Kellam, C Curtis and N Mayo

Biography

Carolyn Kellam Curtis and Nita Louise Kellam Mayo are the daughters of the late Jesse (J.C.) Kellam who managed the Johnson broadcast affiliates in Austin for many years. A distinguished Texas State graduate, Mr. Kellam was chair of the Texas State University System Board of Regents.

Carolyn Curtis, a longtime Austin resident, retired as Associate Vice President of Development from the University of Texas and continues to be active as a community volunteer. Her service continues to connect her to the Johnson family as a founding member of the boards of the Committee for a More Beautiful Town Lake, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and UT Advisory Council for LBJWC.

Nita Louise Mayo and her husband, John B. Mayo were the first two students to receive Masters of Arts in Communication at the University of Texas’s new School of Communication in 1966. Following graduation, the Navy assigned the Mayo family to Connecticut, Massachusetts, Washington D.C., and San Diego. In 2000, the Mayos retired to Austin where they remain active with family, travel, and volunteer activities for Rotary International.

LBJ100 Oral History Project

The Kellam sisters recall their relationship with the Johnson family as an “inherited friendship;” their grandmother, Juliet Kellam, was a friend of the President’s mother, Rebekah Johnson.  The friendship continued through the generations -- Jesse Kellam became friends with Lyndon Johnson, and the sisters became friends with the Johnson sisters, and their respective children and grandchildren became friends.  

They talk about their Kellam family history, how Jesse and Lyndon reconnected after they had both graduated from SWT, and how Lyndon helped open doors for Jesse’s career – which led to jobs in the State Department of Education and the National Youth Commission as well as Austin radio station KTBC.  They recall many occasions spent with the Johnsons and how close the families were.