ABOUT YOUR SEPTEMBER COVER … As a lifetime Texan and hockey dad, I’m a bit offended. Okay, I’m over it. However, I’m wondering if you know that the state of Texas houses more pro hockey teams than any other state. I’m wondering if you know just how many kids
I WAS MESMERIZED by “96 Minutes” [August 2006]. My husband, Jim, was one of the people who offered his deer rifle to an officer, on the second story of the University United Methodist Church. He ran across the Drag, went into the building, and found the officer
I JUST HOPE and pray that some child waiting in line at the grocery checkout doesn’t say, “Mommy, what does ‘mofo’ mean?” What were y’all thinking?JOY MARTINSan AntonioJUST BECAUSE Governor Rick Perry got away with the comment does not mean we should have to relive this obscenity.NATHAN DAYBedfordOh, Ricky, You’re
I’M SURE GLAD YOU decided to exclude Belton Lake from your “Water, Water Everywhere” story [June 2006]. Maybe it will stay one of the most gorgeous, least crowded, clearest, and most enjoyable lakes in the state.GEORGE DUTTONArlingtonHOW COULD YOU LEAVE OFF the state’s number one bass-fishing lake,
A list of large and small farmers’ markets in or near major Texas cities.
Back at you, Texas Monthly. Don’t let my door hit you … Paul Burka’s article on Tom DeLay was not very objective [“Without DeLay,” May 2006].J. HUNDLEYAustinDemocrats deemed Tom DeLay the new bogeyman for one reason only: He dared to fight hard for Republicans in Texas. Forget
I ENJOYED EVERY WORD OF “75 Things We Love About Texas” [April 2006]. There are so many you could not include because of a lack of room. A few that occurred to me: the very shape of Texas, the ceaseless arguments over how to make real Texas
Thank you for printing names, faces, and information in “Fallen Heroes” [March 2006]. As many others probably did with the issue, I flipped through the pages and only glanced at the pictures. Then I read “Heartbreak High” [March 2006] and ended up feeling like a selfish, self-centered person. I
Including: the sopa azteca at El Mirador, in San Antonio; the spring-fed pool at Balmorhea State Park; the humidity; elbow room; free advice at White Rock Lake, in Dallas; county courthouses; boots-and- jeans-clad Academy Award–winner Larry McMurtry; and—seriously— quail hunting.
I read your Bud Shrake/Gary Cartwright article while on a plane from Austin to Los Angeles (poignant in itself), and it literally brought tears to my eyes [“Perfect 10,” February 2006]. It not only took me back to that stellar night of January 4 but to the several nights
March—People, Places, Events, Attractions03.09.2006You have to wonder what’s most impressive about the 48-year-old World’s Largest Rattlesnake Round-up, in Sweetwater: the fact that a community of farmers and ranchers devised a way to turn all their diamondback-infested nooks and crannies into ripe hunting grounds, drawing crowds from as far as Australia
Your article about being an Army brat could have been my biography, right down to the unair-conditioned Plymouth station wagon [“Army Brat,” December 2005]! When we lived in Naples, Italy, my dad, who worked for base security, drove us in that Plymouth, which was probably the largest car in
February—People, Places, Events, Attractions02.11.2006“TWO WOMEN LOOK WEST: PHOTOGRAPHS OF KING RANCH BY HELEN C. KLEBERG AND TONI FRISSELL,” a dual exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, takes us back this month to the glory years of the King Ranch, when it was the biggest, richest, and most glamorous
JUST LIKE HE RAN FOR PRESIDENT After his powerboat, The Rough Rider, sped through a 5-knot zone at a speed of 30 knots, Ross Perot was fined $300 in Bermuda Magistrates’ Court for operating “without reasonable consideration.” SHE ONLY HAD ONE CLIENT ANYWAY Prior to her withdrawal as a
Read more letters about the November issue.
Texans for Lawsuit Reform responds to our November 2005 article; we respond to the organization’s response.
