN has struck a
roaring gusher of controversy ii
the field of public affairs.
He is H. l.. (Haroldson Lafay,
ette) Hunt of Dallas, financial
hacker of the Facts Forum radio
and television programs.
Associates say he is worth two
billion dollars, that he makes one
million a week.
Maybe he's the richest man il
the United States, if not the world
Hunt himself won't discuss thu
fortune that he started with $5t
in 1921.
The controversy over Fact!
Forum and how objective it is ha.
swirled for the past severa
months.
Hunt vows the programs offel
fair and impartial discussion o
public issues and that they meri
the three million dollars a yea,
of free air time they are getting
Critics term the forum politi
cal propaganda machine givin,
major weight to conservatism ant
isolationism. Some charge it is
front to push Sen. Joseph r. Nc
Carthy (R-Wis) into the presiden
cy. They say it should not &c
free air time.
Like most men of great wealth
Hunt shuns personal publicity. Blu
he came to New York recent.
and called a news conference a
the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel to de
fend Facts Forum against tn,
attacks.
! The conference was called at ,
time when the New York Post wa
running a series of articles critica
of Hunt. The Post was not repre-
sented at the conference. The Pos
said the next day Hunt had re
fused to see a Post reporter.
The conference threw some ligh
on Hunts rise to riches, his per
sonality and his political philoso
Iphy.
Before his arrival, an associat,
was asked if there were any trutl
in a seemingly fantastic rumol
that he was worth 500 million dol
lars. Not half a billion, but more
said the associate. He declared
Hunt had 400 million in natura
gas holdings alone "and that i
only a by-product of his oil hold
ings."
Besides oil wells and oil prop
critics, he owns vast ranches ant
farms, raises cattle and pecal
nuts, and has a number of othel
business interests.
His only comment on his per
sonal finances was that he wa.
wiped out as a cotton planter il
1921 when the price dropped from
SIPS q pound to 10 cents.
$50 l went into the oil field.
with $50" he related. His frs
investment was in an oil well al
Lake Village, Ark. 1t gushed. Oh
wells have been gushing for him
ever since.
Hunt, comfortably dressed in 9
light tan suit, white shirt and
llight-colored bow tie, sat on a sofa
in a suite as he talked.
He is a tall, white.haired man
of IS, well built and with evidence
Of a Texas tan. He speaks quietly
and slowly, carefully considering
his words.
His manner was genial through.
out and he smiled frequently.
He appeared unruffled when
asked about accusations that his
forum is anti-Semitic, anti-Catho
lie. anti-labor, anti-Negro and pro
Fascist.
He labels all such accusation!
as ridiculous" He said the forum
was anti-Communist but that other
wise its sole aim was to increase
popular interest in public issues
He said it never contributed 8
nickel to Mccarthy for campaign
expenses or speaking tours, tina
it supports no candidates and doe!
no lobbying.
Hunt is married and the father
of four sons and two daughters
The girls, incidentally, had hant
in the founding of Facts Forum
! He said that, in 1913, his or;gina
intention was to establish a foun
dation devoted to agriculture, to b,
known as Farm Facts Founda
) ton"
He intended to set up severa
$500, 900 farm units where youn,
men not going to college would
work a slx-hour day, learning
scientific farming, soil conserva
ton and reforestation.
While he was considering that
he said, his daughters suggested
there was no food shortage ant
asked why he didn't do something
to get people more interested il
public affairs.
Robert H. Dedham, a youni
Texas attorney, was interested il
the same idea. From these dis
cussions there developed Fact!
Forum with Dedman as presiden
and Hunt as chief financial hacker
Il The daughters, Margaret (Mrs