Bohumil Makovsky

Bohumil Makovsky was a band director and head of the Department of Music at Oklahoma AampM College from 1915 to 1945. He is considered the Guiding Spirit of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national fraternity for college band members. Makovsky was well known for his uncrushed bowtie, early morning band rehearsals, and a pipe in the shape of a saxophone.

Bohumil Makovsky represented a fulfillment of the American Dream. He was born on September 23, 1878 in Frantiky, Bohemia to a Czech speaking family of Vaclav and Anna Hladik Makovsky. Bohs father died before Boh was born, his mother when he was 12. He had little formal education, and was trained in clarinet and violin by his uncle, Tomas Makovsky, who had once taught a royal family in Russia. Boh continued living with his older brother on the family estate for anotheryears after his mothers death. Then, in 1895, his older sister, Anne Brdicka, paid his passage to the United States, where she and her husband had settled in Clarkson, Nebraska. He got a job rolling cigars in a local shop. A short time later, he joined a travelling wagon show that needed a clarinet player, and began his work as a professional musician.

Source: Wikipedia