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Kingfish U: Huey Long and LSU
No political leader is more closely identified with Louisiana State University than the flamboyant governor and U.S. senator Huey P. Long, who devoted his last years to turning a small, undistinguished state school into an academic and football powerhouse. From 1931, when Long declared himself the “official thief” for LSU, to his death in 1935, the school’s budget mushroomed, its physical plant burgeoned, its faculty flourished, and its enrollment tripled.
Along with improving LSU’s academic reputation, Long believed the school’s football program and band were crucial to its success. Taking an intense interest in the team, Long delivered pregame and halftime pep talks, devised plays, stalked the sidelines during games, and fired two coaches. He poured money into a larger, flashier band, supervised the hiring of two directors, and, with the second one, wrote a new fight song, “Touchdown for LSU.”
While he rarely meddled in academic affairs, Long insisted that no faculty member criticize him publicly. When students or faculty from “his school” opposed him, retribution was swift. Long’s support for LSU did not come without consequences. His unrelenting involvement almost cost the university its accreditation. And after his death, several of his allies—including his handpicked university president—went to prison in a scandal that almost destroyed LSU.
Rollicking and revealing, Robert Mann’s Kingfish U is the definitive story of Long’s embrace of LSU.
Along with improving LSU’s academic reputation, Long believed the school’s football program and band were crucial to its success. Taking an intense interest in the team, Long delivered pregame and halftime pep talks, devised plays, stalked the sidelines during games, and fired two coaches. He poured money into a larger, flashier band, supervised the hiring of two directors, and, with the second one, wrote a new fight song, “Touchdown for LSU.”
While he rarely meddled in academic affairs, Long insisted that no faculty member criticize him publicly. When students or faculty from “his school” opposed him, retribution was swift. Long’s support for LSU did not come without consequences. His unrelenting involvement almost cost the university its accreditation. And after his death, several of his allies—including his handpicked university president—went to prison in a scandal that almost destroyed LSU.
Rollicking and revealing, Robert Mann’s Kingfish U is the definitive story of Long’s embrace of LSU.
- GenresHistory
467 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 7, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 22, 2023
The great Robert Mann is a historian of the highest degree, and his experience in Louisiana and LSU in particular gave him an added layer of credibility when documenting the highs and lows of the Long era. It’s hard to call a nonfiction book “perfect,” but this was pretty darn close.
Mann made the case, through detailed research, that Huey Long used LSU as a pet project and vehicle to gain favorable, nonpolitical press coverage to launch a future presidential run. The negatives resulted in scandal, embarrassment and a university totally beholden to one authoritarian leader. The positives are still seen on campus today, and in a recent interview I did with Mann, he talked about how Long would likely be very proud of what’s developed at his beloved university (though disappointed that several areas have fallen into disrepair). Just like with anything else in the Long realm, it’s tough to call this period “good” or “bad.” Instead, it really just “was.” It happened, and the impact was total and long-lasting.
Mann’s stories about the Reveille Seven student expulsions following Long’s paper censorship and the Senator’s attempt to put an LSU football player in the legislature stood out to me, and any of the passages that talked about the Tigers’ Shreveport games against Arkansas were notable. I certainly bored my girlfriend by recounting many of the highlights. Bob Mann, you wrote a good one!
Mann made the case, through detailed research, that Huey Long used LSU as a pet project and vehicle to gain favorable, nonpolitical press coverage to launch a future presidential run. The negatives resulted in scandal, embarrassment and a university totally beholden to one authoritarian leader. The positives are still seen on campus today, and in a recent interview I did with Mann, he talked about how Long would likely be very proud of what’s developed at his beloved university (though disappointed that several areas have fallen into disrepair). Just like with anything else in the Long realm, it’s tough to call this period “good” or “bad.” Instead, it really just “was.” It happened, and the impact was total and long-lasting.
Mann’s stories about the Reveille Seven student expulsions following Long’s paper censorship and the Senator’s attempt to put an LSU football player in the legislature stood out to me, and any of the passages that talked about the Tigers’ Shreveport games against Arkansas were notable. I certainly bored my girlfriend by recounting many of the highlights. Bob Mann, you wrote a good one!
