Treasures of The Texas Collection
Texas in Popular Literature Script for KWBU/NPR
Script for KWBU-FM and Texas NPR Stations
By Hans Christianson
HOST (Mary Landon Darden)
When people think of Texas, they conjure up images of tumbleweeds, oil wells
and, of course, cowboys. Everyone lives on a ranch, rides a horse and wears a
cowboy hat. In fact, Texas is still a frontier state that is just as wild in the 21 st
century as it was in the 19th century.
While these depictions of Texas are not accurate, they are permanently
ingrained in the minds of non-Texans from around the world. Join me as I
talk with Austin freelance writer Hans Christianson about how the mythic
portrayal of Texas has developed across various mediums of popular
literature.
Welcome to the show, Hans.
Hans Christianson:
Thanks Mary. It's great to be here.
Hans, why are people so fascinated with Texas?
Texas is a hotbed for myths and legends. Over the past five centuries, it has
lived under the flags of five countries, the United States, the Confederate States of
America, France, Spain and Mexico. And it was even its own republic for nearly a
decade. Through its existence, it has maintained a foot in the mythos of both the
American West and the American South, drawing stories and traditions from both.
In short, Texas has done a great job of building and maintaining its own unique
brand.
I've heard that when Texans travel internationally, they always tell people
they are from Texas first, and from America second. In contrast, people from other
states will usually say they are Americans first. I think Texans can get away with
this because the world associates similar status to Texas as it does to the United
States. And in a lot of ways, the world is fascinated with Texas.
Texas in Popular Literature 2
According to the documents in your research, when did people start telling
stories about Texas?
People have been writing about Texas since the mid-16th century, when
Europeans first began making contact with North America. The early literature
describing Texas, which was historical in nature, was first written in Spanish and
can be traced back to 1542.
The first book written in English that solely highlighted Texas was written in
1833 by Mary Austin Holley, a cousin of Stephen F. Austin. It was simply titled,
Texas. The book sounds interesting because it consisted of 12 letters written by
Holley during her visit to the Texas colony to recipients back on the East Coast. It
was expanded a few years later into the History of Texas. Naturally, other topics
such as the Texas revolution and the battle for the Alamo proved to be hot topics
for writers chronicling the development of Texas.
How has Texas been portrayed in traditional fiction, such as short stories and
novels?
One author known for short stories involving Texas is O. Henry. His 1907
collection The Heart of the West features some of his best Texas stories, including
The Reformation of Calliope, The Caballero's Way and The Hiding of Black Bill.
He is credited with describing Texas life – including cowboys, rangers and
pioneers – with great detail.
Another writer with strong ties to Texas, and Baylor in fact, is Dorothy
Scarborough. A noted teacher, folklorist and writer, she taught English classes at
Baylor from 1905 to 1915, while she earned bachelor's and master's degrees. In
1916, she moved to New York City to teach at Columbia University, where she
also earned her doctorate in literature. Her teaching specialty included the short
story and novel.
Scarborough was a member of the Texas Folklore Society, which was
founded in 1910, and included fellow member and Texas folklorist J. Frank Dobie.
Many of her novels examined the role of women in Texas along with focusing on
Texas mainstays, such as sharecroppers, cowboys and ghosts. Her works include In
the Land of Cotton, Can't Get a Redbird and The Stretch-Berry Smile.
In 1925, she published the controversial novel The Wind, which was made
into a 1927 silent film of the same name. The story revolved around life on the
Texas in Popular Literature 3
Texas frontier and how the incessant wind and drought conditions drive the novel's
heroine insane. The Texas Collection at Baylor has a large archival section of her
personal papers, manuscripts and letters.
In terms of modern Texas writers, I would like to point out author Larry
McMurtry. He has written several novels involving Texas, including The Last
Picture Show, Terms of Endearment (both of which were turned into awardwinning movies) and All My Friends Are Going to be Strangers. His greatest
success came in the 1986 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Lonesome Dove, which told
the story of a group of retired Texas Rangers on a cattle drive from Texas to
Montana. The novel was made into an Emmy Award-winning miniseries, which in
turn spawned four sequels and two television series.
The Texas Collection has an extensive collection (more than 20,000 titles) in
their Texas Pulp Periodicals section. How do these relate to the Texas myth?
Pulp fiction, not to be confused with the Quentin Tarantino film of the same
name, refers to periodicals that were mass-produced from the mid-1800s to the
mid-1900s on cheap, wood pulp paper. Originally, the medium started out as “dime
novels,” which often told stories of the American West in the form of a selfcontained novel and short stories, complete with black-and-white illustrations.
As the years went on, the pulps developed into more of a magazine format
with a detailed drawn or painted cover that highlighted the type of action a reader
could expect from the interior pages. In many cases, the covers were considered
lurid and risqué by refined audiences. They often featured a cowboy or a ranger
caught in the middle of a gun fight or sticky situation. By today's standards, many
of the cover's portrayals of women and minorities would be considered offensive.