Jason LeeYou might think that texas monthly deserves its own Bum Steer for not using a Texan to create this month’s cover image, but it’s hard to argue with the results of Jason Lee’s work. The New Yorker (by way of Rhode Island) used a computerized 3-D technique to
Your November 2005 article [“Hurt? Injured? Need a Lawyer? Too Bad!”], ostensibly on tort reform, was disappointing in its limited and biased coverage of the litigation reforms of the past decade, the grassroots movement that generated those reforms, and the improvements in Texas law and society that the reforms
Roberto Parada, who illustrated the seven Where I’m From profiles, was born in North Arlington, New Jersey.Executive editor Mimi Swartz (“Midnight in the Garden of Memory,” was born in Baltimore, Maryland.Senior executive editor Paul Burka (“I of the Storm,” was born in Galveston.Writer-at-large Oscar Casares (“Christmas
Great article about the cheerleading debate [“Flipping Out,” October 2005]. All I can say is this: It’s funny that the legislators mention “more of our young girls getting pregnant in middle and high school, dropping out of school, having babies,” when it’s the young ladies on the cheerleading squads
I cross the Red River regularly for business, and it galls me every time. You see “OU” everywhere, and you can’t say anything, because Bob Stoops owns Mack Brown [“The Eyes of Texas Are Upon Him,” September 2005]. Mack Brown may be a nice guy, but I want trained
Charles S. AndersonYou may not know Charles S. Anderson’s name, but you certainly know his work. He’s created striking images and logos for Turner Classic Movies, Target, French Paper, and Best Buy. And though the designer, who is based in Minneapolis, rarely creates artwork for magazines, he jumped at
I am mortified that Texas Monthly would choose the cover heading “And on the eighth day, God created Joel Osteen” [“Prime Minister,” August 2005]. While Joel Osteen delivers a feel-good message and may be a good businessman, please reacquaint yourselves with Genesis, chapter one, of the Holy Bible—any version.
Your justification for including me on the Ten Worst list was primarily based on your false assertion that I was to blame for the demise of a judicial pay raise bill [“The Best and Worst Legislators of 2005,” July 2005]. In fact, I voted “present not voting” on
September—People, Places, Events, Attractions09.25.05Love him or hate him, you have to respect Anselm Kiefer’s sheer ambition. “The scale of his ideas is daunting, and the size of his works—some paintings are twenty-four feet high—is incredible,” says Michael Auping, who organized the Kiefer exhibit opening this month at the Modern Art
As a landowner of Devils River property for 75 years, I can assure you, Mr. Gwynne, that the only reason the Devils River is the pure and pristine river it is today is because of those ornery landowners, who were, and still are, trying their best to preserve for future
John MorthlandWhen writer-at-large John Morthland first started writing about food, in the eighties, he turned to what he liked best: “Barbecue, Cajun, regional American stuff,” he says. “Comfort food.” So cataloging chicken-fried cuisine around the state for “Grease” was easy as pie. “I already had a mental file of
August—People, Places, Events, Attractions08.08.2005To celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary, the Inprint Brown Reading Series has invited a writer whose penchant for eccentricity, outspokenness, and outlandishness (in print at least) equals that of his host city. John Irving, that master of weirdly irresistible characters and extravagant, tragically comic plots (or is it
“Old-timers’ Day” [May 2005] is the best thing that’s been in Texas Monthly in years. I’ve always enjoyed both Gary Cartwright and Dan Jenkins, but this was like sitting and listening to them argue and tell stories over a long lunch. Please persuade, cajole, bribe, or threaten both these
Mark UlriksenAlthough San Francisco illustrator Mark Ulriksen has been to Texas several times (“I even got a traffic ticket from a no-nonsense cop in Amarillo, my first ever”), he had to do some catching up on state politics for “Carole Keeton Strayhorn Has Guts…”. “I’m pretty familiar with
S. C. Gwynne’s “Safe at Home” is not really about the children [April 2005]. It is about the parents’ need to be “the best.” By having their children compete for regional, state, and national titles, parents can feel that they have done a superior job of parenting. The fact
“Kinky, your absence is going to be more devastating than Dan Rather’s leaving the ‘sunken anchor’ biz. Please rethink your aspirations!”
