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TwiliteZone.com--“I’ve loved, I’ve laughed and cried. I’ve had my fill; my share of losing. And now, as tears subside, I find it all so amusing. To think I did all that; And may I say - not in a shy way, No, oh no not me, I did it my way.” The foregoing verse from Frank Sinatra’s theme song, I Did It My Way, is a fitting epitaph for Lloyd Clarence Alex Wells, aka “The Judge,” insofar as his good friend Gene Kilroy was right on target when he said, “Sinatra had his Rat Pack,” and Lloyd had his own pack from Houston,” during the Sept. 20, 2005 celebration of his long and exciting life at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, 3826 Wheeler Ave. Rev. Alan Watkins memorialized The Judge, following many tributes and reflections from sports luminaries e.g., David Lattin and Jerry Bonney, who consider Wells their surrogate father.
Lest we forget, Eddie Hall also considered Wells a surrogate father, after he bonded with him at the Julius C. Hester House’s Child Center and nurtured him to become one of the sweetest pure shooters that ever proudly wore Phillis Wheatley’s purple and white. Insofar as I knew The Judge longer than any of the other speakers, it was apropos for me to say that he was a unique and strong willed individual who knew how to get things done that most people would consider impossible. Without a doubt he had plenty of what he respected the most…”nuts and guts.” Truth is, Lloyd had an expectation of privilege, insofar as his wise father used his meager mail man salary to buy choice land in the Fifth Ward community, which is a fact that allowed him to raise his children like royalty in the ‘hood. For sure, their home on Solo Street was, indeed, located in a neighborhood where Da’ Big Nickel’s best and brightest lived in that bygone era. Ironically, Archie Wells appeared to be a very humble man, yet his brash, young son grew up to be one of the boldest Black men of his era. As fate would have it, an even bolder Black man, Herbert “TheBigBopper” Provost, took Lloyd under his wing, just as he would do young, talented people later in life. Provost, a bigger than life photographer (founded Provost & Associates that’s now operated by his lovely widow Georgia), greatly influenced Well’s life. Even so, it was The Judge’s insight into the human condition that ultimately served him so well. He not only loved people. He also understood what made them (men and/or women) tick. Consequently, he always had something to offer that he knew they wanted. Some of the events that The Judge organized (including my Bud Johnson Day retirement party at Club Was in 1985 Houston) were miraculous. The Judge pulled off so many amazing events, until the Kansas City Chief’s coach Hank Scram often referred to him as “Outta Sight.”
Ergo, suffice it to say that Lloyd knew how to throw the kind of party that everybody wanted to be invited to. Although he never smoked, or imbibed alcohol, throughout his well traveled and absolutely fantastic and fulfilling life, his legendary no holds barred parties became fodder for the NFL Hall of Famer Jim Brown’s autobiography. Sadly, that life came to an end on September 12, 2005, with his daughter, Melody, son, Stacey, and son-in-law, Albert, at his side. Stacey Wells, Archie Wells, Jr., Gene Kilroy, David Lattin, Bud Johnson, Ralph Cooper, Atty. Albert Ratliff, Tommy Hearns, Atty. Woodruff Adams, Atty. Jerry Bonney and Atty. Mark T. McDonald were honorary pallbearers for The Judge, who was born on March 2, 1924, to Archie and Daisy Wells in Houston, Texas. Lloyd grew up in the Fifth Ward where he was an active young boy at Atherton Elementary School. He attended high school in Brenham, Texas and graduated from Pickett High School.
Upon graduation from high school, he attended Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on an athletic scholarship. Lloyd was very patriotic and after only two years in college he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp. to fight in World War II. He was admired and respected by the officers and men and was a leader of the amphibious landing group. He was soon made the rank of sergeant. After this enlistment, Lloyd returned to Houston where he enrolled at Houston College for Negroes (now Texas Southern University). There he continued to display his talents in the area of sports. He was the first TSU athlete to win three letters in football, basketball and track. In 1950, shortly after the Korean War began, Lloyd decided to serve his country again.
He re-enlisted and served with distinction with the First Marine Division throughout Korea's bloody peninsula. It was during this period that Lloyd was injured near the Chosin Reservoir and was awarded a Purple Heart. His hearing was impaired for the rest of his life. He was the commissioner of one of the semipro football leagues that was organized by Hank Stram, the legendary coach of the Kansas City Chiefs. Lloyd has been featured in Sports Illustrated (1983) and many other publications for his work with the NFL and boxing. After his Kansas City days, Lloyd worked for Muhammad Ali for 15 years. In the 1966 television movie Muhammad Ali: The Whole Story and in the 1977 movie The Greatest, Lloyd played himself as one of Muhammad Ali's photographers. Lloyd also worked with boxers like Thomas Hearns, George Foreman & Mustafa Muhammad.
In 1993 the Texas Legislative Black Caucus honored him with the Outstanding Texan Award in Sport. In 2003, Lloyd was inducted into the African American-Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame. Lloyd is survived by his son Stacey, daughters Melody Ratliff, Erica Davis, Karen Wells, and Allyson Smith, eight grandchildren, Nicole Elmore-Sparks, Pilar Elmore, Elizabeth Satchell, Ashelee Wells, Kristen Bacon, Angelle Bacon, Kara Smith, Alana Smith and a great grandson, Gabriel Satchell. Lloyd is also survived by his sister, Thelma Wells Adams, and his brother, Archie Jr. nieces and nephew Melba Adams, Annette Adams, and Woodruff Adams. He leaves to mourn his loss his very special friends Gene Kilroy, Jerry Bonney, David Lattin and Mark McDonald. We will all miss "The Judge."