Ben Love

"Houston is a city known for powerful business leaders, and Ben Love towers as one of the most influential. Love served as CEO of Texas Commerce Bancshares from 1972 through 1982, during the growth and collapse of the Texas banking industry, and he had an inside view of these two historic events. His story, told here in detail for the first time, provides an insightful perspective on the Texas banking industry's evolution after World War II, its decline, and its subsequent recovery. It also offers a glimpse into the kind of character that creates men of power." "Love grew up with his family during the Great Depression. Their farm outside Paris, Texas, taught him hard lessons about opportunity and financial security - lessons that would serve him well in the future. After the United States's entry into war in 1941, Love flew Eighth Air Force B-17 combat missions over Europe, then settled in Houston, business degree in hand, in the late 1940s." "He entered the world of banking as a member of the board of directors for River Oaks Bank & Trust. Houston was rapidly growing into a metropolis, and he accepted an offer to leave River Oaks to join Texas Commerce Bank (TCB) in 1967. As president of Texas Commerce Bank in 1969 and CEO in 1972-89, Love cultivated change from single banks to holding companies, garnering a national reputation for his banking organization. In 1984, Texas Commerce ranked twenty-first among the largest banks in the country." "Under his competent management, TCB was the only "Big Five" Texas bank to survive the economic downturn. One reason for its continued success lies with Love's successful merger in 1987 with Chemical Bank of New York, now J.P. Morgan Chase. When he retired at the close of the decade, he turned his formidable energy to full-time civic and humanitarian work."--Jacket.