Joseph Glynn Farley made international news for what he didn’t wear while unicycling. Resources: 10 Of The Weirdest Things That Have Ever Happened In Texas (onlyinyourstate.com) Naked unicyclist puts Kemah in national spotlight (click2houston.com) Texan Known As The ‘Naked Unicyclist’ Struck, Killed – CBS Dallas / Fort Worth (cbslocal.com)
That Time Ozzy Peed on the Alamo
In 1982, Ozzy Osbourne committed one of the gravest sins in Texas, by relieving himself on the Alamo cenotaph. Resources: Forget the Alamo by Chris Tomlinson and Jason Stanford A Brief History of Peeing on the Alamo – Texas Monthly Ozzy Osbourne publicly urinated in Alamo Plaza 40 years ago this week (expressnews.com) Ozzy Osbourne…
Bernie Tiede, A Murderer Few People Could Hate
When it was discovered that Bernie Tiede killed a local woman, more people in his Texas town supported him than the deceased. Resources: https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/what-to-make-of-bernie-tiede-now/ https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-culture/midnight-in-the-garden-of-east-texas/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Tiede Bernie film
Candy Barr- “I Did What I Had to Survive’
Candy Barr was a legend of the burlesque circuit, but her life story had more ups and down than a roller coaster. Resources: https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/candy-barr/ Candy Barr by Ted Schwarz and Mardi Rustam https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candy_Barr
Mike Martin- The Politician Who Had Himself Shot
In 1981 the shooting of a politician became the biggest mystery since who shot J.R. Ewing…but with much less interesting results. Resources: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1981/08/27/a-texas-tall-tale-who-shot-mike-martin/cf45ad9e-00b6-4c4a-88b3-9a3ac314dc26/ . https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/bum-steer-awards-1982/
Clara Harris: The Mercedes Benz Murder
In 2002, a woman wronged struck and killed her husband with a Mercedes Benz, and then turned around to hit him again. Resources: Clara Harris, Who Killed Cheating Husband With Her Mercedes, Released From Prison – Texas Monthly Suburban Madness – Texas Monthly Shattered Lives (oprah.com) Murder of David Lynn Harris – Wikipedia Amazon.com: Suburban…
The Miracle Horned Toad of Eastland
A toad named Blinky could have died a horrible death, but he was reborn as the more famous Horned Toad in America. Resources: https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/3631
The Church of Wells
With multiple news stories and plenty of personal testimony, The Church of Wells appears to be more cult than sanctuary. Resources: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCinLs9G4mBQRuLdDH6akMqA https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wells,_Texas https://www.thechurchofwells.com/ https://www.thechurchofwells.com/the-catherine-grove-controversy.html
The Beer Guzzling Goat Mayor
In Lajitas, Texas, three generations of goat mayors kept the peace. Resources: https://www.houstoniamag.com/travel-and-outdoors/2013/11/west-texas-tour-november-2013 https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/lajitas-tx https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2227 https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/alcoholic-goatmayor-is-castrated-by-cowboy-174572.html https://www.smh.com.au/world/drinker-on-trial-after-mayor-got-his-goat-20020810-gdfj49.html
Aleister Crowley and the Austin Connection
“The Most Wicked Man on Earth” ended up with a huge collection of documents in an Austin insitution. Resources: https://norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/findingAid.cfm?eadid=00144 https://houston.culturemap.com/news/travel/02-23-14-strange-and-wonderful-treasures-with-magical-powers-can-be-found-at-austin-research-center/#slide=0 https://documents.pub/document/aleister-crowley-university-of-texas-at-austin-biographical-sketch-aleister-crowley.html https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/keasbey-lindley-miller
Texas: Slang for Crazy 