The Harder They Fall

Tommy Steiner is in the bucking business. He likes rodeo cowboys just fine, but he’s rooting for the bulls.

by Giles Tippette

A Delicate Balance

Who turned off the melting pot? Vietnamese and Texans fight on the coast.

by John Bloom

Ghosts

World War II may be over, but the Confederate Air Force will rise again.

The Man Who Built River Oaks

Architect John Staub, the forgotten genius of River Oaks, transformed a few nondescript Houston streets into Millionaire’s Row.

by Michael Ennis

Sherwood Blount’s First Million

He believed in the American dream and it paid off.

by Nicholas Lemann

Talking Money/The Heavy Hitters

What’s what and who’s who in Texas real estate.

by Nicholas Lemann

Cutups

Can’t hull a strawberry? Can’t boil an egg? Can’t wash leafy vegetables? Relax. Help is on the way.

by W. L. Taitte

Behind the Lines

Give me land, lots of land . . .

by William Broyles, Jr

Cityview

City Transit Gloria

Hymns and admonitions for the best and worse bus services in Texas.

by Kaye Northcott

Stepping Out

Titles Texans

Beneath certain Stetsons lies a crown.

Michael Ennis

Politics

After the Fall

Nicaragua’s new junta may discover it’s easier to depose a dictator than to rebuild a ravaged country.

by

Church

A Joyful Noise

At St. Patrick’s in San Antonio they sing and dance—during mass. At Lakewood Assembly of God in Dallas they sing and sing and sing . . .

by William Martin

Art

Mission Possible

by Michael Ennis

Film

This Is The Way The Apocalypse Ends . . .

Coppola’s multimillion-dollar labor of love is finally finished. We think.

by John Morthland

Theater

The Spoils of War

ëTis the season for plays about the Viet Nam War. Louisiana’s Huey P. Long is captured (almost) by Texans.

Popular Music

by

Classical Music

It’s a Lulu!

Even incomplete, Lulu was a great opera. Now it’s finished, and Santa Fe Opera got the stage the coveted U.S. premiere.

by W. L. Taitte

Books

The Right Wings

In his new book Tom Wolfe poses this question: were the Mercury astronauts men or monkeys? Thomas Thompson changes his journalistic setting from Houston to the far East to produce a book about an astonishing criminal.

by Stephen Harrigan and Nicholas Lemann

Reporter

Texas Monthly Reporter

South Padre defiled—and you were there; the joy of six hundred maniacal flute players; Dallas’ love-hate affair with Fair Park.

by John Bloom

The Inside Story

Keep those cards and letters coming in.

by Gregory Curtis

Roar of the Crowd

Touts

High-flyin’ and highfalutin.

by Patricia Sharpe

State Secrets

How will Christo wrap up his trip to Texas?; pooh-poohing Three mile Island; the greatest train robbery of all; shake-up at Houston’s city hall.

Edited by Paul Burka