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Mon Feb 02, 2009 9:36 pm EST

Is Hall of Famer Bob Hayes' 'sister' a fraud?

By Chris Chase

At a news conference honoring the newest inductees of the Pro Football Hall of Fame this weekend, a woman named Lucille Hester spoke on behalf of her late brother Bob Hayes. The former Dallas Cowboys receiver (and world's fastest man) was voted into the Hall on Saturday after a three-decade wait. Hester read a thank-you letter to the assembled media that she said was written by her brother in 1999, three years before his passing.

But now there is question as to whether Hester is actually Hayes' sister or whether she's an impostor trying to capitalize on the deceased receiver's fame. A fascinating column on DallasBasketball.com suggests that Hayes' siblings and ex-wife have long denied Hayes' relation to Hester and claim she's "inventing stories" to anyone who will listen. The poignant letter that Hayes allegedly wrote in 1999 is also said to be a fake.

Read the column for the full details. Not knowing anything about the situation beyond what I read in Mike Fisher's piece, I won't take sides until Hester has a chance to explain herself. However, I can agree that the signature on the letter does not at all resemble the signature that appears on Hayes memorabilia.

And, even more damning (and something that wasn't mentioned by Fisher) is that Roger Staubach's name is misspelled in the aforementioned letter that Hester displayed to the media. (Click here to enlarge.) Check out the second paragraph. Staubach is spelled "Stauback". It's tough to imagine that Bob Hayes didn't know how to spell the name of the man who threw him passes for five seasons and one that he chose to thank personally in a letter.

It's too early to make a judgment about this story, but it certainly is interesting. The Hall of Fame ceremony is Aug. 8 in Canton, Ohio. If the claims of the Hayes family are legit, expect to hear plenty more about this before then.

Update: The mainstream media gets in on the story this morning, with The Dallas Morning News reporting similar stories about the Hayes' families concerns about Lucille Hester.

Update x2: Through her lawyer, Hester has released a (very) carefully-worded statement defending herself. What isn't written (how her and Hayes are related, whether the note was real, etc.) speaks louder than what is written.

Photo: Getty Images

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136 Comments

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  1. Ray Michael
    1. Posted by Ray Michael Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:20 pm EDT

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    This is definitely worth exploring. If Bob Hayes' ex-wife and his siblings all claim that this lady is a fraud then I'd bet money that they're not lying. Innocent until proven guilty I supposed but the evidencing is pretty damning.
  2. urbanlegendsrg
    2. Posted by urbanlegendsrg Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:28 pm EDT

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    The letter also contains a spelling error..."The 49'ers to"? Didn't he mean too? Definetely something fishy here...
  3. PHU2
    3. Posted by PHU2 Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:10 pm EDT

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    AMAZING EVEN THE X cowboys are in the dallas road show circus....Let Bob RIP.
  4. Chris C
    4. Posted by Chris C Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:24 pm EDT

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    Even worse, urbanlegends, 49ers was spelled '49rs'
  5. peacoji1
    5. Posted by peacoji1 Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:05 pm EDT

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    That is one ugly woman.............Bob was great, leave him be.
  6. urbanlegendsrg
    6. Posted by urbanlegendsrg Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:28 pm EDT

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    Don't mean to sound disrespectful but unless Hayes had dementia, he couldnt have written that...The man went to college for crying out loud...I don't know why Hester couldn't use spell check, or simply read over what she wrote twice, guess the old generation is not used to computers.
  7. urbanlegendsrg
    7. Posted by urbanlegendsrg Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:28 pm EDT

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    jason m, did you forgot your dose of lithium this evening?
  8. jason m
    8. Posted by jason m Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:29 pm EDT

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    No, I just hate Chris Chase.
  9. GwpK
    9. Posted by GwpK Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:12 pm EDT

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    Should we be direct and just ask her?
  10. urbanlegendsrg
    10. Posted by urbanlegendsrg Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:28 pm EDT

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    if you dont ike his blog, dont read it...No need to post profane about 50 times to the point where even your insults didnt make sense...Its not like you are paying money to read this. Besides what exactly did you find wrong with his input in this particular piece?
  11. Steve C
    11. Posted by Steve C Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:14 pm EDT