March—People, Places, Events, Attractions03.2005Dennis Quaid returns to Texas, finds true love in Austin, and experiences a career comeback. Coincidence? We think not.The state’s influence on the silver screen is only too evident this month in the Capital City, which hosts the TEXAS FILM HALL OF FAME AWARDS on March 11.
Before yet another rendition of “Frosty the Snowman” threatens to push you over the edge this year, take preemptive action and embrace the season’s classics. On the first three Friday and Saturday nights in December, Natural Bridge Caverns, outside New Braunfels, presents Caroling in the Caverns, a 75-minute tour
AUSTINColorful, casual El Chile’s roasted-jalapeño salsa is the best in town, dark as chocolate and just the right thickness to coat a chip; while not terribly hot, it’s not for wimps. A few months ago, Las Manitas created a terrific spicy salsa that blends chile de árbol, tomatillo, garlic,
AUSTINThe race for best garlic shrimp in Austin is a tie. Fonda San Miguel’s version is for those who want to taste the flavor of shrimp first, garlic second; the restaurant’s beautifully cooked crustaceans give serious meaning to the word “jumbo,” and its colonial-style dining rooms define “handsome.” For
AUSTINThere’s a tie for Austin’s best mole: The cooks at Las Manitas once took a class in mole-making from Diana Kennedy, and a version of the famous cookbook author’s own recipe—lush with chiles, chocolate, and spices—is offered at the laid-back cafe Friday through Sunday, atop enchiladas or by the
AUSTINA spacious bakery and counter-order cafe, La Mexicana is a home away from home for Mexican expatriates, who eat breakfast or lunch, watch Spanish-language TV, and send money to the folks back home while the kitchen churns out multicolored sweet buns, churros (skinny squiggles of fried dough), and much
AUSTINThe guacamole at unpretentious El Mesón is the best in Austin—avocado scooped from the shell, lightly mashed, and mixed with chopped onion, tomato, and jalapeño and ample quantities of lime juice; it’s eat-by-the-spoonful good. At El Chile, a repurposed bungalow, the cooks do a nice job with a chunky
AUSTINThere are chiles rellenos, and then there are chiles rellenos en nogada, a classic variation with a sweet, luxuriant walnut cream sauce. The city’s best relleno is the nogada version served at Manuel’s, both the limestone-walled dining room downtown and the flamboyant place up north; the rich sauce has
achiote to divorciado(a) | dulce de leche to migas | mojarra to zarzamoraachiote (ah-chee-oh-teh): Nothing to sneeze at, achiote is a dark red paste made from the crushed seeds of the annatto tree. It has a mild, paprika-like flavor.adobado(a) (ah-doh-bah-doh): seasoned with adobo.adobo (ah-doh-boh): a red
Nellie Connally, now and always.
It was a session like no other: different rules, new power players, a surprise trip to Oklahoma, and the small matter of a $9.9 billion budget shortfall. All of which made it tricky to separate the heroes from the zeroes. But we did.
A recipe from Helen Corbitt, who reigned as Neiman Marcus's head chef for seventeen years.
Invite a few friends over for a good ol' fashioned crawfish boil!
Favorite moments in the 30 years of Texas Monthly.
A family-oriented resort outside Playa del Carmen, an eating tour of mole-obsessed Puebla, and three more of our favorite getaways south of the border.
Orange-Zest Biscuits From Nellie Connally. Servings 16
We knew he could sing, of course. What we didn't know was that he had such a great sense of humor. Here are some of Willie Nelson's favorite jokes from his just-published memoir, The Facts of Life and Other Dirty Jokes.
Dan Rather reflects on the attack at the World Trade Center.
