Big Tex has presided over every Texas State Fair since 1952

Due to immigration in the United States history, the culture of Texas has been a melting pot of different cultures around the world. Texas is a diverse and an international place to live, in part because of its many academic institutions and strong biomedical, energy, manufacturing and aerospace industries. Download high resolution version (800x1200, 346 KB) Taken by Joyous at the Texas State Fair, October 11, 2004 File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (800x1200, 346 KB) Taken by Joyous at the Texas State Fair, October 11, 2004 File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Big Tex has presided over every Texas State Fair since 1952. ... The Texas Star, North Americas largest ferris wheel at the State Fair of Texas The State Fair of Texas is an annual state fair held in Dallas, Texas. ... Alternate meaning: crucible (science) The melting pot is a metaphor for the way in which heterogenous societies develop, in which the ingredients in the pot (iron, tin; people of different backgrounds and religions, etc. ...

Texas also has an influx of people from the central United States moving in to find jobs. Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Nebraska and the Dakotas have experienced a "brain drain" as their university graduates move to other states to find employment.

There are many popular events held in Texas celebrating cultures of Texans. The annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo that is held over 20 days from late February through early March. The event begins with trail rides that originate from several points throughout the state, all of which convene at Reliant Park for a barbecue cook-off. The rodeo includes typical rodeo events, as well as concert performances from major artists and carnival rides. The Fort Worth Livestock Show and Rodeo lasts three weeks in late January and early February. It has many traditional rodeos, but also a cowboy rodeo, and a Mexican rodeo in recent years that have a large fan base for each. The State Fair of Texas is held in Dallas each year at Fair Park. The OU-Texas football game is played at the Cotton Bowl near Fair Park during the State Fair. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, with attendance approaching nearly two million visitors per year, is the worlds largest livestock exhibition as well as the worlds largest rodeo event, and requires the support of sixteen thousand volunteers. ... Photograph of a sign at the entrance to the Reliant Park Complex, with Six Flags Astroworld in the background Reliant Park (formerly the Astrodomain) is a complex in Houston, Texas named after the energy company Reliant Energy. ...

Texas has a vibrant live music scene in Austin boasting more music venues per capita than any other U.S. city, befitting the city's official slogan as The Live Music Capital of the World. Austin's music revolves around the many nightclubs on 6th Street and an annual film, music, and multimedia festival known as South by Southwest. The longest-running concert music program on American television, Austin City Limits, is videotaped on The University of Texas at Austin campus. Austin City Limits and Waterloo Records run the Austin City Limits Music Festival, an annual music and art festival held at Zilker Park in Austin. Stevie Ray Vaughan statue on Austins Town Lake. ... Nickname: Live Music Capital of the World Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Country United States State Texas County Travis County Mayor Will Wynn Area    - City 669. ... Clubbing, also known as a disco A nightclub (often shortened to club) is an entertainment venue which does its primary business after dark. ... 6th Street is a street in Austin, Texas. ... Film is a term that encompasses motion pictures as individual projects, as well as the field in general. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... South by Southwest (SXSW, Inc. ... Stevie Ray Vaughan performing on Austin City Limits. ... University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (full official name), often UT or Texas for short, is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System, the largest public university system in Texas, established in 1883. ... Waterloo Records is a large record and music store in Austin, Texas. ... Main entrance of the 2005 Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park. ... Zilker Metropolitan Park is a recreational area in western Austin, Texas (near Rollingwood), which comprises over 350 acres (1. ...

See also: List of people from Texas, Miscellany topics of Texas, Don't Mess with Texas, Gone to Texas, and Myths and Misperceptions About Texas

The following are people who were either born/raised or have lived for a significant period of time in Texas. ... The phrase Dont Mess with Texas is a slogan for the Texas Department of Transportation designed to reduce littering on Texas roadways used as part of a statewide advertising campaign in 1986. ... Gone to Texas, often abbreviated G.T.T. or GTT, was a phrase used by Americans immigrating to Texas in the 19th century, especially in the South and Midwest. ... Like many U.S. states and countries Texas has been the subject of legends and stories throughout its history. ...

Arts and theatre

Alley Theater in Houston

Known for the vibrancy of its visual and performing arts, the Houston Theater District—a 17-block area in the heart of Downtown Houston—is ranked second in the country (behind New York City) in the number of theatre seats in a concentrated downtown area with 12,948 seats for live performances and 1,480 movie seats.^[1] Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 233 KB) The Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas (advertising plays by Edward Albee) Photographed by Andreas Praefcke, Feburary 2003 File links The following pages link to this file: The Alley Theatre Theater (structure) ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 233 KB) The Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas (advertising plays by Edward Albee) Photographed by Andreas Praefcke, Feburary 2003 File links The following pages link to this file: The Alley Theatre Theater (structure) ... The Alley Theater, February 2003 The Alley Theatre is a famous theatre in Downtown Houston. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... The performing arts include theater, motion pictures, drama, comedy, music, dance, opera, magic and the marching arts, such as brass bands, etc. ... The Alley Theatre The Houston Theater District, a 17-block area in the heart of Downtown Houston, is home to Houstons nine world-class performing arts organizations, the 130,000 square-foot Bayou Place entertainment complex, restaurants, movies, plazas and parks. ... Downtown Houston Downtown Houston is Houstons largest business district. ...