A few of the Texas-specific books that I found included titles, such as Texas
Western and Texas Rangers.
Eventually, another form of the pulps came out – pocketbooks. These pulp
paperback novels featured similar covers on the front and back, and adventurous
stories inside. A few titles I found included Pistol Passport and The Texas Pistol.
The back cover description to the pocketbook Bigger Than Texas gives a good idea
of what these books were like. It reads:
When Johnny Bracket reined into Field City, he had 21 steers, his bay, his
gun and a run of bad luck behind him. He liked the looks of the town and,
even better, he liked the land deed Morg Field offered him.
Texas in Popular Literature 4
What he didn't like was the fear he saw in the faces of the townsfolk and the
ruthless greed he began to see in the man who owned them.
The publications had a wide appeal across the country, with sales ranging in
the hundreds of thousands per issue. For many people – particularly adolescents –
this was how they learned about Texas and the American West. These stories
definitely helped develop the cowboy myth in Texas.
From the 1920s to the 1960s, students learned about lone star history through
a comic strip called “Texas History Movies.” What can you tell us about that?
This is a great historical gem. Beginning in 1926, the Dallas News and
Dallas Journal, predecessors to the Dallas Morning News, published a comic strip
intended to teach public school students about Texas history. The strips combined
simple cartoons with explanatory historical text. The strips were published only
during the school year, and covered events from 1530 to 1885.
In 1928, the strips (428 total) were collected into a 217 page, oversized
hardcover book. They were also collected into a smaller, digest size by the
Magnolia Petroleum Company (predecessor to Exxon/Mobil) and distributed for
free to students around Texas. By the 1960s, the content was deemed to be racist,
so the distribution ceased and the copyright was given to the Texas State Historical
Association.
In 2007, the association announced they were releasing an updated version
of the strips in conjunction with the Texas A&M Press titled The New Texas
History Movies. Revised by the late Jack Jackson, award-winning scholar and
illustrator, the book offers a glimpse at Texas history for a new generation of
students.
Cowboy poetry is a literary form that not all of our listeners may be familiar
with. Tell me more about it.
Cowboy poetry is another medium that has helped to spread the myth of
Texas. While it is not specifically tied to the Lonestar State in origin or subject, it
does celebrate the cowboy way of life.
The form began in the 1800s as a way for cowboys and ranch hands to share
stories. Since many of these men were illiterate, the stories were all oral in nature.
And the rhyme and meter helped with memory recall and future storytelling. Many
Texas in Popular Literature 5
people may be surprised to learn that cowboy poetry has undergone a revival in the
past few decades. Current cowboy poets write and perform their work at festivals
around the country.
I would like to share an excerpt from poem by Jack Douglas from his
collection Hangin' Out with the Heifers. The poem is titled A Partner in His Plan.
As I ride across the prairies,
out onto ranges wide
I marvel at God's wonders
beneath the pale blue skies
Where cattle graze on grasses
that are washed by summer rains
And I thank God He made the cowboy,
caretaker of the range.
As I look upon the mountains
that shade the valleys wide
I see God in all His glory
and I see God in all His pride.
For His handiwork is perfect
and the cowboy He has used
To care for all the rangeland
and there he paid his dues
I see God in the faces
of the newborn baby calves
In the streams of bubbling water
that rush on by and laugh
In the deer that graze the meadows
of this rough and rugged land
Texas in Popular Literature 6
And I thank God He made the cowboy
a partner in His plan.
The Texas Rangers, the law enforcement group – not the major league
baseball team – are an important part of the Texas myth. How have they been
portrayed?
As I mentioned earlier, the Texas Rangers were a prominent part of the pulp
fiction movement. They were also the title characters of Tales of the Texas
Rangers, a western police procedural radio drama that premiered in 1950. The
shows recreated actual cases involving the Texas Rangers and featured fictional
Ranger Jayce Pearson and his horse Charcoal. In 1955, the show was adapted for
television. One of the unique aspects of the television show is that it used stories
set in modern times and the old Texas. And, speaking of television, I have to
mention the show Walker, Texas Ranger, which featured film star and martial artist
Chuck Norris.
The Texas Rangers fit seamlessly into Texas myth. Even though they are a
modern-day law enforcement agency – the investigative arm of the Texas
Department of Public Safety – they still have a frontier style to their persona.
Rangers wear white cowboy hats, western-style shirts with a shiny badge attached
to the pocket, and a gun strapped to their belt. They embody the frontier spirit of
Texas.
Doesn't the Lone Ranger also have a connection to Texas?
