A native Oklahoman, H. Milt Phillips first worked at his Uncle Willard Hess’s newspaper, the Norman Democrat-Topic. Phillips attended the University of Oklahoma from 1920 through 1922, served in the U.S. Army during World War I and the U.S. Navy during World War II. Phillips and his brother, Tom, purchased the Seminole Producer in 1946, after which Phillips became the editor and publisher. He became the director of the Oklahoma Historical Society in 1948. He was a member of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority from 1955 through 1959, served as president of the Oklahoma Press Association in 1957, and was appointed by Governor Henry Bellmon to the Oklahoma Economic Advisory Council.