Now Playing: "Parachute Woman" by the Rolling Stones
As any old UT alumnus from my era on the Forty Acres can tell you, the voice of Bill Livingston could bring great joy ---or great disappointment:
If you attended the University of Texas at any time during the past 15 years, you've probably had an encounter with TEX - Telephone Enrollment eXchange.What a funny little relic to ponder.
But because of new technology and more students turning to online registration, the TEX system is going out of service.
The carefully enunciating male voice is familiar for hundreds of thousands of UT students and alumni. They heard the greeting every time they registered, dropped or added a class or even checked a grade. Associate Registrar Mike Allen said TEX averaged 1 million calls per year.
The end of TEX has former students calling the famous number for one last listen.
If anyone reading this knows where I can lay my hands on some .wav files of that voice, I'd love to have them.
His most famous last words actually came about by accident. When you end a call with TEX, he always wishes you “Good-bye and good luck.”Yes, indeed. Take care, Bill.
"And just out of the blue I said into the microphone ‘good-bye and good luck.’ It became part of the lure of TEX and the lure of Bill Livingston," Livingston said.
He's a person many haven't met, but almost everyone has a story about hanging onto his words when it’s time to call for final grades.