In a city known for its powerful business leaders, Ben Love towers as one of the most influential. Serving as CEO of Texas Commerce Bancshares in the 1980s, during the collapse of the Texas banking industry, Love had an inside view of the debacle. His story, told here in detail for the first time, provides an insightful perspective on the Texas banking industry's evolution after World War II, its decline, and its subsequent recovery. It also offers a glimpse into of the kind of character that creates men of power. Love grew up with his family during the Great Depression. Their farm outside Paris, Texas, taught him hard lessons about opportunity and financial security-lessons that would serve him well in the future. After America's entry into war in 1941, Love flew Eighth Air Force B-17 combat missions over Europe, then settled in Houston in the late 1940s. His entrance into the world of banking began as a member of the board of directors for River Oaks Bank & Trust. He accepted an offer to leave River Oaks to join Texas Commerce Bank (TCB) in 1967. Appointed president of TCB in 1969 and CEO from 1972 to 1989, Love cultivated change from single banks to holding companies, garnering a national reputation for his banking organization. Under his competent management, TCB was the only "Big Five" Texas bank to survive the economic down-turn. One reason for its continued success lies with Love's successful merger in 1987 with the Chemical Bank of New York, now J. P. Morgan Chase. When he retired at the close of the decade, Love turned his formidable energies to full-time civic and humanitarian work. Ben F. Love's inspiring memoir is one of only a few available in the literature on banking andfinance. Not only does it reveal an inside look at the evolution of banking in Texas, but it will also serve as an instructional guide to future business leaders and managers. The final chapters summarizes experiences and lessons learned in eighty years of a successful and productive life.