Wall of Confusion
So much for the border fence.
Brian D. Sweany has been the editor in chief of Texas Monthly since July 2014. A native Texan who was born on Texas Independence Day, he began his career in journalism as an intern at the magazine in 1996, and in the intervening years, he held nearly every possible job in the editorial department. Before being promoted to his current post, he was a senior executive editor in charge of Texas Monthly's political coverage. Sweany has also worked as an assistant professor in the journalism department at Ithaca College, in New York, and as a senior editor at D Magazine, in Dallas. He is active in a number of civic and volunteer organizations, serving on the boards of the Texas Book Festival, the Texas Cultural Trust, and the Frank W. and Sue Mayborn School of Journalism at the University of North Texas, in Denton. He lives in Austin with his wife, two children, and an ever-growing manuscript for The Kingdom of the Saddle, a biography of Charles Goodnight to be published by Penguin.
So much for the border fence.
I saw my first historical marker as a Cub Scout in Pack 291. Nearly thirty years later, I’m still hooked on the story of Texas.
Your unofficial playbook for watching college football in Texas during the weekend of October 9.
Your unofficial playbook for watching college football in Texas this weekend.
Eleven years later, the Permian High School Panthers remember Friday Night Lights, the book that put them—and Odessa—on the map.
R. C. Slocum is the winningest football coach in A&M history. So why are some Aggies hoping he gets sacked?
Will this be the year that the University of Texas Longhorns—the most talented college football team in the country—win their first national title since 1970? Yes. Hook ’em.
Doyle Brunson on playing No-Limit Texas Hold ’Em.
Houston
The thirty Texans with the most iconic, unforgettable, eye-popping looks, from Davy Crockett to Beyoncé.
Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pat’s Pick, for Texas Monthly.
Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives.
Amarillo
The Permian Basin is a place of pump jacks, big sky, generous neighbors, stinging sandstorms, and lonesome highways. For former first lady Laura Bush, it was the scene of an idyllic childhood—and a tragic accident that changed her life forever.
Has it only been one year since George W. Bush left the White House? A snapshot of the forty-third president and his inner circle at the height of their power.
Dave Campbell on covering football.
Eight years ago, the closest presidential election ever was settled in a political street fight. In this oral history of the Florida recount, the victors recall the unbelievable twists and turns that put George W. Bush in the White House.
An Eagle Scout wrestles with what’s happened to the organization he loved.
Lisa M. Tatum on being a lawyer
Elizabeth Taylor on being a River Walk tour guide.
“The Trinity River is the biggest problem you have in Dallas today,” declared landscape architect George Kessler in his comprehensive plan for the city a century ago. And so it has remained: an undeveloped flood-prone eyesore that requires an extensive system of levees to protect residents and property. On March
Dublin Dr Pepper, Beverage Beloved By Many, Dies at 120
Shannon Sedwick on using the F-word, playing Ann Richards, and pulling things out of her dress like pipe wrenches and saws.
Once again, redistricting has devolved into a bitter, partisan, confusing, chaotic mess. But take heart, voters! There is a better way.
Chris Kyle was shot to death Saturday at a gun range near Glen Rose. In an interview from last year, he opened up about why he wanted to be a Navy SEAL.
Jesse Heiman on signing up at Central Casting, working with Leonardo DiCaprio, and still not paying his own phone bill.
Scott Pelley on anchoring the CBS Evening News.
Another South Dallas politician is under investigation for corruption. Why can’t the city seem to change its script?
Admit it, non-orangebloods. You took some pleasure in the collapse of the vaunted UT program last season. Well, guess what? Now it’s time for the empire to strike back.
Plenty of college students frequent this historic area, but they’re not the only ones who avail themselves of the culinary, sartorial, and vintage offerings on hand.
Nothing marks an expert camper more than a mastery of the essential skills, so study up on these backwoods tricks before your next expedition.
Michele Lepe on hosting a children's show.
Your unofficial playbook for watching college football in Texas during the weekend of October 23.
The faces—and voices—of eighteen Texans who are living the debate over illegal immigration.
Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives.
Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue.
Your unofficial playbook for watching college football in Texas during the weekend of October 16.
Vladimir Guerrero on batting DH.
63 things that all Texans must do before they die.
Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives.
A fond look back at 22 Texans who died in 2009, from Farrah Fawcett and Walter Cronkite to Brandon Lara and Joe Bowman.
Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pat’s Pick, for Texas Monthly.
Location: Dallas and Fort WorthWhat You’ll Need: Sketch pad, beretThe body of downtown Dallas has been prayed over more times than I can count. And while it may take an act of God to finally bring the Trinity River Project to life, there’s no question that when
Location:: East TexasWhat You’ll Need: Full tank of gas, love of graniteSo you’re the kind of person who doesn’t like to plan your weekends. You don’t want to worry about reservations. And you absolutely, positively don’t want to fool with timetables. Then I’ve got two words for
Ebby Halliday, real estate agent.
A not-so-sleepy suburban haven.
Jeremy Wariner on being an Olympic sprinter.
Summer vacation is right around the corner, but that doesn’t mean you should panic. We’ve rounded up 68 of our favorite things to do with your toddlers, teens, and every kid in between. Dance the hokey pokey. Rope a horse. Eat way too many hot dogs. Zip down a waterslide.
Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives.
Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue.
Mimi Swartz is a staff writer based in Houston.
The pall over Dallas City Hall.
In the ninth-largest city in America, boring is the new exciting.
Send in the clones.
Beg the president’s pardon?
Elections disappear into the history books, but the buttons and matchbooks and posters that exhorted us to vote for one candidate or another live on in our memories—and in the personal collection of the state’s biggest political junkie.
Alternative energy, my friend, is blowing in the wind.
A fix for political junkies.
And Saturday. And Sunday. The arrival of fall means weekends spent watching football, up close and on-screen, and yet another opportunity to love the greatest game on earth for all the usual reasons. Forty-nine of them, in fact.
Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pat’s Pick, for Texas Monthly.