Changes

​Kent Courtney, Jr.<br>

​Kent Courtney, Jr.<br>

Parents:<br>

Parents:<br>

Joseph Frank and Zella Edana Smith Courtney ​

Joseph Frank and Zella Edana Smith Courtney<br>

| party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]-turned-States' Rights Party  (1960)    ​

| party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]-turned-States' Rights Party  (1960)    ​

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In that same election, Ned O'Neal Touchstone (1926-1988), a [[Shreveport]]/[[Bossier City]] bookstore owner and figure in the "Radical Right," challenged the second-term bid of Louisiana Education Superintendent [[Bill Dodd]].<ref>''[[Shreveport Journal]],'' November 6, 1967, p. 1.</ref> a major figure in the Democratic establishment at that time.​

In that same election, Ned O'Neal Touchstone (1926-1988), a [[Shreveport]]/[[Bossier City]] bookstore owner and figure in the "Radical Right," challenged the second-term bid of Louisiana Education Superintendent [[Bill Dodd]].<ref>''[[Shreveport Journal]],'' November 6, 1967, p. 1.</ref> a major figure in the Democratic establishment at that time.​

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==The Alexandria years==​

==The later years==​

Sometimes prior to 1973, Courtney relocated to [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]] to serve as an aide to Democrat-turned-Republican Mayor [[Ed Karst]]. Though Karst was originally from New Orleans and like Courtney attended Tulane, records do not clearly reveal how the two became politically connected. Karst vacated the mayoral office in June 1973 as [[John K. Snyder]] began the first of his two nonconsecutive terms in the office. As mayor, Karst had not been particularly known for conservative policy issues. Karst later left the GOP; he first returned to the Democratic Party, then he became an Independent.

Sometimes prior to 1973, Courtney relocated to [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]] to serve as an aide to Democrat-turned-Republican Mayor [[Ed Karst]]. Though Karst was originally from New Orleans and like Courtney attended Tulane, records do not clearly reveal how the two became politically connected. Karst vacated the mayoral office in June 1973 as [[John K. Snyder]] began the first of his two nonconsecutive terms in the office. As mayor, Karst had not been particularly known for conservative policy issues. Karst later left the GOP; he first returned to the Democratic Party, then he became an Independent.

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Kent Courtney surfaced again in 1976, when, running as an  independent in the general election, he challenged the reelection of Democratic [[U.S. Representative]] Gillis William Long (1922-1985) of Alexandria, who represented the since disbanded 8th congressional district. A third-party conservative, Dr. Samuel  Ralph "S. R." Abramson (1917-1997 ) of Marksville in Avoyelles Parish, had challenged Long four years earlier, but Long prevailed in a three-way race with 68.6 percent of the ballots cast. In 1976, Courtney polled  6,526 votes, or 5.8 percent against Long, more than 11,000 votes fewer than Abramson had received in 1972. No Republican filed for the 1976 congressional race in the 8th district<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 7, 1972 and November 2, 1976.</ref>

Kent Courtney surfaced again in 1976, when, running as an  independent in the general election, he challenged the reelection of Democratic [[U.S. Representative]] Gillis William Long (1922-1985) of Alexandria, who represented the since disbanded 8th congressional district. A third-party conservative, Dr. Samuel  Ralph "S. R." Abramson (1917-1997 ) of Marksville in Avoyelles Parish, had challenged Long four years earlier, but Long prevailed in a three-way race with 68.6 percent of the ballots cast. In 1976, Courtney polled  6,526 votes, or 5.8 percent against Long, more than 11,000 votes fewer than Abramson had received in 1972. No Republican filed for the 1976 congressional race in the 8th district<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 7, 1972 and November 2, 1976.</ref>

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The Courtneys had a son, Kent, Jr. (born June 12, 1953), a multi-media producer in New Orleans and a Democrat who formerly resided in [[Pennsylvania]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mylife.com/kent-courtney/schoolmusic|title=Kent Courtney|publisher=Mylife.com|accessdate=August 15, 2019}}</ref> In the early 1970s, the Courtneys divorced. Phoebe relocated to Littleton in Arapahoe County, [[Colorado]], where she continued to publish "Tax Fax" pamphlets that the couple had begun years earlier. She also authored ''Beware Metro and Regional Government!'' (1973) and ''Gun Control Means People Control'' (1974).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL634785A/Phoebe_Courtney|title=Phoebe Courtney|publisher=Openlibrary.org|accessdate=April 15, 2019}}</ref>​ She is interred at Littleton Cemetery; she was a few months older than her husband and outlived him by a year. Courtney spent his last years in Bunkie, a small city in Avoyelles Parish, and was married to the former Juanita Overbey (born 1928), who had formerly resided in St. Marys, Georgia, and Broussard in [[Lafayette]] Parish. Kent Courtney is interred at Bayou Rouge Baptist Cemetery in Evergreen in Avoyelles Parish, but is unclear if were a [[Baptist]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=60525&h=119702044&tid=&pid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=EOs259&_phstart=successSource|title=Kent Harbinson Courtney|publisher=Ancestry.com|accessdate=August 15, 2019}}</ref> ​

The Courtneys had a son, Kent, Jr. (born June 12, 1953), a multi-media producer in New Orleans and a Democrat who formerly resided in [[Pennsylvania]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mylife.com/kent-courtney/schoolmusic|title=Kent Courtney|publisher=Mylife.com|accessdate=August 15, 2019}}</ref> In the early 1970s, the Courtneys divorced. Phoebe relocated to Littleton in Arapahoe County, [[Colorado]], where she continued to publish "Tax Fax" pamphlets, which excoriate the high cost of government and the impact on declining purchasing power. She authored ''Beware Metro and Regional Government!'' (1973) and ''Gun Control Means People Control'' (1974).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL634785A/Phoebe_Courtney|title=Phoebe Courtney|publisher=Openlibrary.org|accessdate=April 15, 2019}}</ref>​ She is interred at Littleton Cemetery; she was a few months older than her husband and outlived him by a year.

 

Courtney spent his last years in Bunkie, a small city in Avoyelles Parish. He was married to the former Juanita Overbey (born 1928), who had formerly resided in St. Marys, Georgia, and Broussard in [[Lafayette]] Parish. Kent Courtney is interred at Bayou Rouge Baptist Cemetery in Evergreen in Avoyelles Parish, but is unclear whether he was a [[Baptist]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=60525&h=119702044&tid=&pid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=EOs259&_phstart=successSource|title=Kent Harbinson Courtney|publisher=Ancestry.com|accessdate=August 15, 2019}}</ref>

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation did not investigate the Courtneys, but Director [[J. Edgar Hoover]] referred to them in a reply to an inquiry as "known rabble rousers and hate mongers."<ref>[[​FBI]] file: HQ 94-57456,#6 (October 24, 1962).</ref>

The Federal Bureau of Investigation did not investigate the Courtneys, but Director [[J. Edgar Hoover]] referred to them in a reply to an inquiry as "known rabble rousers and hate mongers."<ref>[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] file: HQ 94-57456,#6 (October 24, 1962).</ref>

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==References==​

==References==​

==Other sources==

==Other sources==

*''[[Daily Oklahoman|The Oklahoma City Daily Oklahoman]],'' June 8, 1962.​

*''[[The Oklahoman]],'' June 8, 1962.​

*''[[Time (magazine)|Time]],'' December 8, 1961.​

*''[[Time (magazine)|Time]],'' December 8, 1961.​

*Conservative Society of America newsletter, September 24, 1966.​

*Conservative Society of America newsletter, September 24, 1966.​