The Progressive Forum, Houston, is a civic speaker organization dedicated to enriching our democracy and culture by presenting the great minds we believe are advancing the success of the individual, our species, and life on the planet.
The Progressive Forum, Houston, is a civic speaker organization dedicated to enriching our democracy and culture by presenting the great minds we believe are advancing the success of the individual, our species, and life on the planet.
Our purpose is to enrich our democracy and culture by presenting the great minds who we believe are advancing the success of the individual, our species, and life on the planet, great minds from all the fields of human endeavor, the sciences and humanities as well as politics and public affairs. Our progressive viewpoint is rooted in the mainstream constitutional, enlightenment, and egalitarian values of America’s founding fathers, mainstream values that need continual affirming. The Progressive Forum originated a new model for civic speaker organizations in Houston to create larger audiences and a higher quality experience by providing an evening theater event compared to traditional hotel luncheons. Operating like a performing arts company, we use the finest theaters, we pay speaker fees to present the top intellectual and cultural stars, and we use convenient box office services available on our website allowing you to print your tickets at your computer. The Progressive Forum is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.
The Progressive Forum premiered on June 13, 2005, with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Houston Mayor Bill White at The Hobby Center, Sarofim Hall, in a program called, “Our Environmental Challenges.” The year before, in June 2004, founder Randall Morton saw Robert Kennedy on Larry King Live and called one of Houston’s fine speaker organizations and suggested they present Kennedy but nothing came of it. Dismayed about national trends after the elections of November 2004, he called Kennedy’s representatives who were responsive to Kennedy appearing at a new speaker series. Morton had experience creating and hosting another speaker series in the oil industry, the Oilfield Breakfast Forum, and operating his own advertising and public relations agency, Randall Morton international, Inc. The Kennedy-White event was successful and showed the business model for The Progressive Forum was viable. Six months later, the Forum opened its first spring season in 2006 with Jared Diamond, Seymour Hersh, and Molly Ivins. Al Gore appeared June 7th in a sell-out event launching An Inconvenient Truth at The Progressive Forum, his first U.S. book event for that title. That first year, The Progressive Forum presented seven events which also included George Soros, Edward O. Wilson, and Frank Rich in the fall.
Randall Morton founded The Progressive Forum in 2005. He has owned Randall Morton International, Inc. for 32 years, an independent market communication, advertising, and public relations agency primarily serving the leading oil equipment companies in the U.S., Japan, Mexico, and Europe. Morton created and hosted The Oilfield Breakfast Forum, the largest speaker series in the petroleum industry whose surplus went to the SEARCH-Homeless Project. He was a member of the board and management committee of the predecessor to Grant Prideco, the industry's largest manufacturer of drill pipe. He served as an issue writer for the Democratic National Committee while earning a degree in government from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. At Georgetown, he was ranked third nationally as a pass receiver in nonscholarship football. He served as an adjunct professor at the University of Tulsa teaching advertising design and copy writing after earning a second degree at UT in communications. He is married to board director, Suzanne Longley, and they have two children.
Randall R. Morton, president
rrmorton@progressiveforumhouston.org
713-664-0020
Emily Roper, administrator, event coordinator
admin@progressiveforumhouston.org
713-664-0020
Brazos Bookstore, event book sales
Bomar Design, graphic design, event program, web site design
ClicknPrint Tickets, box office services
Elaine's Florist and Gift Baskets
Gotham Image Works, videography
McKann Photography, event photography
Pinsonnault Creative, web site development and production
Speedy Printing, programs, book plates, fund letters, signage
Susan Bischoff
is president of the Houston Public Library Foundation. Formerly an
editor of the Houston Chronicle, she worked on the Unique Lives Series
which presented leading female speakers at Jones Hall. Send
an email.
Rodi Franco
is director of communications at the Alley Theatre, responsible for
marketing, public relations, and front-of-house operations including
house management and box office. She was formerly marketing director
for Houston Grand Opera. Send
an email.
Amy Hopper
is the co-founder of Nova Arts Project, a Houston theater company.
She’s a lecturer at Texas A&M and University of Houston, teaching
acting, script analysis, theatre history, and introduction to theater.
Send
an email.
Rich Levy
is executive director of Inprint, championing creative writing and
reading. One of Inprint’s missions is to produce Houston’s leading
reading series with the world’s most acclaimed poets and writers
at the Alley Theatre. Send
an email.
Suzanne Longley
is owner of Suzanne Longley Landscapes, Inc., and Suzanne Longley Farms,
Brenham, a whole sale tree nursery. Both are totally organic operations.
She was formerly prima ballerina with Houston Ballet and is married
to Forum founder, Randall Morton. Send
an email.
Randall Morton
has owned Randall Morton International, Inc., for 32 years, a market
communications agency serving oil equipment companies. He created
the Oilfield Breakfast Forum, the largest speaker series in the oil
industry, and in 2005, created the Progressive Forum. See “Founder’s
Biographical Sketch,” above.
Visit our page listing All Past Speakers where you'll find select newspaper articles, radio interviews, event audio segments, and photographs. Stay tuned as we expand our Web site and roll-out whole pages on past speakers to provide you an even richer source of information on these great minds and the important answers they are providing.
Our speakers have included: