Tacky Jacks re-scheduled 40 year celebration is Nov. 14

Tacky Jacks re-scheduled 40 year celebration is Nov. 14
Specials at all three locations, fireworks at Orange Beach
Tacky Jacks will celebrate its 40th anniversary (plus two months) with giveaways, commemorative cups, live music and special pricing on signature items such as burgers and bushwhackers at all three locations from noon ‘til 4 p.m. on Nov. 14 at its Orange Beach, Gulf Shores and Fort Morgan locations.
Originally scheduled for Hurricane Sally weekend, the celebration will include 7 p.m. fireworks at the original Orange Beach location at 7 p.m. honoring the military and first responders.
Jack Hodges first opened Tacky Jacks in 1980, just as Orange Beach was taking off as a vacation destination.
After purchasing, expanding and renovating the original location, George (Buddy) Skipper opened Tacky Jacks Fort Morgan on Mobile Bay in 2005 and, with a group of fellow investors, Tacky Jacks Gulf Shores on the Intracoastal Waterway in 2011.
All three restaurants have their own unique character while serving the same breakfast, lunch and dinner menus. Besides being accessible by boat, all locations also feature retail gift shops with souvenirs and items from local artists.
A longtime Make-A-Wish supporter, Tacky Jack’s has also set up donation boxes next to marlin statues offering photo opportunities in the parking lot at each location. The company matches all customer donations in support of veterans.
Specifically, Tacky Jacks has purchased and donated to veterans six Action Track wheelchairs that allow access across any rough terrain. The chairs, which are life-changing for the veteran recipients, start at about $11,000 per. The company has also made a tricked out chair with rubber wheels available for veterans to use while here on vacation.
The company continues to raise money for the Alabama Gulf Coast Reef and Restoration Foundation through its Saltwater Mafia/Tacky Jacks t-shirts.
Jack Hodges, who now lives in a tricked out RV near Fairhope, is expected to be at the Orange Beach location for the celebration. He credits his lifelong friend, the late Bettie Shinault with naming nis bistro.
“Bettie would come down and have a couple martinis in the afternoon. We had a lot of deliveries for the weekend and the tickets were all screwed up,’’ Hodges said.
“A friend of mine’s son was running the dock and Bettie walked up to me and said not to be fussing with that kid. She said I should call the place Tacky Jacks Tackle Store. I said that sounded good to me.
“It ended up being Tacky Jacks, and all of a sudden I became Tacky Jack, which probably suited me a little bit. Anyway, that’s how it all started.’’
Hodges (pictured) said he thinks this all happened in 1980.

40th Anniversary Music
Gulf Shores
Tim Robinson: 2-6 p.m.
Orange Beach
Beave & Cleave: noon-4
JJ Mack: 1 p.m.
Hippy Jim: 2 p.m.
Jason Justice: 3 p.m.
Fireworks: 7 p.m.
Fort Morgan
Live Music: 4 p.m.
Karaoke: 7 p.m.