Bud Adams, American businessman (b. 1923)
Kenneth Stanley "Bud" Adams, Jr. (January 3, 1923 – October 21, 2013) was an American businessman who was the founder and owner of the Tennessee Titans, a National Football League franchise. A member of the Cherokee Nation who originally made his fortune in the petroleum business, Adams was chairman and CEO of Adams Resources & Energy Inc., a wholesale supplier of oil and natural gas. He was instrumental in the founding and establishment of the former American Football League. Adams became a charter AFL owner with the establishment of the current Titans franchise, which was originally known as the Houston Oilers. He was the senior owner (by time) with his team in the National Football League, a few months ahead of Buffalo Bills' owner Ralph Wilson. Adams also was one of the owners of the Houston Mavericks of the American Basketball Association and the owner of the second Nashville Kats franchise of the Arena Football League. He was elected to the American Football League Hall of Fame, an online site, but as of 2018 is not a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, despite several nominations and an ongoing effort to make him such.
Adams had many other business interests in the Houston area, including owning several Lincoln-Mercury automobile franchises.