Morris's Years Growing Up
Morris King Udall was born in 1920, nearly two years after his brother, Stewart Lee Udall. Morris would follow in his elder brother's footsteps in community service while striking his own unique path as politician and environmental advocate.
As a child, Mo lost his right eye due to an injury his family could not afford to treat; Morris would wear a glass eye for the remainder of his life, something that would become part of his persona in personal and political life. This served to embolden, rather than deter the young Morris from engaging in life's pursuits. Like his brother, Morris played basketball in high school, college, and briefly with the Denver Nuggets after graduation. He also played football in high school (as star quarterback), marched in the St. Johns High School band, and was active in the school newspaper and drama productions. He was known to be an organizer and hard worker since his early childhood.
Mo entered the University of Arizona in 1940, but his studies were interrupted by a call to service during World War II. Initially rejected on account of his glass eye, changing medical standards allowed Mo to enlist with the Army Air Forces as a private in 1942, where he earned an officer commission and commanded an all-Black squadron for two years in Louisiana. True to the Udalls' legacy of eschewing the racism of the fin-de-siècle LDS Church, Mo fought with his unit against the local racist discrimination they faced, considering the experience to be life-changing. With his brother Stewart, Mo would work to racially integrate the University of Arizona cateferia in 1947.
Mo was discharged from the Army Air Forces in 1946, after serving in the South Pacific theater and achieving the rank of captain. He returned to the University of Arizona the next year, achieving accolades in athletics and leadership along with Stewart. In 1949, Mo received his Juris Doctor degree and opened the Udall & Udall law firm in Tucson with his brother.
Mo became Chief Deputy Attorney for Pima County, and later Pima County Attorney, on account of his background of community service in Arizona. After an unsuccessful bid for Superior Court Judge, Mo returned to Udall & Udall sans Stewart, who had been elected to Congress. He would continue his practice with the firm until 1961. Mo was also a devoted father to his six children--Anne, Judith, Randy, Kate, Mark, and Brad--from his first marriage to Patricia Emery in 1947.