Notes on Life, Death, and Family From a Hill Country Deer Blind
"We both watch the blood and steam spill out into the winter air. At this point, it is not unusual for at least one of us to cry."
Meet Irvin Randle, the Sixty-Year-Old Instagram Star Your Grandma Has the Hots For
To his 650,000 Instagram followers, he’s a pioneering “grandfluencer.” But to his adoring second-grade students, he’s simply Mr. Randle.
Welcome to Alphaland, the Disney World for Bodybuilders
Meatheads from around the country fly in to the 30,000-square-foot gym in the Houston suburbs where you’re no one if you’re not flexing, vlogging, or networking.
The (Fake) Beto Diaries, Vol. 1: Piggly Wiggly in Muldrow, Oklahoma
Our hero reflects on hot dogs, ‘The Odyssey,’ and a killer Replacements track.
150 Articles
Style & Design
January 24, 2023
How a Texas Baby-Clothing Company Took Target Down (a Peg)
When Adrian Layne saw her best-selling print on Target items, she was flattered. Then she was furious.
Texas Icons
January 17, 2023
The Great Texification of Dairy Queen
A stubborn and savvy group of franchisees turned the Midwest-based dessert chain into a Lone Star institution beloved for its steak fingers and Hungr-Busters.
Being Texan
December 20, 2022
15 Items to Add to Your Winter Emergency Kit
May we suggest tickets to Cancun?
By
Emily McCullar
![Emily McCullar's Profile Photo]()
and
Dan Solomon
![Dan Solomon's Profile Photo]()
Style & Design
December 14, 2022
Muggles Descend on Galveston’s Harry Potter–Themed Christmas Market
Locals kitted out in wizard robes to shop for wands, chocolate frogs, and Hogwarts-themed holiday ornaments.
Film & TV
December 8, 2022
The Ballad of Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and the Boy From Huntsville
Somewhere inside every story—including the one in which the Duke and Duchess of Sussex chose to step back from the royal family, as told on Netflix’s ‘Harry & Meghan’—lies a Texan.
Critters
November 22, 2022
Please Do Not Touch the “Toxic Toupee,” a.k.a. the “Mortal Mustache,” a.k.a. Texas’s Most Venomous Caterpillar
It’s furry and cute, but it can cause intense, throbbing pain for up to twelve hours!
Sports
October 26, 2022
I Watched Two Episodes of ‘Drive to Survive’ and Then Covered Formula 1
Gridlock, brand activations, and Austrian funnel cake ruled the weekend’s U.S. Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas.
Meanwhile in Texas
October 21, 2022
Marvel at This Footage of Somebody Stealing a 12-Foot Halloween Skeleton in Broad Daylight
It’s impressive, really.
Style & Design
October 14, 2022
How Ty Hunter Went From Working at the Galleria to Styling Beyoncé
In his new memoir, the Instagram star recounts his childhood in Austin and how he found his way in the fashion world.
Music
October 10, 2022
The Chicks’ ACL Set Would Have Been More Fun Anywhere Else
The band’s first Texas performance in six years celebrated family, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and (almost) harked back to the last time I actually enjoyed this music festival.
Style & Design
October 7, 2022
How the Scare Actors at a Texas Haunted House Get Ready (and Bloody) for Work
We followed the actors of haunted house Purgatory Scream Park near Houston as they prepped for a day at work.
Film & TV
September 30, 2022
Robert De Niro Wants You to Analyze His Personal Archives at Austin’s Harry Ransom Center
The legendary actor was feted at a glamorously hammy gala celebrating the Center’s collection, which is a treasure trove of film history that every good fella should study.
Music
September 29, 2022
Besides the Flute Lizzo Played, Here Are 9 Library of Congress Artifacts You Didn’t Know Existed
The classically trained Houston pop star played a two-hundred-year-old crystal flute at a D.C. concert, causing a meltdown in some corners of the internet.
