Longhorn Ballroom reopens as a revamped venue, hosting music once again, under Kessler Theater owner Edwin Cabaniss’ management, according to a Dallas Morning News article. They say,
““This is the Carnegie Hall of Western swing,” Ray Benson, lead singer of Asleep At The Wheel, told the crowd gathered for the grand reopening of Dallas’ Longhorn Ballroom Thursday night, shortly before counting off yet another Bob Wills song.
The venue has had several different lives since it first opened as Bob Wills’ Ranch House in 1950. Thursday marked the beginning of a new one. The Longhorn Ballroom is hosting music once again as a completely revamped venue under the management of Kessler Theater owner Edwin Cabaniss.”
In 1950, the Longhorn was named Bob Wills Ranch House for the ‘King of Texas Swing.’ It became a renowned music venue under Dewey and Doug Groom’s management, according to a Kera News article which reports,
“When the Longhorn opened in 1950, it was called the Bob Wills Ranch House because Dallas real estate millionaire O. L. Nelms built it for his friend — Bob Wills, the ‘King of Texas Swing.’
But by the ’60s, Wills’ financial and tax troubles made him sell the place. Eventually, country singer ‘Dewey’ Groom and his son Doug ran the Longhorn for nearly 30 years, turning it into a fabled music venue.”
Edwin Cabaniss, who manages the Longhorn Ballroom, plans to reopen the venue in phases, similar to how he reopened the Kessler Theater. Alongside the theater are a few other stores, such as a nail salon and massage therapist.
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