Naya Jones: This is Naya Jones, and it is September 12th. We are at the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement with Hoover Alexander and Mr. Roy Lee Nunn. Mr. Nunn, can you please state your full name, your birth date, where you were born, and your age. Roy Lee Nunn: My name is Roy Lee Nunn. I was born in Travis County, in Manor, June the 20th, 1927. NJ: Thank you, Mr. Nunn. Can you tell us - just to start - can you tell us something about growing up in Manor, where you grew up. And how you came to Austin. Just to give us some context. RLN: I went to Manor High School. Early in age, I thought I'd venture out and come to Austin. I came to Austin and got a job working at the Texan Grill. My first job. Before I came to Austin, I had a job in Manor pressin' clothes. I worked in the cleaners. Then I came to Austin. I worked at a place called Texan Grill - I worked in a place called the Texan Grill, across from the University of Texas. That would be my first job. Later on in life, I ended up at the Nighthawk. That was the early 50s. And I saw a lot of changes at the Nighthawk. We didn't have any steaks at that time. We was a hamburger operation. The first order of dinner we had was the Spanish Delight. Then later on we put on the Chicken Pot Pie. Then later on, up in the late-early 60s, we put on a lot of plate lunches. Then we became a steak house. Some of the best steaks in Texas. We shipped 'em out to President Lyndon B. Johnson's ranch. We had a - had a steak - a ground steak, chopped steak made like the map of Texas we send to Lyndon Johnson, President Lyndon Johnson's ranch. I had the occasion of goin' up there several times. But President Kennedy was up there. He was vice president then. I never did go after he was president. But when he was vice president, I went up there several times. I enjoyed it. Plenty security was up there. I had on my white uniform, white shoes, hat, everything, but the state troopers stop me at the gate. They had to radio up there, to make sure [laughing] I was the right man. I had plenty of meat with me, plenty of sirloin steaks to carry up there, but they wouldn't take my word for it. They wanted to see - wanted to know for themselves - was I the right man goin' up there, with him bein' the vice president of the United States. NJ: And what can you tell me - tell me more about your experience working at the Nighthawk. Like, what was your work position? When you started, when you ended, all of that good stuff. RLN: When I first started at Nighthawk, I was a busboy. I washed pots. I bussed dishes. I worked myself up to Head Chef there. I was the Head Chef there for many years. I become the Head Chef I guess in the early 60s. I worked there until around 79. I worked all the new Nighthawk for the last 15-18 years. The one in Houston, the one in San Antonio, the meat plant, beginning with Frisco Shop on Brendan Road. Then, later on, over - one out in - San Antonio - I forget the name of it. Then the one up in Houston, 8816 Westheimer. Then I was troubleshooter, goin' to one - both of 'em in San Antonio then in Houston. All the Nighthawks. I had the privilege of workin' at all the Nighthawks when they had a problem. I'd go from Nighthawk to Nighthawk. [Pause] RLN: I experienced a lot of good times at the Nighthawk as well, so, as bad times. I put out a lot of fires. I put out a lot of fires. The Nighthawk caught fire at least five times. I put it out on the roof, exhaust fan. [Pause]. HA: Talk about some of your memories of Mr. Aitken - of Harry Aitken. We wanna try to get a feel for the man and how [not audible]. RLN: Mr. Aitken was a very, very, very close workin' gentleman. He worked close with everybody-all of his employees, especially me. I had the occasion of meetin' him once, he wanted me to come to his house. One Thursday morning, I talked to me, and he asked me not to leave 'em. "Stay with me". He asked me that repeatedly, at least three times. I think he wanted - he talked like he wanted me to go at a manager position. But I never did let on with that. He asked me at least three times, please stay with him, don't leave him. He had a lot of young managers around there then, and things weren't runnin' too smooth - and they were just all - it was dog eat dog. [Laugh]. But, he was a fair man. He was a very fair man, he was. If he tell you somethin' you could take it to the bank. If you had a problem, he would solve it immediately. HA: [Not audible] RLN: Well, he integrated the Nighthawk. He had a meeting once - well, he had several meetings. The first one he had 32 businessmen across the City of Austin to come. At 336 South Congress, in the Number One building. And later on he had one at Number Two. He made it crystal clear, anyone who couldn't accept it, the front door was open. We had a couple of people to walk out. [Laugh]. A c- I think it was - a - a man and his wife. I won't call the name, but they walked out. He showed 'em the door, 'cause they couldn't accept it. Everything else went real smooth. He didn't have any other problems that I know of. HA: [Not audible] RLN: No, he wasn't mayor at that time. I'm tryin' to think - those days are gettin' away from me. I think he was national president of the restaurant association, I believe in 61. That was the day my - that was the year my daughter was born. I never will forget that. [Laugh]. My chest was big as this building. [Laugh] HA: [Not audible] RLN: I-I'm sure. Let me see. He used to go - he used to go - go to Washington every Wednesday, I think it was Texan Day. Yeah, he used to go to Washington every Wednesday. That's when Lyndon Johnson was president. I remember that. I recall that - it was yesterday. And, secret service mens, they all wanted to know why he bought meat from Austin. He had all them fat cows himself. But he send them off to (where). He bought meat from the Nighthawk. We had special cuts for him, and him only. Like the Map of Texas and the strip sirloins. HA: [Not audible] RLN: Oh, yes. I - I didn't - I wasn't a butcher. But I used to ground up - we used to ground up our own meat. We used to ground up our own meat. 'Cause we got the meat from Mastingale. He sold the most of his cows. He didn't use a whole lot of his cows at his place. The oldest cows he used at his place was that prized cattle he used to buy. You know prized cattle? He used that in operation, but other that we'd buy most of our meat from Mastingale back in the day. I used to ground and make it. I also - I also operated the frozen food. At first - at first, that was four. I made four frozen dinners. Then, I made eight. Sixteen, then twenty-four. Frozen. We didn't have a blast freezer at that time. We was tryin' it out. So I got a state show down at the coliseum, and some ladies you might want to know that this frozen dinner is half-way around the world. And we made a lot of 'em. A lot of 'em. You'd find them in the groceries stores and have that chopped steak. With that famous steak sauce [laughing]. HA: [Not audible] RLN: No, but I'm the man that started it. [Laugh] I played a part in it. I cooked the first steaks. Like I said. Four, eight, sixteen, twenty-four, at a time. Put them in our freezer down there. Later on they got a blast freezer, to freeze 'em real quick, you know. That was before we had the meat plant out there. HA: [Not audible]