Food & Drink
September 19, 2022
Love, Loss, and Cabrito at the World Championship Barbecue Goat Cook-off
The 48th annual event in Brady rekindled both treasured and painful memories for a writer who’s been attending since infancy.
Books
September 15, 2022
A Debut Novelist Brings Secrets, Queerness, and Potato Salad to Small-town Texas
Bobby Finger, host of the popular celebrity podcast ‘Who? Weekly,’ treats his subjects gently and imbues them with wit.
Art
September 12, 2022
Texas’s Biggest, Strangest, and, Yes, Most Venomous Roadside Attractions
Fancy a selfie with state icon Tex Randall? Perhaps a date with a llama? Pull over and stretch your legs at these can’t-miss pit stops.
Style & Design
September 7, 2022
Meet Irvin Randle, the Sixty-Year-Old Instagram Star Your Grandma Has the Hots For
To his 650,000 Instagram followers, he’s a pioneering “grandfluencer.” But to his adoring second-grade students, he’s simply Mr. Randle.
Critters
August 24, 2022
Inside the Fight Between Texas’s Most Infamous Prison and Almost One Million Bats
The Huntsville penitentiary wants to tear down the abandoned warehouse where a massive bat colony spends half the year. Locals and conservationists have banded together to find an alternate solution.
Arts & Entertainment
July 25, 2022
Welcome to Alphaland, the Disney World for Bodybuilders
Meatheads from around the country fly in to the 30,000-square-foot gym in the Houston suburbs where you’re no one if you’re not flexing, vlogging, or networking.
Politics & Policy
July 11, 2022
Tips to Stay Cool During Record Heat and Potential Blackouts in Texas
Experts and an eleventh-generation Texan give advice on how to ensure safety and comfort in extreme heat.
Politics & Policy
July 5, 2022
You Have Been Sued for Profiling “the Most Hated Woman in America”
Lawrence Wright gives us the story behind his Texas Monthly story on Madalyn Murray O’Hair.
News & Politics
June 21, 2022
That Time a Texas Monthly Writer Profiled the Baron of Houston
John Davidson’s 1982 article on Enrico di Portanova was everything a high-society profile should be.
Music
June 21, 2022
It’s Beyoncé’s Summer Now
While we wait for ‘Renaissance’ to drop on July 24, the Beyhive is frantically trying to decode clues about the album to come. The speculation is the point.
Meanwhile in Texas
June 9, 2022
What Is the “Unidentified Amarillo Object”? We Have Ideas.
Is that you, Buc-ee?
News & Politics
June 7, 2022
Matthew McConaughey Has Something Real To Say About Guns
The Uvalde native took to the White House briefing room to talk about the lives of the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting—and call for change.
Film & TV
June 2, 2022
‘Deep in the Heart’ Gives Texas the ‘Planet Earth’ Treatment
The visually stunning new nature documentary, narrated by Matthew McConaughey, is a delight.
Business
May 11, 2022
The Writer Who Chronicled the Rise of a Texas Grocery Institution
Jan Jarboe Russell reflects on an exciting moment in H-E-B’s (and Texas Monthly’s) history.
Business
May 10, 2022
The Cattle Trader’s Secret Formula
CEO Jim Schwertner credits the persistent success of Capitol Land & Livestock to a data-driven algorithm.
Travel & Outdoors
April 26, 2022
I Operated an Excavator All by Myself at Texas’s First Construction Theme Park
At Dig World, in Katy, anyone can drive a utility vehicle or go wild in a skid steer.
Film & TV
April 4, 2022
Texans, We Can and Must Unite to Win ‘American Song Contest’
We can’t let California win, y’all. Here’s everything you need to know about how to vote for Texas in the pop song competition.
Film & TV
March 30, 2022
In Defense of ‘Battleship,’ the ‘Friday Night Lights’ Reunion With Aliens
This is a film in which Academy Award nominee Jesse Plemons flirts with billionaire Rihanna, and for that it should be cherished.
