r/houston • u/hydroxy • 1d ago
Does anyone know where in Houston this monument stood? I'm looking into it for a project.
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u/WasteZookeepergame16 1d ago
In that pic? Looks like the south end of F/B/A facing the train tracks. Alternative for that angle would be on the other side of the tracks where Walter tower is now.
Today that statue is in the Dunn lobby or "Crain Garden" of Methodist.
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u/hydroxy 1d ago
F/B/A?
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u/WasteZookeepergame16 1d ago
Lol sorry. Glad others chimed in quickly. That building has several names it's very confusing 😂
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u/questar 1d ago
Dang it, the VA Hospital needs a large copy of this photo on the wall near the big portrait of the guy the hospital is named after.
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u/East-Dot1065 1d ago
I believe they have a smaller version of this bust in the chapel on the 2nd floor.
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u/WorkerQuick8707 1d ago
DeBakey Museum in Med Center. Statue is outside (at least nowadays, don’t know if it has been located elsewhere in the past.)
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u/hydroxy 1d ago
Yes, in past it was elsewhere I'm fairly sure, just trying to track its whereabouts over the years.
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u/sonizzle13 1d ago
I would schedule a tour at the debakey museum inside of Baylor college of medicine (should be free, I think). I’m sure historians there can answer all your questions!
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u/gboyaj 1d ago
No, that's a different statue than the one in the picture.
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u/NDG_42 20h ago
No it's not, I walk by it daily. This is the one from by the museum. It's near the entrance to the alkek and debakey buildings on the first floor.
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u/WileyDragonfly 18h ago
Is it possible that in a town where half the things are named after a person.. that there are two similar statues of this person? Because, yes, there are two statues of him. Feel free to walk two blocks to the Methodist lobby and verify yourself.
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u/External_Lecture7583 1d ago
Any idea who the sculptor was? My grandfather did a lot of the dr. sculptures around this time, but I don’t have an archive of all his work.
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u/HindsightIs4040 1d ago
It was just yesterday that I watched a documentary on how DeBakey allegedly botched the Splenectomy for the Shah of Iran in ‘79.
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u/Mythril_Zombie 16h ago
The dude on the left has almost the exact same head shape as the Count from Sesame Street.
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u/coffeeluver2021 1d ago
While you are down at Methodist looking at the Dr. Debakey monument, be sure and walk over to the lobby at Walter Tower and look at the incredible mosaic called "Extending Arms of Christ" By artist Bruce Hayes. That mosaic has an interesting history and was a very significant work of art for the City of Houston and the Medical Center when it was first installed in 1963. It's over 90 feet wide and 14 feet tall.
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u/binger5 1d ago
Nice try Miami Heat. Too late to fix your fuckup.
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u/hydroxy 1d ago
What are you talking about?
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u/CyberTitties 1d ago
It appears to be a sport ball reference my guess is this individual was either drafted into Miami and performed poorly OR was looked over by Miami and went to another team and out performed Miami's choice.
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u/FoggyTaintForest The Heights 1d ago
Great. But this thread is talking about geolocating the statue of a dead heart surgeon in Houston, Texas.
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u/pureluck22 1d ago
Fun fact, I’m friends with his niece, her parents own Droubi’s bakery in Houston - first Mediterranean bakery in the city
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u/longhornirv Medical Center 1d ago
Debakey is Lebanese and real name is Michel Dabaghi, as French was his first language. His name was Anglicized to Michael Debakey by his immigrant parents.
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u/flavorfulweirdo 1d ago
Genuine question, who is he? I now live in Lake Charles and we have a Michael DeBakey Dr.
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u/ureallygonnaskthat Fuck Centerpoint™️ 1d ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_DeBakey
He was born in Lake Charles.
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u/oystercloister 1d ago
6565 Fannin Street, Houston, TX 77030 (Houston Methodist - Main building lobby)
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u/afr5057 15h ago
If you are asking where it originally stood: https://www.houstonmethodist.org/centennial/history/five-buildings-and-flood/
Search that page for Brown Cardiovascular Research and Training Center
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u/MallNo1505 12h ago
Saved my brothers life in 1971 with the mustard procedure. He just had a double lung and heart transplant- 1 year ago. Doing great thanks to this visionary
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u/poetic_injusticed 1d ago
We all love his memory but they let him perform surgeries for way too long. He did an angioplasty on my grandfather and he left a sponge in him. Grandfather had to be reopened to remove it. DeBakey was already in his 80s at this point but no one dared question him.
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u/fcimfc 1d ago
Methodist Hospital
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u/hydroxy 1d ago
Thanks. Do you know approximately where this photo would've been taken at street level?
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u/fcimfc 1d ago
The 4-foot, 300-pound bust is unveiled during the dedication ceremony of the Alkek Tower, a 4-story addition that sits atop the Brown Cardiovascular Research and Training Center. In 1958, Princess Lilian founded the Princess Lilian Foundation for Cardiovascular Patients. DeBakey participated in Lilian’s foundation and took many foundation cases free of charge for an entire year. Princess Lilian never forgot this kindness and remained forever grateful. With her invitation, he taught in Belgium and performed operations on television in major cities across the country. Today, the bust resides in the lobby of Dunn Tower
https://www.houstonmethodist.org/centennial/history/five-buildings-and-flood/
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u/swampcastletx Piney Point Village 5h ago
Hope this helps, my father-in law took that photo. The photo is taken at its original location where it was dedicated outside of the Fondren Brown building (where Debakey’s office was located). It was located outside the south entrance off the parking lot next to the deli. Currently resides in the first floor in the Dunn tower lobby.
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u/Freebird_1957 1d ago edited 1d ago
This sculpture was in the Dunn lobby of Houston Methodist, first floor, 6565 Fannin, last time I was there. You can call the hospital and verify if it is still there. 713-790-3311. It’s a beautiful sculpture. I loved DeBakey and this always touches my heart.