Gerald Mann

Who was Gerald Mann?

Gerald Mann was an American football player and the attorney general of Texas from 1939 to 1944.

Mann studied at Southern Methodist University, where he was twice named to all-conference football teams and was nicknamed the "Little Red Arrow." He subsequently worked his way through Harvard Law School: first with a job at a garment factory, later as a minister at a Congregationalist church.

After returning to Texas, Mann worked as an assistant attorney general under James Allred. Mann was a progressive and a strong supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was elected attorney general of Texas in 1938, and held that post until 1943. He replaced the political hacks in the office with talented and dedicated lawyers. Mann aggressively pursued an agenda of trust-busting.

Mann ran for the U.S. Senate in the 1941 special election, called after the death of Senator Morris Sheppard. His opponents included Lyndon B. Johnson, then a member of the United States Congress, and Governor Pappy O'Daniel, who won the seat.

Mann died in 1990.