Film & TV
March 27, 2022
Oscar Night in Texas: A Jesse Plemons Live Blog
Join us as we watch over the Dillon High School graduate, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Music
March 18, 2022
In New Documentary, Tanya Tucker Is All Legend
No country music fan will be disappointed by ‘The Return of Tanya Tucker,’ which puts the focus on artistry and that one-in-a-million voice.
Film & TV
March 16, 2022
Can ‘O.C.’ Star Ben McKenzie Get Me to Care About Crypto? An Experiment.
One Texas Monthly reporter wages a battle between her blissful ignorance and her love of early-aughts teen soaps.
Politics & Policy
March 15, 2022
Wendy Davis Lost Her Fight Against Abortion Restrictions. A New Documentary Pretends She Won.
‘Shouting Down Midnight’ is a hagiography of the state senator that tries to impose a triumph narrative for Texas Democrats where none exists.
Film & TV
March 14, 2022
‘The Lost City’ Is an A-List Blockbuster From a Bygone Era
The joyful Sandra Bullock flick, chockablock with Hollywood’s finest, will lend itself to repeat viewings for many years to come.
Business
February 16, 2022
Texas Ranchers Get Paid to Capture Carbon
A San Antonio start-up rewards regenerative agriculture with the help of companies looking to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.
Film & TV
February 11, 2022
The Dallas Mortuary Accused of Producing the Worst Funerals Ever
Seventeen families are suing the Golden Gate Funeral Home for allegedly desecrating their loved ones' bodies.
Critters
February 8, 2022
California Has a Feral Hog Problem. We Have Some Suggestions.
You need a (Sid Miller–type) hero.
Travel & Outdoors
February 1, 2022
What Lies Beneath the San Antonio River? A Whole Lot of Weird Stuff
Cleaning crews dredged up creepy dolls, armored catfish, rental scooters, and a staggering quantity of chairs.
Film & TV
January 25, 2022
Are Chip and Joanna Gaines Too Big to Flop?
Magnolia Network, helmed by Waco’s First Family, has already weathered its first scandal. Viewers will keep tuning in.
Film & TV
January 13, 2022
Goodbye to ‘Search Party,’ the Show That Satirized a Generation
Comedies must choose whether to punch up or punch down; watching ‘Search Party’ has always made me feel like I’m punching myself.
Meanwhile in Texas
January 4, 2022
Fish Fell From the Sky in Texarkana, and No One Is Reel-y Sure Why
Cod this story be any stranger?
Being Texan
December 16, 2021
‘The Twelve Days of Christmas,’ Texas Edition
Twelve tamales steaming, eleven Longhorns losing . . . and thirty to fifty feral hogs.
Film & TV
December 13, 2021
There’s Nothing New About ‘Twentysomethings: Austin,’ and That’s Precisely Its Appeal
The cringey Netflix show strikes the classic reality-TV balance of being both hard to watch and impossible to turn off.
BBQ
November 24, 2021
The Franklin Barbecue Line Has Returned in All Its Glory
After enduring twenty months of takeout-only service, Franklin fanatics were thrilled to spend hours—up to ten of ’em—in line for Texas’s most famous brisket.
Style & Design
October 14, 2021
These Quilters Mean Business
After a year of solitary pandemic quilting, devotees of East Texas fabric mothership Stitchin’ Heaven take over Fort Worth, ready to bond—and spend.
Food & Drink
August 6, 2021
HTeaO Is Taking Over Texas, 51 Ounces at a Time
The Amarillo-based chain sells iced tea, and (almost) only iced tea. But it's in HTeaO's simplicity that we find its brilliance.
Food & Drink
July 30, 2021
Maybe the Topo Chico Shortage Is a Good Thing
Let's take advantage of this forced break between Texans and our Topo, and test out sparkling water brands that are—I hate to say it—even better.
Food & Drink
July 23, 2021
Nothing Will Stand Between This San Antonio Woman and Her Favorite Blue Bell Flavor
Rebecca Muehl is on a crusade to get the ice cream company to sell Krazy Kookie Dough year-round.