Yes, he does. In fact, he may be the most famous – albeit fictional – Texas
Ranger. The character was created in 1933 for The Lone Ranger radio show. The
show lasted more than two decades and spawned film serials, a television show,
comic books and a feature film. The title character, known only as Reid, is part of a
group of six Texas Rangers pursuing a gang of outlaws. When the group is
ambushed, all of the Rangers are killed except him. After being nursed back to
health by an American Indian named Tonto, Reid fakes his death and takes up the
guise as the masked Lone Ranger.
In true western fashion, he and Tonto travel through Texas and the American
West exacting justice and righting wrongs.
Austin, Texas is considered a live-music hub. How do people across the U.S.
associate music with Texas?
Texas in Popular Literature 7
One example of Texas-influenced music can be found in Bob Wills and the
Texas Playboys. Wills is considered to be one the fathers of Western Swing, and
some of his famous songs include San Antonio Rose, If You're From Texas and
Texarkana Baby. His music is still enjoyed across Texas at dance halls, and has
inspired younger musicians such as Asleep at the Wheel.
Most people probably associate with the Austin City Limits television show
that airs on PBS. In fact, the show debuted in 1975 with a reunion of Bob Wills and
the Texas Playboys. Over the years, ACL has featured performances by Willie
Nelson, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Johnny Cash, the Indigo Girls and more. Currently,
ACL is the longest-running concert music program. And since 2002, the Austin
City Limits Music Festival has been drawing visitors to Texas from around the
world.
Texas has been portrayed frequently in films. Can you give us a few examples
that emerged in your research?
I think that film is the medium that has most impacted people's modern
perception of Texas. For many people, the history and geography lessons of Texas
were learned in the classroom known as the cinema and the late, great drive-in
movie theater.
That sounded like something Joe Bob Briggs would say.
The first fictional film about Texas, titled Texas Tex, was made in 1908.
What's interesting about this film is that it was produced entirely in Denmark. It
did, however, feature genuine Native Americans, who were traveling through
Europe as part of a Wild West show. The plot was typical for a western story: the
title character Tex has to rescue his stolen horses and abducted love interest from a
bad cowboy and, of course, his Native American counterpart, which was so typical
for that day, but has appropriately been abandoned for the obvious racist
implications. As always, in the end, Tex saves the day.
For a period of time in the early 20th century, Texas was featured more than
any other state in the title of films. And naturally, there was no shortage of films
about the Alamo. One of the quintessential films made about Texas is Giant,
starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. Released in 1955, Giant
was a critical success and featured a new type of villain for the Texas landscape –
oil. The film was based on the 1952 award-winning novel of the same name by
Texas author Edna Ferber. The film dealt with the conflict in Texas between
Texas in Popular Literature 8
ranching and oil exploration. Don Graham described the film in his book Cowboys
and Cadillacs:
GIANT is probably the archetypal Texas movie; it contains every significant
element in the stereotype: cowboys, wildcatters, cattle empire, wealth,
crassness of manners, garish taste, and barbecue.
What are some other quintessential films involving Texas?
Some of the films related to Texas that still stand out include The Last
Picture Show (written by Larry McMurtry), Urban Cowboy and Tender Mercies,
which was written by American playwright and Texan Horton Foote. Dazed and
Confused, a more recent film and cult classic from the 1990s -- chronicles life in
1976 Austin, Texas. The funny thing about this film is that most of the actors, save
for Matthew McConaughey, do not have Texas accents.
Texas has also made a significant impact on the horror genre with The Texas
Chainsaw Massacre. Loosely based on the horrific events surrounding Wisconsin
serial killer Ed Gein, this low-budget movie took the nation by storm. Special
effects were limited, so the movie delivers its frights through suspense. It has gone
on to spawn several sequels and a big-budget remake, along with inspiring many
Halloween costumes. It also inspired generation of mask-wearing film villains.
I think the biggest reason this film works is because of the title. Texas goes
naturally with a chainsaw-wielding maniac. I don't think there are any other states
that could pull off that title. After all, the Idaho or North Carolina Chainsaw
Massacre just doesn't have the same ring to it.
One of the most enduring icons of Texas legend is the Battle of the Alamo in
San Antonio. How has that been portrayed in literature and film throughout
the years?
There's certainly no shortage of coverage surrounding the 1836 Battle of the
Alamo, particularly in film. And it fits perfectly with Texas legend. Just take a look
at the cast of characters who were at the battle: Mexican General Santa Anna,
William B. Travis, the famous knife fighter James Bowie and frontiersman Davy
Crockett. The 12-day siege ended with the violent deaths of all but two Texas
revolutionaries, but it inspired settlers to join the Texas Revolution movement that
ultimately resulted in independence from Mexico. Don Graham describes the film
appeal of the Alamo in Cowboys and Cadillacs:
Texas in Popular Literature 9
Texas history movies have always remembered the Alamo. The Alamo is the
sacred cow, the lead steer, the big one that has to be retold for every
generation.
