TYLER, Texas — Bobby Joe Manziel Jr., owner of the entertainment venue The Oil Palace, has died.
The Oil Palace announced Manziel's passing on Thursday. He was 83.
"Our hearts are hurting," The Oil Palace stated. "RIP Bobby Joe Manziel. The Manziel family thanks everyone for their outpouring of love and ask for continued respect and privacy as they sort through this tremendous loss."
The Oil Palace was the vision of Manziel Jr.'s father, Bobby Joe Manziel Sr., a boxer who immigrated to East Texas from Lebanon.
Manziel Sr., along with his sparring partner Jack Dempsey, set their sights on opening a sports venue in the Pineywoods.
"Work began in 1955 on the huge 65,000-square-foot auditorium on 50 acres of land fronting Highway 64 east of Tyler," The Oil Palace website states. "The ambitious plans called for making it one of the largest air-conditioned sports venues in the United States. It was to have 20,000 seats surrounding a sunken arena. Some reports at the time put the price tag at over $3 million."
The following year, Manziel Sr. passed away and in 1982 Manziel Jr. took over plans to open the venue.
"The Oil Palace opened on Oct. 27, 1983," their website states. "Its first events were the East Texas Oil and Gas Show and a concert by country music star Barbara Mandrell, who performed before a packed house."
Other acts who have performed at the East Texas entertainment center include:
- Willie Nelson
- Run DMC
- Tom Jones
- ZZ Top
- Wayne Newton
- Garth Brooks
- Boyz II Men
- Chris Tomlin
- George Joes
- Charlie Daniels
Services for Manziel Jr. are pending at this time.