Around the Basin Issue

McDonald Observatory's 9.2-meter Hobby-Eberly Telescope sits atop Mount Fowlkes at an elevation of 6,659 feet and a cost of $35 million.

Fort Davis: Eyes on the stars

They come out at night

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

FORT DAVIS Stephen Odewahn shunned the invitation to the observatory Super Bowl party. There were gamma ray bursts to detect. Odewahn is a resident astronomer at McDonald Observatory near Fort Davis. He spends nights checking monitors at the...... Full story

Former Fort Davis resident Dillon Freasier, then age 11, began his acting career with a bang. Dillon, now 12, starred in 2008 Best Picture nominee ‘There Will Be Blood' with Daniel Day-Lewis.

Stars of Fort Davis to stars of Hollywood in Oscar-winning ‘There Will Be Blood’

West Texan Dillon Freasier holds his own with film-making veteran Daniel Day-Lewis

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

ALBANY There's one thing Dillon Freasier misses more than anything about living in Fort Davis - playing six-man football. "It's just smaller," said Dillon, who just turned 12. "You didn't have a whole bunch of people on the team." But a smaller...... Full story

Christine Olejniczak of Marfa played Mother Sunday in the movie ‘There Will Be Blood' that was filmed in the Marfa area.

A return to the land of ‘Giant’

Hollywood rediscovers Big Bend

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

MARFA Jason Willaford said he doesn't want any credit for "No Country for Old Men's" Academy Award Nomination for best cinematography. But if not for him, the rugged desert mountains of Presidio County may have had no part in the film, directed by...... Full story

Guests of the Cibolo Creek Ranch will settle into meticulously appointed guest rooms or suites at one of the ranch's three historic forts.

Cibolo Creek Ranch provides getaway

With no phones or TV, guests can relax in peace

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

MARFA Fernando Autrique and Adele Houghton of Austin decided to take a "pre-moon." A few days before their wedding was scheduled, they sat at dinner, telling about how a friend of Houghton's told them about Cibolo Creek Ranch, located between Marfa...... Full story

What’s great about: Wink

BY Erin Whitmire|Special to the Odessa American

People often think I'm joking when I tell them the name of my hometown. "Wink?" they ask, puzzled. I tell them, "Yep. Blink, and you'll miss it." And it's true. Wink contains little more than 900 people, with only one school system. There's a...... Full story

The Roy Orbison museum in Wink has a mural of the singer on its wall.

Orbison’s influence felt around the world

Annual festival puts legend back on center stage

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

WINK Some folks who knew Roy Orbison have left Wink, the ones who've stayed are getting up in years. But around the world, the singer of hits like "Oh, Pretty Woman" and "Blue Bayou" will always be remembered. Although he died in 1988 at 52,...... Full story

The Crane Segregation Wall was built in the 1940s to mark where affordable housing would be built as well as a racial barrier.

Crane wall marks segregated past

Barrier played a role in ‘Friday Night Lights’

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

CRANE H.G. "Buzz" Bissinger said what he saw in Crane 20 years ago was a first. "I was shocked," the Pulitzer Prize-winning author said in a recent phone interview. "I was floored." Bissinger is referring to the Crane Segregation Wall, which...... Full story

What’s great about: Crane

BY CHRISTINA CHAVEZ | Special to the Odessa American

Crane, America. Who even knows where that is? Just a small speck on the vast map that is Texas. Around the Permian Basin, Crane is heard of because of its success in sports, and even its band. Well, those aren't the only great things about Crane....... Full story

What’s great about: Pecos

BY MATTHEW FLOREZ | Special to the Odessa American

The town of Pecos is rich in history. Located in the heart of West Texas geographically, it's one place you really have to be a part of to know what you're missing. Even then, you just cannot pinpoint what it is that brings people to Pecos and what...... Full story

The ‘Fandango' road trippers are, from left, Brian Cesak, Kevin Costner, Sam Robards, Chuck Bush and Judd Nelson.

Folks in Pecos still remember ‘Fandango’

Residents played part in road trip film

ODESSA AMERICAN

PECOS Wayne Scroggins hasn't seen "Fandango" in a while. "I used to have a tape of it," the Pecos auto mechanic said. "But my wife taped over it." But Scroggins had a place in the 1985 movie starring Kevin Costner, Judd Nelson and Sam Robards....... Full story

Blanca Gallego owns the Rancho Viejo furniture store in Pecos. She focuses the inventory on rustic, handmade furniture that she feels captures historic Mexico and Texas.

Furniture store aims to please

Rancho Viejo sells rustic and handmade goods

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

PECOS On a near-deserted street in downtown Pecos, one business stands out. Its owner says it brings a bit of old Mexico to Reeves County. While that may sound common, Rancho Viejo isn't a restaurant. It's a furniture store where customers from all...... Full story

Jim Seals, left, and Dan Seals grew up in West Texas.

From hard country to soft rock

Jim and Dan Seals recall their days in West Texas

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

Now that Jim Seals thinks about it, growing up in Iraan, McCamey and Rankin could have contributed to the biggest hit for Seals and Croft. After all, that summer breeze there can blow pretty hard through the jasmine in your mind. "I could have...... Full story

What’s great about: McCamey

Students laud McCamey’s spirit

BY FELICIA DOMINGUEZ AND JASMIN ORTIZ | Special to the Odessa American

McCamey, McCamey, we love you; We'll stand by you strong and true We know we can help With spirit and pep To carry our victories through We love every boy and every girl, They're part of our high school too We love everyone; Every daughter...... Full story

Reata server Edith Baeza fills sweetener packets before the restaurant opens recently in Alpine. The Reata has an additional location in downtown Fort Worth.

More than just ‘Giant’ prices

Reata offers hearty meals for hearty folks

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

ALPINE What didn't fly in California works just fine for Alpine. The Brewster County seat is the home of the first Reata restaurant, opened in 1995. A second is currently in Fort Worth. Reata owner Al Micallef opened restaurants in Beverly Hills...... Full story

Western writer Kelton relies on the desert

BY GEOFF FOLSOM

FORT STOCKTON Standing at Comanche Springs Park, there may not be as much water as there once was, but it's not hard to imagine the characters in Elmer Kelton's "Cloudy in the West" stopping here. Fort Stockton is a real location used by Kelton. In...... Full story