Who Is George W. Bush?

A special report on the presidential front-runner who isn’t running—yet.

The Son Rises

Coming of age in Odessa and Midland.

by Pamela Colloff

Go East, Young Man

What he learned about himself at Andover and Yale.

by Helen Thorpe

Younger. Wilder?

Those rumors you’ve heard about him are true. Sort of.

by Skip Hollandsworth

Not So Great in ‘78

How his one and only loss shaped his view of politics.

by Patricia Kilday Hart

George, Washington

His days as a “loyalty thermometer” in the nation’s capital.

by Evan Smith

Team Player

Why he was a hit running the Texas Rangers.

by Joe Nick Patoski

The W. Nobody Knows

He’s irreverent and unself-conscious, and that’s not all.

by Paul Burka

His First Steps

An exclusive portrait of the nascent Bush campaign.

An Appreciation of Tom Brooks

How my grandfather’s death affected the town of Wharton—and me.

by Horton Foote

Garden Variety

From antique benches to cast-iron planters, a selective guide to the yard art of your dreams.

by Suzy Banks

Madeleine in the Hill Country

As long as she spends most of her free time on a ranch outside Fredericksburg, Madeleine Stowe may never become, by Hollywood’s definition, a successful actress. And that’s fine with her.

by Alison Macor

First Person

East Toward Home

The Town Lake soccer fields in Austin, shopping at Kathleen Sommers in San Antonio, sunsets in Big Bend: Good-bye to all that and (sniff) a whole lot more.

by Marion Winik

Behind the Lines

My Wimberley

Why Wimberley is not Columbine.

by Joe Nick Patoski

Crime

Case Open

Nearly three years after attorney Steve Davis’ body was found, his family still doesn’t know how he died. Thanks to an out-of-court settlement with Comanche County, they probably never will.

Joe Holley

Texana

Hog Wild

They’re a major nuisance in rural Texas— but, boy, do they taste good.

by John Morthland

Media

Lynch Mob

Like the coffee and pie in the fictional town of Twin Peaks, the Arlington-based fanzine Wrapped in Plastic is damn fine.

by Pamela Colloff

Reporter

The Spying Game

How the war in Kosovo turned an Austin online company into the Lone Star State Department.

by Michael Hall

The Ex Files

Rip Torn

by Patricia Busa McConnico

Face

Brent and Brad Hauser

by Katy Vine

Hot Box

CD and Book Reviews

CDs by the Jiménez brothers, the Old 97’s, and Lee Hazlewood; books by Joni Rodgers and Scott Zesch.

Low Talk

Has Gramm Had His Phil?

Is Phil Gramm out of gas (and oil)?

by Evan Smith

Texas Classics

The First Picture Show

Horseman, Pass By

by Don Graham

State Secrets

A Census of Power

by Paul Burka

The Inside Story

Beating the Bushes

Eileen Schwartz

Recipe

Antojitos

State Fare

Tila’s Antojitos

From Tila’s in Houston: three Mexican appetizers that are, well, appetizing.

by Patricia Sharpe

Texas Primer

Américo Paredes

Which Américo Paredes book was made into a movie starring Edward James Olmos?

by Anne Dingus

Roar of the Crowd

For the Children

Around the State

Piano men—and women—play around at the Van Cliburn Foundation’s amateur night (Fort Worth). Plus: An aquarium you simply have to sea (Galveston); George Bush, the exhibit (Fredericksburg); Cowtown’s sesquicentennial (Fort Worth); and surf’s up…on the wall (Corpus Christi).