August 31, 2025
The book reads like a mix between a work of fiction (well-written, distinct plot, great turns of phrase) and a scholastic work (full footnotes, and extensive end notes/sources). I thoroughly enjoyed it, and learned a great deal.
Mann is an excellent writer. The bo0k starts with describing Huey Long's rise to power as Governor. (It alone is a fascinating story!) It follows with the story of Huey's relocation of LSU to its current site and all of the political maneuvering surrounding that. Mann follows the full track of the interactions of the Governor with the University. Long was subsequently elected Senator, and that did not limit his energetic activity with the University. There are some great stories about the role he took with the football team. (And the exceedingly strong focus on football continues to the present.) He was also committed to the band and used it to increase his visibility and political popularity. I found the concluding chapter, "Neither Saint Nor Devil," particularly compelling.
Mann is still listed on the LSU site as Professor Emeritus in the Manship School of Mass Communication https://www.lsu.edu/manship/people/fa.... You can purchase copies of his books on his web site: https://www.robertmannbooks.com and his SubStack account at https://substack.com/@robertmann.
Mann is an excellent writer. The bo0k starts with describing Huey Long's rise to power as Governor. (It alone is a fascinating story!) It follows with the story of Huey's relocation of LSU to its current site and all of the political maneuvering surrounding that. Mann follows the full track of the interactions of the Governor with the University. Long was subsequently elected Senator, and that did not limit his energetic activity with the University. There are some great stories about the role he took with the football team. (And the exceedingly strong focus on football continues to the present.) He was also committed to the band and used it to increase his visibility and political popularity. I found the concluding chapter, "Neither Saint Nor Devil," particularly compelling.
Mann is still listed on the LSU site as Professor Emeritus in the Manship School of Mass Communication https://www.lsu.edu/manship/people/fa.... You can purchase copies of his books on his web site: https://www.robertmannbooks.com and his SubStack account at https://substack.com/@robertmann.
January 16, 2024
Bob Mann has written a fascinating story of the building of LSU into a major university by Governor and later U.S. Senator Huey P. Long. A number of fine histories of Huey Long have been written, particularly the definitive classic by T. Harry Williams, but Mann has concentrated on Huey's involvement and obsession with LSU. As an LSU graduate I had a particular interest in this book and learned quite a bit about the development of the university and gained a good bit more knowledge about the mystical Huey Long. Mr. Mann has drawn a particularly well researched picture of this outrageous political fixture of Louisiana history, warts and all. Huey is a legendary figure in Louisiana and remains a controversial one to this day, but Mann sheds light on many of the myths and presents a factual display of the Governor/Senator's accomplishments as well as his failures. Huey did much good for both LSU and the state but his methods were not only questionable and often illegal. Anyone interested in Louisiana history needs to read this important book and should also read Mr. Mann's fine biography "Legacy to Power" about Huey's son, the late Senator Russel B. Long.
February 2, 2026
Huey Long gets much credit for making LSU a major, respected university in the 1930s. He also nearly destroyed it. In fact, the case is made that LSU actually benefited from his assassination, although it still had to endure the corruption of his remaining cronies.
Interesting reading this at a time when Governor Jeff Landry has gone after two LSU professors for criticizing Donald Trump and himself, and made a public fool of himself by meddling in the Athletic Department. We never learn, do we?
Interesting reading this at a time when Governor Jeff Landry has gone after two LSU professors for criticizing Donald Trump and himself, and made a public fool of himself by meddling in the Athletic Department. We never learn, do we?
November 30, 2023
Huey Long and LSU are intertwined like kudzu. One of Louisiana’s best political commentators and researchers has sorted out what they mean since the Kingfish adopted the school and meddled with it so much LSU might have disappeared. This is a long story arc since the 1920s to today and Mann is the right storyteller.
September 19, 2024
Mann gives a great narrative exploration of the expansion of LSU in the 30's under the watch of Louisiana's notorious governor/senator. As an alum and current staff member, this was a fantastic read and a must for anyone like me who always wondered who those people are with their names on all the buildings.
February 16, 2024
Just great reporting on a very transitional time in Louisiana and LSU.
Bob, don't quit writing books.
Bob, don't quit writing books.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews