Latest news with #LarryMcMurtry
CBS News
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Years after his death, author Larry McMurtry's legacy lives on in tiny Texas town
About two hours north of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is a quiet place called Archer City. The town's population is about 1,600, but for the past few months, visitors from across the state have made the pilgrimage there thanks to the work one nonprofit has undertaken to preserve a writer's legacy. Archer City is best known as the place where Larry McMurtry grew up. He was a prolific writer, penning dozens of novels in his lifetime, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove, The Last Picture Show, Horseman Pass By and Terms of Endearment. He also wrote screenplays, most notably "Brokeback Mountain." In the 1980s, after he'd already made a name for himself as a writer, he opened Booked Up, an enormous rare bookshop in downtown Archer City that came to span four buildings. "It takes an audacious person to turn a tiny town that otherwise would be unknown into his version of the Welsh town Hay-on-Wye, where the streets are lined with books," said George Getschow, director of the Larry McMurtry Literary Center. "He (McMurtry) grew up in a bookless town, in a bookless part of the state, something that always troubled him. And he decided to turn Archer City into a book town." After Mcurtry died in 2021, Booked Up closed. In 2023, reality television duo Chip and Joanna Gaines bought it. But late last year, the couple sold it to the Archer City Writer's Workshop, a nonprofit run by Getschow. The nonprofit is now working to transform the space into a literary center honoring McMurtry's life and impact. The nonprofit's major task at hand is cataloging McMurtry's massive collection of books. Along with the books that fill the shelves lining nearly every wall of the former Booked Up, there are books that are still in boxes and on pallets. Getschow estimates there are 300,000. "We have books from every walk of life," he said. "Any interest can be satisfied here, whether you're a bird aficionado, a culinary person or astronaut." The collection also includes rare books you won't find elsewhere — a signed first edition of Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Lonesome Dove in Czechoslovakian, a Japanese edition of The Last Picture Show. "We're constantly coming across books where as rare and priceless as they are, they're in the bottom of a box," said Getschow. "We've got so many books that we haven't been able to actually pick up." Kathy Floyd, administrator at the Larry McMurtry Literary Center, said working with Getschow on this mission is not something she expected from her life. "It's unbelievable to be able to work and find things like this," Floyd said. "We're the stewards of one of the most iconic book collections in the country." Getschow and Floyd are helped by a team of volunteers from across the state who are helping to catalog and repair the old building. Thanks to their help, the space is now open on the weekends for the first time since 2021. "We do not want to sell these books, we want to turn this into a literary center," said Getschow. "We're going to run it as a bookshop for about three or four years because we have more books than we have shelf space for." Getschow said he thinks McMurtry would be pleased to see his treasured collection being taken care of. "I can't speak for Larry, but I believe the fact that we are laboring, making sure his book collection will live on and will be alive and livable, and people will come and pick them up and cherish them as much as he did, I think that would mean a lot to him," said Getschow. Since the Larry McMurtry Literary Center opened its doors on weekends back in March, foot traffic to the town has picked up notably. "It's been very busy," said Kellie Fielding, an Archer City native and waitress at Murn's Cafe. So busy that Murn's has recently had to hire extra help to keep up with the weekend crowds. "We've had people come from Ireland, and we've had people come from Wyoming just to come down here and check out his books," Fielding said. "It's pretty amazing." McMurtry's fans are now contributing to the economy of a town that first gained widespread notoriety through his novel, The Last Picture Show, which he based on his time growing up in Archer City. "The meaning of The Last Picture Show and The Royal Theater is embedded in Archer City because it portrayed the town in a way that was pretty stark, pretty harsh," Getschow said. "Small town life, the custom, the morays, the traditions, how people feel trapped." Despite how McMurtry portrayed Archer City, it's a town he kept returning to and giving back to. "Archer City, in every way, gave rise to the greatest writer of the American West that ever was or ever will be," Getschow said. You can visit the Larry McMurtry Literary Center every Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Most books are available for a $25 donation.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Archer City Writers' Workshop hosting renowned author
ARCHER CITY (KFDX/KJTL)— The Archer City Writers' Workshop is preparing to host a famous author for its annual visiting author series at the Royal Theater in Archer City. The author in question is none other than New York Times bestseller Hampton is known for his extensive non-fiction work, telling the stories of figures like Kit Carson and Captain James Cook. Larry McMurtry Literary Center director George Getschow knows Sides personally and is proud that the center can host Sides as the community continues to support the literary center enthusiastically. 'People have come to help us. They've donated money to the center and because of that, we're able now to bring in a very top, you know, one of the best writers in the country that's going to be speaking to the community,' Getschow said. 'It's our way of paying back, giving back to the community, what they're doing for us.' Sides will be speaking at the Royal Theater at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 31. His latest book, The Wide Wide Sea, will be available for purchase along with other titles. Admission to the event is free. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
12-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Iconic ice cream chain closing dozens of locations
Starbucks' Howard Schultz made the term "third place" part of the national vocabulary. As he built out the coffee chain, he wanted it to be someplace people could spend time in when not at work or home. The third place has a deep tradition in Europe whether they be Italy's coffee shops or England's pubs. Related: McDonald's CEO raises red flag on anti-American sentiment People need a place to come together where they can relax, connect with friends, and build community. A third place, especially in a smaller community becomes a kind of de facto community center. In the small town where I grew up in, Swampscott, Massachusetts, the local Dunkin' has served as the center of the community for decades. If you can find a a parking space, you will enter a store where old-timers have occupied the same table since the dawn of time, and younger folks drop in to pay their respects (and grab an iced coffee). Don't miss the move: SIGN UP for TheStreet's FREE Daily newsletter Swampscott has a Starbucks now, but "Dunkies" remains the heart of the town, its third place where gossip gets shared, celebrations take place, and people maintain their connections. If the chain ever closed that location, it would be a deep loss to the community because the store serves a vital function beyond caffeinating the locals. In a more rural town (Swampscott is only three-square miles, but it's jam-packed) the loss of a third place can be devastating. That's something many communities are experiencing now as an iconic ice cream chain closes hundreds of locations. Larry McMurtry's "The Last Picture Show" tells the story of a small Texas town losing its movie theater. Dairy Queen, while it's not actually mentioned by name, plays a crucial role in the film. It's the clear "third place" for the community and while the town in that literary classic is fictional, Dairy Queen does fill that role in hundreds of real-life similar communities. Over the past few months, about 30 Dairy Queen locations in Texas have closed. These closures, it should be noted, are due to a dispute between the parent company and Project Lonestar, a franchisee. "These closures are related to closures last month by the same franchise owner," a Dairy Queen spokesperson said of the shutterings. "The closures are an isolated event, and we refrain from publicly sharing contract terms." Essentially, the parent company, American Dairy Queen (ADQ) pulled the franchises from Lonestar after it failed to remodel them. That meant that those locations could not order supplies and would have to close. More Retail: Walmart, Target, Costco make major 2025 announcementFormerly bankrupt retailer makes painful decision to close more storesTop investor takes firm stance on troubled retail brand The disagreement prevented Lonestar from selling the locations which forced it to close the Dairy Queen locations is operates. Project Lonestar at one time had 38 Dairy Queen locations. While any community would be sad to see its Dairy Queen close, these closures hit harder. Most of them are in small Texas towns where the ice cream chain fills the role of "third place." "It's an impact to our culture, absolutely," said Remelle Farrar, interim director for the local economic development corporation in Canadian, a town of about 2,300 in the northernmost part of Texas, Daily Yonder reported. Dairy Queen's have been closing in smaller towns as the company's overall footprint has shrunk. "In Canadian, a town whose economy has over the years been supported by cattle ranching, nearby oil and gas exploration, and tourism, there are multiple locally-run restaurants. But the Dairy Queen still served as an important gathering space, Farrar added. About half of the shuttered Dairy Queen location were in towns with populations of under 3,000 people. Related: Target, grocery chains find self-checkout, retail theft answers "Rural areas are more likely to struggle at providing such 'third places,' Danielle Rhubart, a researcher at Penn State University who studies rural health and well-being, told Planetizen. International Dairy Queen Inc., (IDQ), headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is the parent company of American Dairy Queen Corporation and Dairy Queen Canada, Inc. Through its subsidiaries, IDQ develops, licenses and services a system of more than 7,700 DQ restaurants in more than 20 countries. IDQ is a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Forbes
19-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
25 Must-Read Cowboy Western Books
Larry McMurtry, the famed Texas novelist, screenwriter and bookseller, who won a Pulitzer Prize for ... More his book "Lonesome Dove," at his bookstore, Booked Up No. 1. The Wild West provides the backdrop for some of the greatest American literature. Western novels give you a feel for the adventure offered by frontier life, with many set decades or even centuries ago as the United States expanded west. Of course, some of the best western fiction has a more modern setting, underscoring the contemporary issues that have arisen in the great wide open. The greatest western novels showcase the grit of hard-working Americans, Native Americans and Mexican Americans who often populate cowboy books. This list of the best western novels includes iconic authors as well as lesser-known ones who perfectly capture the spirit of the West. Western fiction includes books set throughout the American West, including Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Texas and California. The best western books feature cowboys, cattle or ranches, and they usually deal with breaking the law, going on a journey or protecting one's land. Some of the best-known western fiction writers include Larry McMurtry, Stephen Graham Jones, Willa Cather and Elmer Kelton. The western novels on this list are ranked based on critical acclaim, pop culture influence, book sales and awards. Romance novels are a major subgenre of cowboy books, and Elsie Silver is one of the most popular authors. In this Booktok sensation, the first in the Chestnut Springs series, a disgraced star bull rider falls in love with the daughter of his exasperated agent, setting off a set of problems. This book is best for anyone who loves enemies-to-lovers tropes. Elsie Silver's Flawless is available from publisher Little, Brown. While many western books lionize American expansion, this smart takedown of colonialism looks at things another way. A young member of the Blackfeet tribe, White Man's Dog feels powerless. He and his band of Lone Eaters face the choice of assimilation or fighting white society, which ends in the (real) bloody Marias Massacre of 1870. This book is best for those looking for a nuanced portrayal of Native Americans. James Welch's Fools Crow is available from Penguin Random House. Another romance and Booktok favorite, this one a spicy open-door novel, tells the story of a woman who reluctantly returns to her small Wyoming town after an accident forces her to give up her horseback riding career. She falls for the local bad-boy bar owner, her brother's best friend. This book is best for those who love will-they-or-won't-they romances. Lyla Sage's Done and Dusted is available from publisher Penguin Random House. The Los Angeles Times called this saga set in 19th-century Colorado 'a hell of a book.' Characters include a Native American chief, a cowboy who falls in love with a woman well beyond his station, and a man fleeing from the East. This book has all the western tropes, including gold miners and homesteaders. This book is best for fans of family drama and historical novels. James Michener's Centennial is available from publisher Penguin Random House. Esteemed crime fiction writer Elmore Leonard explores themes of revenge and corruption in this novel that also touches on racism. Sheriff Roberto Valdez is chased out of town after killing an innocent man—but he tries to help the man's family find justice by returning and meting out some vengeance. This book is best for fans of hard-boiled detective novels. Elmore Leonard's Valdez is Coming is available from publisher HarperCollins. Author Elmore Leonard, author of one of the best western novels, "Valdez is Coming." A love triangle and its many complications threaten to undo three people just trying to survive in early Arizona. A single mother trying to raise her son and care for her ranch is torn between two strong men on opposite sides of the Apache-white settler conflict. This book is best for those looking for a traditional western epic. Louis L'Amour's Hondo is available from publisher Penguin Random House. This work of historical fiction examines the only woman cattle rustler to be lynched, fictionalizing the true story of 'Cattle Kate.' As it turns out, the wealthy cattle barons who lived nearby want the woman's land—and her immigrant status sadly makes her seem expendable to these influential murderers. This book is best for those looking for an unflinching depiction of misogyny and xenophobia in the West. Jana Bommersbach's Cattle Kate is available from publisher Sourcebooks. During the California gold rush, one of a pair of brothers/assassins for hire begins to have moral misgivings about his profession. This humorous novel set in the 1850s lionizes the traditional western novel and uses many tropes like frontier towns. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the movie adaptation. This book is best for anyone looking for a funny novel. Patrick deWitt's The Sisters Brothers is available from publisher HarperCollins. This is not the first in Tony Hillerman's bestselling book series about the Navajo police, but it's one of the best. Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn tries to draw a connection between a murder attempt on Officer Jim Chee and some recent killings. The AMC hit Dark Winds is based on the series, set in New Mexico. This book is best for those who love mysteries. Tony Hillerman's Skinwalkers is available from publisher HarperCollins. Here's a great twist on a labor dispute—in 1880s Texas, cowboys rise up to protest unfair treatment by the cattle ranchers, who paid terrible wages and didn't want the help to own cattle. Elmer Kelton, a western fiction legend, imagines how the strike went down in the Panhandle. This book is best for those who love entertainment peppered with bigger-picture issues. Elmer Kelton's The Day the Cowboys Quit is available from TCU Press. Zane Grey is another legendary western novelist, and this is his best-known novel. Famous gunman Lassiter is determined to loosen the grip Deacon Tull holds on his Mormon town and expose his corruption. Lassiter tries to avenge his sister's death and save the woman Tull is trying to marry against her will. This book is best for those who love a clear-cut hero vs. villain story. Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage is available from publisher Penguin Random House. Zane Grey (center) on the set of one of his movie adaptations. The author was known for producing ... More some of the greatest and bestselling western novels. Pierce Brosnan stars in the AMC adaptation of this novel, which was a New York Times bestseller. Eli McCullough's family is killed by a band of Comanche who then raise the boy as one of their own. His complicated loyalties underlie his rise as an oilman and his later equally complex relationships with his family. This book is best for those searching for an epic that digs into settler-Native American relations. Philipp Meyer's The Son is available from HarperCollins. Very occasionally, a great cowboy tale is outside the West. This exceptional young adult graphic novel isn't just for kids. Coretta Scott King Award winner G. Neri tells the story of a displaced teen and the Black urban cowboys of Philadelphia and Brooklyn, inspired by their western counterparts. Idris Elba stars in the Netflix adaptation. This book is best for fans of graphic novels or anyone curious about Black cowboys. G. Neri's and Jesse Joshua Watson's Ghetto Cowboy is available from Candlewick Press. National Book Award winner John Edward Williams tells the tale of 1870s Harvard dropout Will Andrews, who heeds Ralph Waldo Emerson's call to seek a relationship with nature and heads to Kansas, where he joins a buffalo expedition. Chaos ensues. The movie adaptation stars Nicolas Cage. This book is best for those who love apocalyptic tales. John Edward Williams's Butcher's Crossing is available from publisher Penguin Random House. Nicolas Cage attends the "Butcher's Crossing" premiere during the 2022 Toronto International Film ... More Festival. It is based on one of the best western novels. Shane, a mysterious stranger who shows up at a Wyoming ranch out of the blue, quickly becomes a valued farmhand for the Starretts and the object of great admiration by their young son. But a feud with a nearby rancher tests Shane's mettle and reveals his past. The book is considered a Western classic. This is best for those who want a different take on a coming-of-age tale. Jack Schaefer's Shane is available from University of New Mexico Press. This New York Times bestseller inspired two western movies, one starring John Wayne in 1969 and another by the Coen brothers in 2010. Teen Mattie Rose convinces U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn to accompany her on a quest into Native American territory to avenge the murder of her beloved father. This is best for those who enjoy eccentric characters. Charles Portis's True Grit is available from publisher Overlook Press (a division of Abrams). This bestselling novel fictionalizes Robert Ford's assassination of infamous Wild West outlaw Jesse James, who robbed trains, banks and stagecoaches after the Civil War. Ford, Hansen writes, found himself envious of James's fame, admiring his gumption, and resentful of his power. The title alone makes the novel a winner. This book is best for those who love a good rivalry. Ron Hansen's The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is available from publisher HarperCollins. The New York Times Book Review called this satire 'the very best novel ever about the American West.' Jack is adopted by the Cheyenne tribe and celebrates their culture, but he later assimilates as a white man and destroys some of the things he once loved. Wild Bill Hickock and Wyatt Earp make cameos. This book is best for anyone who appreciates parody. Thomas Berger's Little Big Man is available from publisher Penguin Random House. Regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time, Willa Cather set much of her fiction in the West, including this novel about pioneers in Nebraska. The titular Ántonia is part of an immigrant family, and she and the boy she befriends are impacted in many ways by the harsh realities of the prairie. This book is best for fans of classics or who want to read Cather's 'prairie trilogy.' Willa Cather's My Ántonia is available from Penguin Random House. Willa Cather (1873-1947), American novelist and Pulitzer Prize winner who wrote one of the best ... More western books. Winner of the National Book Award, All the Pretty Horses follows teenager John Grady Cole, who is forced to leave his Texas ranch. He and his best friend decide to head to Mexico to become cowboys. They meet another boy who loses his horse, setting off all sorts of complications. This book is best for anyone who enjoyed the movie adaptation with Billy Bob Thornton and Matt Damon. Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses is available from publisher Penguin Random House. What is the price of breaking tradition, asks this New York Times bestseller and winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Four Native American young men can't move past a disturbing event from their youth, which begins to haunt and then hunt them in revenge. This book is best for horror fans. Stephen Graham Jones's The Only Good Indians is available from publisher Simon & Schuster. The Anthony Award winner for best mystery, this layered look at an 'enforcer' on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota will keep you guessing until the end. Virgil Wounded Horse is out for revenge after his nephew's overdose, riling up the wrong people as he searches for the drug's supplier. This book is best for mystery lovers who enjoy some humor with a pretty dark subject. David Heska Wanbli Weiden's Winter Counts is available from publisher HarperCollins. Ennis and Jack are ranch hands who succumb to a taboo desire on the range where they work while sharing a tent one summer. As they move on in life, getting married and having kids, their desire for each other only grows stronger, despite the obstacles to their love. This book is best for anyone who enjoyed the Oscar-winning movie starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal. Annie Proulx's Brokeback Mountain is available from publisher Simon & Schuster. Actor Heath Ledger takes a break during filming of "Brokeback Mountain," based on one of the best ... More western novels. A pair of retired Texas Rangers set off on their final adventure herding cattle from Texas to Montana during the days of the Old West. Larry McMurtry won the Pulitzer Prize for this novel, which was adapted into a highly rated TV miniseries with Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. This book is best for anyone looking for the quintessential western novel. Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove is available from Simon & Schuster. Bottom Line Whether you want to read a classic cowboy tale, a true-to-life account of Native Americans' experience in the West, or a western romance, you can find the perfect book on this list. Enjoy exploring this exciting part of the world. Cowboy romance is a popular genre. Two great romance reads are: Alive and Wells by Bailey Hannah (2025) follows a city girl who escapes her violent marriage by landing at a cattle ranch, where she falls for her new boss. Savage Thunder by Johanna Lindsey (2003) sees a London socialite flee to the American West, where she falls in love with a Cheyenne loner. Two of the western genre's greatest novelists are: Willa Cather, a Pulitzer Prize winner who wrote many books set on the frontier, including the classics O Pioneers! and My Ántonia. Larry McMurtry, a Pulitzer Prize and National Humanities Medal winner whose Lonesome Dove is one of the most popular western books of all time. Two of the best western movies are: The Searchers (1956), about a Civil War veteran played by John Wayne who is looking for his niece (Natalie Wood) during the Texas-Indian wars. You can watch The Searchers on Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, AppleTV, Google Play and Fandango at Home. The Harder They Fall (2021), about a Black cowboy gang that reunites when one of their enemies gets out of jail. You can watch The Harder They Fall on Netflix.
Axios
10-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
How to get a book from Texas author Larry McMurtry's collection
Larry McMurtry fans will have the opportunity starting this weekend to visit the late author's long-shuttered bookstore in Archer City for a fundraiser aimed at turning the shop into a literary center. Why it matters: McMurtry, who wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Lonesome Dove," devoted his life to books and writing. The literary center will be dedicated to maintaining his legacy. The Texas author left behind Booked Up No. 1 — along with 175,000 books — when he died in 2021. The latest: A nonprofit writers organization bought McMurtry's bookstore from Chip and Joanna Gaines last year, with plans to open the Larry McMurtry Literary Center. Flashback: Every summer longtime University of North Texas lecturer George Getschow would take students to Archer City, 25 miles south of Wichita Falls, to learn from McMurtry, who grew up in the small town. Now Getschow views opening the literary center as "payback" for McMurtry's writing mentorship. What they're saying:"Larry went above and beyond in spending more than a dozen years working with students that we brought up there," Getschow tells Axios. "He opened up his house to us. He opened up his bookstore. … He was just an incredibly generous person when it came to people who wanted to do what he did." State of play: The bookstore is currently crammed with hundreds of thousands of books and needs repairs and renovations before it can officially reopen as the literary center. The center will preserve McMurtry's collection and host writing workshops. What's next: Booked Up No. 1 will open 10am-5pm Saturdays and Sundays at 214 S. Center St. in Archer City this month. Visitors can take home one of McMurtry's books — many of which contain his commentary — for a $25 donation. Visitors are limited to 10 books per person.
