Is Survivor’s Colby Donaldson for real? Over lunch, the last old-fashioned Texas man talks about why he threw the game and what he’ll do next.

For teenage girls in the Hill Country town of Llano, life can be short on glamour and excitement—except at the annual rodeo, when one of them gets a rhinestone tiara and a rare, thrilling moment of glory.

Andrea Yates was a quiet, attentive mother with a generous smile who made her kids costumes from grocery sacks and gave them Valentine’s promising “free hugs.” We all know what happened next, but we may never know why.

More than anyone, former assistant to the U.S. attorney Bill Johnston was responsible for exposing the FBI’s lies about the final assault on the Branch Davidian compound. Why, then, did his own government go after him?

And you’re going to need it, eventually, since Texas’ most precious natural resource is being depleted at an alarming rate. His plan is to pump vast amounts from his land in the Panhandle and pipe it to parched cities like El Paso and San Antonio—for a hefty price, of course. But other powerful interests have the same idea. Let the battle begin.

Texas is changing before our eyes, but fried pies, drive-in movie theaters, and other vestiges of earlier days are all around. To find these treasures, we risked life, limb, and cholesterol count-and had a blast from the past.

A memoir conjures up Donald Barthelme—and sheds light on his talented siblings.

Californians can blame Texans all they want for their energy crisis, but the truth is they had the power to avoid it.

Corpus Christi's Manuel Bañales believes that some sex offenders should post warning signs in their yards. He says it's about good law; his critics say it's about good publicity.

What's the story on Bob Mong, the new editor of the The Dallas Morning News? He has a newshound's instinct, an insider's touch, and his work cut out for him.

R. C. Slocum is the winningest football coach in A&M history. So why are some Aggies hoping he gets sacked?

Denton's Toni LaSelle has a perspective on the modernist movement like no other artist. That's because she witnessed it first-hand.

Why did we take away our restaurant guide's highest rating for the Mansion on Turtle Creek? Let's dish.

Vetoing the Perry vetoes.

Mimi Schwartz considers the wake of Tropical Storm Allison.

Katy Vine sits down with the former mayor of Gun Barrel City.

Katy Vine steps through a minefield.

Katy Vine checks up on the UT-Dallas chess team.

Houston's queen of Mexican cuisine remembered.

Mike Shea links Bud Shrake and Dan Jenkins.

Singing the praises of Billy Joe Shaver.

Houston gets cheap; the Art Guys suit up for an exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; John Leguizamo goes Live in Austin, Dallas, and Houston; and festivals fill the summer menu.