Ralph Schaefer
2/2/2010
Dan Kramer is known by the neckties he wears — Mickey Mouse ties.He has them for all occasions and seasons, even a black one with a Mickey Mouse tie tack for funerals and when clients are sent to prison. The Tulsa criminal defense attorney said he probably has 200 ties with some depiction of the famous Disney mouse and he doesn’t have any idea about their value or how much he has spent on them. He didn’t purchase every tie since some were gifts from others who, after seeking Kramer’s advice about visiting Disneyland in California or Disneyworld in Florida, brought him the neckwear as a way of saying thank you. Kramer, who earned his law degree from the University of Tulsa College of Law in 1973, didn’t plan to be known as an attorney by his neckties. The practice actually started following a trip to Disneyland in 1980 where he bought his first tie — that has since been worn out. When the original tie was purchased there weren’t many cartoon ties on the market. “I was handling a lot of divorce cases at that time,” he said, and “the necktie seemed to be a way to lighten difficult situations.” “Every time I wore the necktie people would comment,” he said. “I found that clients relaxed and smiled when they saw the tie.” The tie collection grew when Kramer and his family made return trips to the vacation spots. It got to a point that when Kramer went to the Tulsa County Courthouse that attorneys would greet him and check out the necktie. When he didn’t wear one, they very vocally expressed their disappointment. Clients had similar reactions. Mickey Mouse ties became sort of a “Frankenstein monster” to Kramer because he didn’t anticipate people’s reactions when he didn’t wear one. But, that monster was quickly put to rest because of the ability to select from a wide selection in his wardrobe. Ties are categorized by seasons and events. There are Christmas ties, a St. Patrick’s Day tie, as well as a variety of ties including Mickey and other Disney characters. Some are subtle and anyone checking Kramer’s tie that day has to look closely to see the mouse image.
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Aerospace
