March 2001 Issue

I Had a Ball

A passel of Texans invaded the nation’s capital in January, and the town may never be the same. A report from the inaugral front.

T Bone, Well Done

He's produced albums for the likes of Roy Orbison and Elvis Costello for years, but now Fort Worth's T Bone Burnett is writing songs again and composing music for movies and plays. At 53 he's on a creative roll and, as he says, "Never bored."

2002: A Race Odyssey

The next statewide elections are twenty months away, but a pack of would-be candidates—from a Laredo oilman to the mayor of Austin—are already running hard.

Return to The Gay Place

Forty years after it was published, Billy Lee Brammer's novel about LBJ-era Austin is still one of the best ever written about American politics. Yet just as interesting is the story of Brammer himself.

How I Learned to Hate the Media And Love Politics (Well, Sort of)

After twenty years as a reporter who gave politicians a hard time, I decided to run for the Dallas City Council. Now I’m the one getting the hard time—from my fellow pols, who don’t trust me, and my former colleagues in the press, who’ve got me in their sights. And

Tex Education

Who exactly was Cabeza de Vaca? Why did Texas revolutionaries shout, “Remember Goliad”? Sharpen your pencils for Part I of my four-part Texas literacy test.

The Great Digital Divide

Why online life is slower in the country.

Dell Computer

The Texas stock to buy right now

American Flier

Don Carty's vision for American Airlines takes off.

Mixing Oil and Politics

Is Koch Industries the target of a dirty political attack—or is it just plain dirty?

Techs and the City

A tale of two Houstons.

The Beat Goes On

How are Texas' top two symphonies staying financially viable and relevant to young audiences? One concert at a time.

Let It Be

In today's stressful times, Buddhism's philosophy of peaceful detachment is resonating with more Texans than ever.

Grist for Mills

A collection of the letters of influential sociologist C. Wright Mills shows that his radical ideas were grounded in his Texas upbringing.

San Antonio Mission

What did Gregg Popovich learn after he coached the Spurs to their first NBA title two years ago? One is never enough.

Italian Pot Roast With Gremolata

Gremolata1 tablespoon grated lemon zest 3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley 2 tablespoons minced garlicMix all ingredients together.Pot Roastsalt and pepper to taste 1/2 cup flour 3-pound boneless roast of beef, such as a rolled roast (have the butcher tie it for you) 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 cups thinly

Chris Kraft

Chapter One: "Raised in a Town That No Longer Exists"By any other name, Phoebus was still a tough town. It did have another name, spoken only by the locals with a mixed measure of quiet pride and quieter concern: Little Chicago, because Phoebus sat at the end of the Chicago

Is That Your Final Answer?

So you think you know Texas? Take senior editor Anne Dingus' Web-only quiz and see if you know as much as you think you do.

Texas History 101

From revolution to independence.

Texas Tidbits

You probably learned about the Texas State Bird and the Texas State Flag back in grade school, but just in case you've forgotten (or studied some other state or country), we've provided you with the following list of basics. Happy Texas Independence Day!

Nifty Fifty

Senior editors Anne Dingus and Joe Nick Patoski tell the story behind this month's cover story, "50 Things Every Texan Should Do."

Books That Cook

Any Bitch Can Cook.

Happy Trails

A Big Weekend in Big D.

State Fare

In Port Aransas the roast of the town is at the Other Guy's Seafood Cafe.

Chris Kraft

“I think with a name like Christopher Columbus Kraft, Jr., some of my life’s direction was settled from the start,” says NASA’s longtime flight director in this compelling autobiography. Like the discoverer of America, the Houston author also explored uncharted territory, and his last name suggests not only the aircraft

Toadies

Like ZZ Top or AC/DC, the Toadies have become almost instantly identifiable. But it’s not because the Dallasites have flooded the market with similar-sounding albums. Instead their breakthrough single, 1995’s “Possum Kingdom,” has enjoyed a Spam-like shelf life. It has served as one of the top recurrent tracks on alternative,

Jon Emery

With his sense of humor, his down-and-out songs, and his wordplay that turned country convention upside down, Leroy Preston gave Asleep at the Wheel dimensions it has lacked since the seventies. Kyle’s Jon Emery, a co-leader of Preston’s post-Wheel band, Whiskey Drinkin’ Music, reprises five of those songs here, and

Old 97’s

What do you want the Old 97’s to be? When the Dallas band released their first CD, 1994’s Hitchhike to Rhome, they knocked down blazing alcohol-soaked love songs and a fine cover of Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried,” firmly grabbing a spot in the alt-country canon. But on Satellite Rides, their

Bobby Bridger

Thirty years ago the cosmic cowboy-progressive country sound swept through Austin, the first full-blown scene in what has evolved into Austin music. But of all its trailblazers—Jerry Jeff Walker, Willis Alan Ramsey, Willie Nelson—Bobby Bridger is the one who has stayed most on message. The Houston resident has remained true

Fully Repaired

What a difference five years makes. Shawn Colvin’s 1996 CD, A Few Small Repairs, while cloaked in radio-friendly production, was lyrically full of spit and vitriol, a searing portrait of alienation and divorce that you happened to be able to sing along with. Remember the Grammy-winning “Sunny Came Home” and

With stars ranging from Willie Nelson to Tommy Lee Jones, an Austin awards show gets top billing. Plus: The North Texas Irish Festival harps on its success; Houston has a weekend perfect for the kids; El Paso packs the house for the Siglo de Oro; and Dallas' Meadows Museum has

Restaurant Guide

Power Politics

What Texas should learn from the California energy mess.

And The Earth Did Not Devour Him

. . . And the Earth Did Not Devour Him.

Maximum Insecurity

How the Texas Seven will change the state's prisons.

Valarie Rae Miller

Valarie Rae Miller finds her better angels.

Alexis Bledel

Alexis Bledel fits in as one of the girls.

The New London School Explosion

How many people died in the New London school explosion of 1937?

Jan Burke

Flash back to a grisly double-homicide—father and daughter slain aboard a yacht in California. Freeze the image of the teenage son who survived, only to be murdered in his hospital bed. Fast-forward ten years to detective Frank Harriman as he faces the awful possibility that the case might have wrongly