The Texanist: How Do You Pronounce All Those Weird Texas Town Names?
A Dallas man is flummoxed by Quitaque. And Danevang, and Jiba, and Study Butte, and Zuehl . . .
A Temple native, David Courtney is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He joined Texas Monthly in October 2005 and in July 2007 debuted his wildly popular advice column, the Texanist, regularly the magazine’s most-read feature.
In 2017, the University of Texas Press published The Texanist: Fine Advice on Living in Texas, and in 2019, Fox Entertainment optioned the column with plans to develop a television show based on it. As the Texanist and as himself, Courtney has contributed his talents to such endeavors as the annual Bum Steer Awards, the quinquennial review of the fifty best barbecue joints in Texas, “The 50 Greatest Hamburgers in Texas,” “The 40 Best Small-Town Cafes,” and “Snap Judgment,” a compilation of the ten greatest plays in Texas college football, as well as “The Beachcomber,” for which he walked the entire 65-mile length of Padre Island National Seashore, and “Water, Water Everywhere,” for which he swam buck naked in Lake Travis, outside of Austin.
A Dallas man is flummoxed by Quitaque. And Danevang, and Jiba, and Study Butte, and Zuehl . . .
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
As the state started shutting down, one man took to the coast in search of a different kind of solitude. And seashells.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Boerne woman wonders if other Americans are as smitten as we are with the outlines of their states.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A West Texas man seems to be tired of living on Mountain Standard Time.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
How to handle the zit-sized pustule that those evil little @$*!%*#@%&!s leave behind.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Raise a Pearl beer to our ten greatest college football plays. Ever.
An Austin man ponders the unthinkable.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
The recent, terrifying events in Washington have an Austin man wondering about mayhem closer to home.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A New York man wants to know everything there is to know about Texas toast.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Some tasty lab-grown barbecue and a Dallas Cowboys postseason appearance may be in our distant future.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
We still love our Shiner, Pearl, and Lone Star, but our options are now bubbling over, thanks to hundreds of craft breweries across the state.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Johnson City man is worried that life is starting to resemble Elmer Kelton’s ‘The Time It Never Rained’ once again.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Plano man wonders how the likes of Bob Dylan, Sarah Palin, and John Wayne qualified for this prestigious designation.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Lubbock woman isn’t sure the state’s wildly successful vineyards fit with our Wild West image.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Two Texas Monthly writers go head-to-head on the merits and inferiorities of tacos made with crispy shells vs. soft tortillas.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue.
An Amarillo man is unhappy that the iconic banners no longer fly in front of the Texas Travel Information Centers.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Fredericksburg man wonders how Willie Nelson ever prevailed in a state that brought us Ray Wylie Hubbard, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Lone Star State native living in Chicago insists that only small pastry squares filled with cooked fruit deserve that name.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Houston woman is miffed by her boyfriend’s reaction to a thoughtful gift.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Austin man wonders if the people who stand behind a counter and take our orders deserve the same remuneration as the waiters and waitresses of the world.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
My dream of navigating through Big Bend’s stunning canyons finally came true. I just had to start a little farther downstream.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Moviegoers have returned to theaters in droves to see the long-awaited sequel—and we have Texas to thank.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Austinite living in Washington, D.C., worries about the consequences of sporting pricey designer footwear.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A San Antonio man wonders how Sun City got its other nickname and learns about the nicknames of many other Texas cities.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A New Braunfels man isn’t quite sure that he has a firm grasp on this fundamental aspect of Texas rural life.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A pair of Texas Monthly writers chronicle an emerging scene that would end up defining a city and changing American music forever.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
As it turns out, even the best films and TV shows about the Lone Star State have their share of gaffes. (Yes, even ‘Lonesome Dove.’)
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A transplant from California wades into an age-old culinary debate.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Fort Worth woman wants to know why we honor the bluebonnet and the pecan tree, but not the strudel or the sopaipilla.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An El Paso woman is looking for the finest example of Lone Star holiday musical jollity. But can there only be one?
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A longtime San Antonio resident is thrilled—but puzzled—by the presence of monk parakeets in her hometown.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Arlington man wonders if his penny-wise buddy is being barbecue-foolish.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A conversation with the big guy himself.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A man now living in Fredericksburg wonders if his hometown really has anything to brag about.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Two Texas buddies stationed at an Air Force base in Qatar wonder if their bond can survive the SEC’s recent expansion.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Eulogy man wants to make sure that his footwear and pants-wear choices are compatible.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Plano woman doesn't think pistol-packing goes with pasta primavera.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Dallas man is flummoxed by Quitaque. And Danevang, and Jiba, and Study Butte, and Zuehl . . .
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A very wet spring has a San Antonio woman looking for some relief from an arthropod invasion.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Houston man wants to get the width of his brim just right.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Brady woman isn't sure her new relationship will survive a fundamental disagreement about the weather.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Houston woman wants to know why the fine folks in Granger just won't leave her alone.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Fort Worth resident wants to know if the stepson of a descendant of Moses Austin can call himself the great-great-great-great-great-step-grandson of the Father of the Father of Texas.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A man from the Sooner State has a question about the other Red River Rivalry.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Waxahachie man is trying to gauge the popularity of the "red draw."
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Kansas woman is puzzled by some recent data about the Volunteer State and the Lone Star State.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A River City man isn’t happy about paying for what used to be free.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A West Texas man seems to be tired of living on Mountain Standard Time.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
The recent, terrifying events in Washington have an Austin man wondering about mayhem closer to home.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Maryland man is worried that his progeny may never become a true Texan.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Austin man is skeptical that a company held by a Chicago investment firm can claim that distinction.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Oregon transplant is hoping he can find a few places to cast a line in his adopted state.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Belfast woman is looking for a few good corn husks.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
The New York–born singer-songwriter got to Texas as soon as he could—and spent the next five decades changing the lives of seemingly everyone he met.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue.
Jeff Salamon is the deputy editor at Texas Monthly.
John Spong writes primarily about popular culture.
Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002.
Christian Wallace writes about West Texas, oil and gas, music, cowboys, history, and history-making Texans.
A Midland woman wonders what to do if she meets a member of the family Ursidae in the wild.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
An Austin man ponders the unthinkable.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Houston mom has had it with Minecraft.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A resident of “The Texas of Canada” is having second thoughts about retiring to the Lone Star State.
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.
A Texas transplant to California is unhappy about the ubiquity of the “nasty and repugnant weed."
David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, is a staff writer.