Over the years, several film recreations of the Battle of the Alamo have
surfaced. The 1915 film, The Martyrs of the Alamo, is considered one of the first
films made about the subject. The film, like many of its successors, was mostly a
one-sided affair, painting the Anglo defenders as virtuous and the Mexican soldiers
as aggressors. In 1960, John Wayne directed and starred in The Alamo, the most
famous of the films surrounding the event.
Wayne had taken on the project as a personal undertaking, even financing a
portion of the film itself. The film was well-received, even if it wasn't entirely
historically correct. Apparently, one of the big omissions of the story included
leaving out a letter written to Texas and the world by William B. Travis, which
read in part:
I shall never surrender or retreat.
In 2004, a new version of the events was presented in John Lee Hancock's
The Alamo, which starred Dennis Quaid. While this version tried to show a
balanced view of the battle, it was a commercial failure.
I had a friend who was an extra in that movie. He said he spent weeks laying
on the ground in the hot Texas sun, pretending to be dead. Let's talk about
the television show that went off the air 18 years ago, yet still shapes people's
perceptions of Texas today, Dallas.
Dallas is another example of how people have learned about Texas in the
last 30 years. It's interesting that some people credit the movie Giant as the
inspiration for the show. It certainly dealt with many of the same issues -- oil,
wealth and greed. It also displayed a larger-than-life view of Texas society. The
show's official web site, www.ultimatedallas.com, describes the show:
Dallas was the first show to combine the scope of a mini-series with the big
ideas of life — themes such as good versus evil and brother versus brother.
Set in the big state of Texas — where life is lived in the fast lane, where
everything is bigger and badder than anywhere else — the breadth of
the show made viewers realize that Romeo and Juliet had at long last come
to Giant.
Texas in Popular Literature 10
To give you an idea of the cultural significance of Dallas, the cowboy hat
worn by Larry Hagman's character J.R. Ewing is currently on display in the
Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. And nearly 360 million
viewers worldwide tuned in to the "Who Done It?" episode that revealed "Who
shot J.R.?” in the famous 1980 cliffhanger.
We've talked about the cowboy myth and the rich, oil tycoon persona. Let's
switch gears and talk about another Texas icon: football.
To say that football is a big deal in Texas would be a serious understatement.
Texas is home to two NFL teams, the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans.
College football also brings in enormous crowds to cheer on powerhouse, division
I teams such as the University of Texas Longhorns, Texas A&M Aggies and the
Texas Tech Red Raiders. But I think the real football story in Texas is found on the
high school level.
Every fall, thousands of fans gather on Friday nights at lavish high school
football stadiums that rival college stadiums in other states to cheer on their
favorite teams. In many of the small Texas towns, these high school football stars
are treated as local celebrities. This football subculture was chronicled in the 1990
non-fiction book Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, and A Dream by H.G.
Bissinger.
Bissenger, a sports reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, moved his family
to Odessa, Texas, in 1988 and spent a year following the Permian High School
Panthers football team. As he researched the book, many of the townspeople
thought he was developing an inspirational story highlighting one of Texas'
favorite past times. Instead, Bissenger published a scathing critique of the football
program, which included instances of racism and the overemphasis of high school
football in Texas, particularly in small towns.
It's no surprise that initially many people in Odessa, and probably
throughout Texas, were upset about the book's content. But over time, Texas has
embraced this new football myth. In 2002, the book was named the fourth-greatest
book written about sports by Sports Illustrated. And in 2004, the book was turned
into a successful feature film starring Billy Bob Thornton followed by a hit
television show on NBC, which debuted in 2006 and is shot primarily in Austin,
Texas. In fact, it was recently renewed for a fourth season.
It sounds like people just can't get enough of Texas.
Texas in Popular Literature 11
I think you're right. People love Texas and Texas loves itself. And in the end,
that is the charm of Texas. You just can't help but liking it once you're here. I'm not
a native Texan, but I've lived here for 11 years. I feel proud to be in Texas.
And, I think Texas is the only state where you go to the store and buy a bag
of tortilla chips shaped like it. I've never seen Pennsylvania or Minnesota shaped
tortilla chips.
I am sure you are right about that. Thank you for sharing this rich history of
Texas Literature with us Hans.
Thank you Mary. It's always a pleasure to be here.
If you would like to learn more about Texas in popular literature, The Texas
Collection has the largest collection of Texas-related documents, books, letters,
photographs, memoirs, and more.
Property of The Texas Collection at Baylor University
Final Edit: January 9, 2010
_________________________________________________
Hans Christianson, Writer
_________________________________________________
Dr. Mary Landon Darden, Executive Producer
_________________________________________________
Pattie Orr, Vice President of Information Technology and Dean of
University Libraries
_________________________________________________
John Wilson, Associate Director of The Texas Collection
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Dr. Thomas L. Charlton, Director of The Texas Collection