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{{Infobox person​

{{Infobox person

|name=John Alston "Jack" Crichton​<br>

| name=John Alston "Jack" Crichton​<br>

(Texas oil and natural gas industrialist)

(Texas oil and natural gas industrialist)

|birth_date=October 16, 1916​

|birth_date=October 16, 1916​

In 1990, Crichton (pronounced CRAY TON) wrote in an opinion piece for ''The Dallas Morning News'' that he first realized the vastness of the Middle Eastern oil reserves prior to 1950. He and a coworker determined, he said, that the Burgan Field in [[Kuwait]], for example, held ten billion barrels of crude oil. In 1951, he helped to establish San Juan Oil Company in Dallas, where he became the vice president of operations. During the 1950s, he took a group of American businessmen to [[Yemen]] to search for oil. During his long career, he was the president of the Yemen Development Corporation and the Dorchester Gas Corporation, Crichton was also involved in the mining of [[copper]], [[zinc]], [[gold]], [[silver]], and [[nickel]] through his Arabian Shield Development Company.<ref name=dmn/>

In 1990, Crichton (pronounced CRAY TON) wrote in an opinion piece for ''The Dallas Morning News'' that he first realized the vastness of the Middle Eastern oil reserves prior to 1950. He and a coworker determined, he said, that the Burgan Field in [[Kuwait]], for example, held ten billion barrels of crude oil. In 1951, he helped to establish San Juan Oil Company in Dallas, where he became the vice president of operations. During the 1950s, he took a group of American businessmen to [[Yemen]] to search for oil. During his long career, he was the president of the Yemen Development Corporation and the Dorchester Gas Corporation, Crichton was also involved in the mining of [[copper]], [[zinc]], [[gold]], [[silver]], and [[nickel]] through his Arabian Shield Development Company.<ref name=dmn/>

==Background==​

==Background==

Crichton was born on a [[cotton]] plantation in the community of Crichton near Coushatta in Red River Parish in northwestern  [[Louisiana]]. He graduated in 1933 from Clifton Ellis Byrd High School]] in [[Shreveport]] and then enrolled at [[Texas A&M University]] in [[College Station, Texas|College Station]]. He played [[tennis]], [[basketball]], and ran cross country track. His classmates included future industrialist H. R. "Bum" Bright and Earle Cabell] later a [[mayor]] of Dallas, who unseated veteran Republican [[U.S. Representative]] Republican Bruce Reynolds Alger in 1964 landslide for [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. At TAMU, Crichton wrote an award-winning essay, "The Political Career of [[Huey Long|Huey P. Long]]".<ref name=spartacus>{{cite web|url=http://spartacus-educational.com/MDcrichton.htm|title=Jack Alston Crichton|publisher=spartacus-educational.com|accessdate=October 9, 2015}}</ref>  Crichton served TAMU as the president of the Lettermen's Association and chairman of the Development Foundation. He also served on the board of the Association of Former Students from 1965 to 1968, was the association president in 1967, and in 1983 was named a "Distinguished Alumnus."<ref name=tamu>"Association past president Jack Crichton  '37 passes away, Aggienetwork.com, accessed April 8, 2010; no longer on-line.}}</ref> He later obtained a [[Master of Science]] degree from the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] in [[Boston]], [[Massachusetts]], at which he was affiliated with Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.<ref name=dmn/>

 

Crichton was born on a [[cotton]] plantation in the community of Crichton near Coushatta in Red River Parish in northwestern  [[Louisiana]]. He graduated in 1933 from Clifton Ellis Byrd High School in [[Shreveport]] and then enrolled at [[Texas A&M University]] in [[College Station, Texas|College Station]]. He played [[tennis]], [[basketball]], and ran cross country track. His classmates included future industrialist H. R. "Bum" Bright and Earle Cabell] later a [[mayor]] of Dallas, who unseated veteran Republican [[U.S. Representative]] Republican Bruce Reynolds Alger (1918-2015) in the 1964 landslide for [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. At TAMU, Crichton wrote an award-winning essay, "The Political Career of [[Huey Long|Huey P. Long]]".<ref name=spartacus>{{cite web|url=http://spartacus-educational.com/MDcrichton.htm|title=Jack Alston Crichton|publisher=spartacus-educational.com|accessdate=October 9, 2015}}</ref>  Crichton served TAMU as the president of the Lettermen's Association and chairman of the Development Foundation. He also served on the board of the Association of Former Students from 1965 to 1968, was the association president in 1967, and in 1983 was named a "Distinguished Alumnus."<ref name=tamu>"Association past president Jack Crichton  '37 passes away, Aggienetwork.com, accessed April 8, 2010; no longer on-line.}}</ref> He later obtained a [[Master of Science]] degree from the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] in [[Boston]], [[Massachusetts]], at which he was affiliated with Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.<ref name=dmn/>