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    urbanlegendsrg, going to college for an athlete, especially in that era, does not mean you can spell or put together proper sentence structure. From the evidence presented in the links to this article, it certainly appears the letter Ms. Hester read is a fraud that should be investigated by the NFL, Dallas Cowboys and certainly the media.
    That being said, I grew up in Dallas, watched Bullet Bob as a kid and idolized this man for what he accomplished both in the Olympics and NFL. It got me involved in track and field (I was awful!) as well as truly in awe of this man. Looking back, even more cool a white kid idolizing a black man in Dallas, Texas in the '60s!
    I was disappointed by his later life, but understand it (not condone it!) as I got matured. :)
    Jason, go take your Ritalin. It'll be okay. :)
  12. digitalecho125
    12. Posted by digitalecho125 Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:43 pm EDT

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    Any thoughts on how we all can bully the NFL into looking into this? After reading the full column, this really does seem fishy. And even if she is his sister, Bob's son really is the one who should be in Canton for his dad. Very sad that this woman would take advantage of someone else's legacy, and leave his really family in the dark.
  13. Clark F
    13. Posted by Clark F Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:02 pm EDT

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    How can anyone stoop this low? Bob Hayes deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.
    Stop this crap that his sister is a fraud? Have you no respect for players of honor?
  14. Scott E
    14. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    How hard can it be to prove that this woman is or is not related to Mr. Hayes? She should take the blood/DNA test and we'll move on from there. If she refuses - guilty.
  15. Scott
    15. Posted by Scott Thu Sep 03, 2009 6:56 pm EDT

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    Well, you can have her submit to a DNA test a la the Maury show. "Leslie, ...you are NOT the brother of Bob Hayes!!!"
    http://www.theklowntimes.net
  16. Tom
    16. Posted by Tom Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:43 pm EDT

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    Yes, there may be alot of questions, but some can be answered now? If Bob Hayes didn't type the letter himself, the person who did could naturally have misspelled Staubach with a k! Yes, I believe that there should be someone to investigate, but let us not pass judgement. When there is animosity with-in a family, we all know how that can go. Let's let this play out before we 'lynch' someone!
  17. Buddy
    17. Posted by Buddy Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:07 pm EDT

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    if she is a fraud than this just makes sense. Hayes was a Cowboy after all and that entire Franchise is one huge Freak Show/Soap Opera/.....JOKE
  18. boomer
    18. Posted by boomer Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:28 pm EDT

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    There are a lot of spelling and grammatical errors in that letter. Apparently, Bob Hayes could not remember how to spell the name of his high school either? Matthew Gilbert with just one "t" in Matthew?
  19. Scott E
    19. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    After reading the article, it's a no brainer. She's a fraud, twice omitted from Hayes' obituary as a survivor of the deceased on top of everything else.
  20. scoobysnaks
    20. Posted by scoobysnaks Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:01 pm EDT

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    its so easy to see that she is a fraud
  21. FairlyHonestBob
    21. Posted by FairlyHonestBob Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:28 pm EDT

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    I'm the REAL father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby.
  22. John G
    22. Posted by John G Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:01 pm EDT

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    All I know is that Calvin Hill and Robert Newhouse wouldn't put themself out there if they didn't hear the words directly from Bob Hayes's mouth that she was his sister.
    Now, were they longtime super close friends and Bob always called her "sister"... then when calling up for tickets he just stayed with that and called her sis to those guys so they would give Bob tickets without question? Maybe that is the case...
    But to hear Calvin Hill and Newhouse say that... I give her credibility.
    BTW, maybe the letter is a fake... then again, maybe on his death bed he told her that and she wrote the words for him... then maybe after his death... she forgot what QB to thank and because Roger is so popular she just wrote in his name... I dont know... but you have to give Hill and Newhouse's account major credit here.
  23. MARK
    23. Posted by MARK Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:31 pm EDT

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    hey 19 and 24 you may not like the cowboys and maybe you think they are a joke but dont blame bob hayes for that they elected him so give him his due I dont think either of you are perfect and this post is not about the cowboys anyway, all iam saying is let him r.i.p and know that he is now a hall of famer.
  24. Jay Mac
    24. Posted by Jay Mac Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:29 pm EDT

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    An under educated football player at the latter stages of his life can't spell correctly?
    This is shocking to people?
  25. fburgess13162g
    25. Posted by fburgess13162g Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:59 pm EDT

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    I graduated from FAMU in 1994 and Bob Hayes was part of my graduating class, he came back to get his degree after all those years.... I thought that was the coolest isht ever

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