The HOBY Story
How HOBY Got Its Start
Hugh O’Brian: Visionary, Legendary Humanitarian
In the summer of 1958, Hugh
O’Brian received the
invitation that would change
his life forever. At the time,
O’Brian had already made a
name for himself as an actor
portraying the legendary
l a w m a n Wy a t t E a r p o n
television and appearing in
numerous films. When he
received a cable from Dr.
Albert Schweitzer
welcoming him to French
equatorial Africa for a visit, he did not hesitate to
accept. O’Brian had long admired the German doctormissionary-theologian- musician, and within two
weeks he arrived at Dr. Schweitzer’s remote hospital
complex in Africa. During his visit, O’Brian spent his
days assisting the volunteers in the hospital and his
nights with Dr. Schweitzer discussing global peace and
world politics. During their discussions, Dr. Schweitzer
told O’Brian that he felt “the most important thing
in education is to teach young people to think for
themselves,” which O’Brian would never forget.
After an inspiring nine days, O’Brian prepared
to return to america. Before saying goodbye, Dr.
Schweitzer took O’Brian’s hand and asked, “Hugh,
what are you going to do with this?” It was these
words combined with his unforgettable visit that
compelled Hugh O’Brian to form Hugh O’Brian Youth
Leadership (HOBY). Two weeks after returning from
his 1958 visit to africa, O’Brian put together a
prototype seminar for young leaders.
From 1958 to 1967, leadership seminars took
place in Los Angeles for sophomores from California.
in 1968 the scope of the HOBY program grew to
include national and international participants which
led to the expanded eight-day global leadership
seminar called the World Leadership Congress (WLC)
held annually. In an effort to include more students
nationwide, three-day and four-day HOBY Leadership
Seminars were instituted in 1977 in which high schools
throughout the country may nominate a sophomore to
attend a HOBY seminar in their state.
Hugh O’Brian was born April 19,
1925 in Rochester, New York. At
17, he became the youngest
drill instructor in Marine Corps
history, but found his true
passion was acting. O’Brian
gained national fame and
notoriety with his portrayal of
frontier lawman Wyatt Earp in
“The Life and Times of Wyatt
Earp.” This top-rated television
series ran from 1955- 1962 and
made O’Brian an overnight
success. After the series ended,
O’Brian went on to other acting
projects in film, television, and
Broadway while devoting the
rest of his time to HOBY.
The honors and awards he has
received from his work with
HOBY are numerous. In 1983,
the National Society of Fund
Raising Executives honored him
with their premier award for
overall philanthropic excellence
as a volunteer, fundraiser and
philanthropist. This is the only
time one individual has received
the award in all three
categories. In 1989, he received
the 60th Annual American
Education Award presented by
the American Association of
School Administrators. O’Brian
joins Nor- man Rockwell, Lyndon
Johnson, Helen Keller, Walt
Disney, and Bob Hope as a
recipient of this most significant
award. O’Brian currently lives in
a hilltop home overlooking
Beverly Hills. Still extremely
active in his eighties, his
hobbies include sailing,
swimming, and tennis.
10