With multiple funeral homes in Houston, he would be able to send the staff and hearse wherever they were needed to keep them busy and tamp down prices.

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Waltrip is the chairman emeritus of Service Corporation International.

International on Thursday, May 5, 2016, in Houston.

Elizabeth Conley Houston Chronicle ) Elizabeth ConleyStaff Show More Show Less.

Waltrip, who first ran Heights Funeral Home; his wife, Hattye Waltrip; and their son, Robert L.

Waltrip maintains the gentle demeanor and attentive gaze of a hometown funeral director.

He keeps the sitting area by his office fireplace tidy, storing stray papers under crystal glasses in a corner bar nook.

Service Corporation International owns and operates 1,522 funeral homes and 468 cemeteries across the U.S.

Canada, where it commands a 16 percent market share.

But he still comes to SCI headquarters in Houston four days a week and says he has no plans to retire.

He remains a central figure, sharing his sharp memories of markets and people with company executives.

He advises them on who to trust based on deals he made or dropped across the decades.

But within the industry, both are formidable and well known.

His influence has been pretty spectacular for all of us, whether you love him or you hate him.

Waltrip, was a funeral director in Houston and had bought the funeral home in the 1920s from a friend facing financial trouble.

When the younger Waltrip took over, he had a pile of unpaid bills and plans to expand.

Waltrip had seen growing up at the Heights Funeral Home how the staff was always rushing to accommodate a customer, or sitting around bored between calls.

Robert Waltrip Obituary