Editor's Note: This is another of those things that aren't directly about Petty but are interesting to include in the Archives.

Obituaries: Dub's owner dies at home
Gainesville Sun - January 10, 1990

James "Dub" Thomas, the burly, addable proprietor of the Gainesville nightclub that bore his name, died Tuesday of an apparent heart attack at his home in Montocha, north of Gainesville. He was 58.

Known as Gainesville's father of rock 'n' roll, Thomas owned and operated Dub's for 26 years and had recently purchased the Feed Store and a part-interest in Lillian's Music Store.

At Dub's, Thomas cut a legendary figure, hand-picking the acts he hooked from the ranks of local musicians. In the 1960s, his favored bands included future members of the Eagles, and in the early '70s a regular attraction at Dub's was Mudcrutch -- which included Gainesville's Tom Petty and several future members of Petty's Heartbreakers.

Other performers who appeared at Dub's early in their careers were rocker Bob Seger and the comedy troupe Ace Trucking Company, featuring John Belushi.

Born in Oklahoma, Thomas was raised in a suburb of Los Angeles. As a teen-ager, he worked as a a bouncer in Sunset Strip nightclubs. Intending to pursue a career in police work, he majored in criminology and psychology at Mt. San Antonio College.

He also founded the In-N-Out restaurant chain, which a 1988 trade magazine credited with being the model for Burger King.

A promising football played, Thomas once said he was rejected by the Los Angeles Rams because of an asthmatic condition; when his doctor advised him to move to a smog-free climate, he chose Gainesville.

Thomas came to the area in 1954 and opened Dub's 10 years later. The club celebrated its 25th anniversary last year, establishing it as the longest-lived nightclub in Gainesville.
Thomas, a diabetic, had a history of heart trouble.

Survivors include a daughter, Kristy Lisenby; a son, James Wayne Thomas Jr.; and one grandson.