==Military==

==Military==

While Crichton ran for governor, [[George Herbert Walker Bush]], a Massachusetts native, sought the [[U.S. Senate]] seat held by the [[liberal]] Democrat [[Ralph Yarborough]] of [[Austin]]. Crichton was unopposed for his nomination, but Bush faced a primary fight with the 1962 Republican gubernatorial nominee, Jack M. Cox (1921-1990) of Houston. Crichton and Bush spoke from some of the same podiums that year. Crichton traveled {55,000 miles in the campaign, addressed audiences in 85 cities and towns, and made 275 speeches. At the 1964 [[Republican National Convention]] in [[San Francisco]] [[California]], he was elected chairman of the Permanent Organization Committee and gave the report of that panel from the convention floor.<ref>Crichton, pp. 53-55.</ref>​

While Crichton ran for governor, [[George Herbert Walker Bush]], a Massachusetts native, sought the [[U.S. Senate]] seat held by the [[liberal]] Democrat [[Ralph Yarborough]] of [[Austin]]. Crichton was unopposed for his nomination, but Bush faced a primary fight with the 1962 Republican gubernatorial nominee, Jack M. Cox (1921-1990) of Houston. Crichton and Bush spoke from some of the same podiums that year. Crichton traveled {55,000 miles in the campaign, addressed audiences in 85 cities and towns, and made 275 speeches. At the 1964 [[Republican National Convention]] in [[San Francisco]] [[California]], he was elected chairman of the Permanent Organization Committee and gave the report of that panel from the convention floor.<ref>Crichton, pp. 53-55.</ref>​

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Crichton strongly supported the [[Barry Goldwater]] presidential candidacy: "In my opinion Goldwater would have made a great president. He would either have withdrawn our presence in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]] or gone whole hog to win it, instead of the piecemeal strategy of the [[Lyndon B. Johnson|Johnson]] administration that so hampered our military leaders as they in effect were not allowed to win the Vietnam conflict."<ref>Crichton, p. 48.</ref>​

Crichton strongly supported the [[Barry Goldwater]] presidential candidacy: "In my opinion Goldwater would have made a great president. He would either have withdrawn our presence in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]] or gone whole hog to win it, instead of the piecemeal strategy of the Johnson administration that so hampered our military leaders as they in effect were not allowed to win the Vietnam conflict."<ref>Crichton, p. 48.</ref>​

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In the campaign, Crichton focused on these points:<br>

In the campaign, Crichton focused on these points:<br>

*(13) ethics in state government.<ref>Crichton, p. 58.</ref>​

*(13) ethics in state government.<ref>Crichton, p. 58.</ref>​

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Crichton traveled to Junction, Texas, during the campaign to meet with former Democratic Governor Coke Robert Stevenson (1888-1975), the official loser by eighty-seven disputed votes in the 1948 runoff primary for the U.S. Senate against Lyndon Johnson. Stevenson had supported [[John Tower]] in Tower's unsuccessful 1960 senatorial general election against Johnson and was backing Goldwater in 1964 as well in the presidential contest. Stevenson told Crichton that the 1948 election "is an important part of American history, for it got Lyndon to the Senate, which he later controlled, and was a stepping stone to his becoming President. As for me, I was depressed for quite a while, but in retrospect it has allowed me to enjoy my ranch and my young daughter. With that, we had another bourbon and branch water, and I thanked him and departed."<ref>Crichton, pp. 35-37.</ref>​

During the campaign, Crichton traveled to Junction in Kimble County to meet with former Democratic Governor Coke Robert Stevenson (1888-1975), the official loser by eighty-seven disputed votes in the 1948 runoff primary for the U.S. Senate against Lyndon Johnson. Stevenson had supported [[John Tower]] in Tower's unsuccessful 1960 senatorial general election against Johnson and was backing Goldwater in 1964 as well in the presidential contest. Stevenson told Crichton that the 1948 election "is an important part of American history, for it got Lyndon to the Senate, which he later controlled, and was a stepping stone to his becoming President. As for me, I was depressed for quite a while, but in retrospect it has allowed me to enjoy my ranch and my young daughter. With that, we had another bourbon and branch water, and I thanked him and departed."<ref>Crichton, pp. 35-37.</ref>​

Though Crichton and Bush were both defeated, the latter ran a stronger race against Yarborough than Crichton managed against Connally. Yarborough and Connally were sharp intra-party rivals at the time. Final results showed Connally with 1,877,793 votes (73.8 percent) to Crichton's 661,675 (26 percent). Crichton did, however, outpoll the tally amassed by the next Republican candidate against Connally in 1966, Thomas Everton Kennerly, Sr. (1903–2000), of Houston, by more than 300,000 votes in a lower-turnout election.<ref>''Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections,'' Texas governorship.</ref> Kennerly ran unsuccessfully in 1964 for a seat on the [[Texas Supreme Court]]. ​

Though Crichton and Bush were both defeated, the latter ran a stronger race against Yarborough than Crichton managed against Connally. Yarborough and Connally were sharp intra-party rivals at the time. Final results showed Connally with 1,877,793 votes (73.8 percent) to Crichton's 661,675 (26 percent). Crichton did, however, outpoll the tally amassed by the next Republican candidate against Connally in 1966, Thomas Everton Kennerly, Sr. (1903–2000), of Houston, by more than 300,000 votes in a lower-turnout election.<ref>''Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections,'' Texas governorship.</ref> Kennerly ran unsuccessfully in 1964 for a seat on the [[Texas Supreme Court]]. ​