Houston is also one of only five cities in the United States with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines (the Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Houston Ballet, and The Alley Theatre).^[2] Houston is widely recognized as the nation's third most important city for contemporary visual arts. Nickname: Bayou City Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Counties Harris County Fort Bend County Montgomery County Mayor Bill White Area    - City 1,558 km²  (601. ... The Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. ... Jones Hall The Houston Symphony Orchestra is one of the United States of Americas major orchestras, based, as its name suggests, in Houston, Texas. ... The Houston Ballet, operated by the Houston Ballet Foundation, is the fifth-largest professional ballet company in the United States, based in Houston, Texas. ... Alley Theater, February 2003 Alley Theatre is a famous theatre in Downtown Houston. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

Dallas and Fort Worth serve as epicenters of the North Texas region's art scene. The Modern (formerly the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth), founded in 1892, is the oldest art museum in Texas. The city is also home to the Kimbell Art Museum, the Amon Carter Museum, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the Will Rogers Memorial Center, and the Bass Performance Hall downtown. The Arts District of Downtown Dallas is home to several arts venues. Notable venues in the district include the Dallas Museum of Art, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, The Trammell & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art, and the Nasher Sculpture Center. Fort Worth Texas Modern Art Museum This image is taken from the deck of The Modern, looking over the new reflecting pool towards downtown Fort Worth. ... The Kimbell Art Museum is situated in the Cultural District of Fort Worth, Texas. ... The Amon Carter Museum is located in Fort Worth, Texas. ... The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is located in Forth Worth, Texas. ... The Will Rogers Memorial Center is an 85-acre public entertainment and sports complex located in Forth Worth, Texas in the United States. ... The Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, Texas is the permanent home to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Texas Ballet Theater, Fort Worth Opera, and the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and Cliburn Concerts. ... The Nasher Sculpture Center. ... Pedestrians along Stone Street. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Meyerson Symphony Center Exterior Meyerson Symphony Center Exterior The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center is a concert hall in the Arts District of Downtown Dallas, Texas designed by Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei and opened in September of 1989. ... This museum is a gift from Mr. ... A sculpture at the center. ...

Also within Dallas is the notable Deep Ellum district which originally became popular during the 1920s and 1930s as the prime jazz and blues hotspot in the Southern United States. The name Deep Ellum is thought to have originally derived from local tongues saying "Deep Elm", but that came out as "Deep Ellum". Artists such as Blind Lemon Jefferson, Robert Johnson, Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter, and Bessie Smith played in original Deep Ellum clubs like The Harlem and The Palace. Today, Deep Ellum is home to hundreds of artists who live in lofts and operate in studios throughout the district alongside bars, pubs, and concert venues. One major art infusion in the area is the city's lax stance on graffiti, thusly several public ways including tunnels, sides of buildings, sidewalks, and streets are covered in murals. The Gypsy Tea Room in Deep Ellum Deep Ellum is an arts and entertainment district near downtown Dallas, Texas (USA). ... Jazz is an original American musical art form that originated around the start of the 20th century in New Orleans, rooted in African American musical styles blended with Western music technique and theory. ... Blues music redirects here. ... Southern United States The states shown in dark red are usually included in the South, while all or portions of the striped states may or may not be considered part of the Southern United States. ... The Gypsy Tea Room in Deep Ellum Deep Ellum is an arts and entertainment district near downtown Dallas, Texas (USA). ... Blind Lemon Jefferson (September 1893–December 1929) was an influential blues singer and guitarist from Texas. ... Robert Leroy Johnson (May 8, 1911 – August 16, 1938) is among the most famous Delta Blues musicians and arguably the most influential. ... Leadbelly, also known as Lead Belly (born Huddie William Ledbetter; January 20, 1889 (although this is debatable) - December 6, 1949), was an American folk and blues musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing, his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar, and the rich songbook of folk standards he introduced. ... Bessie Smith (July, 1892 – September 26, 1937) is largely regarded as the most popular and successful blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s, and by some as the most influential performer in blues history. ... Graffiti is the unofficial application of graphics on publicly viewable surfaces. ...

Sports

Official logo of the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic

Texas is known for its love of American football and is noted for the intensity with which people follow high school and college football teams—oftentimes dominating over all else for the purposes of socializing and leisure. School districts in Texas are sometimes criticized for the amount of money spent on their sports programs and facilities. For example, the turf of the football field at Duncanville High School cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Such facilities and programs can garner a school attention, however. Duncanville's largest basketball court, the Sandra Meadows Memorial Arena, was named in 2004 as one of the top ten places to watch basketball by USA Today. In May of 2005, Sports Illustrated also named the high school's sports program as one of the top 25 in the nation.^[3] Image File history File links ATandT_Cotton_Bowl_Logo. ... Image File history File links ATandT_Cotton_Bowl_Logo. ... United States simply as football, is a competitive team sport that is both fast-paced and strategic. ... High school is a name used in some parts of the world, and particularly in North America, to describe the last segment of compulsory secondary education. ... A college football game between Colorado State University and the Air Force Academy. ... Duncanville High School is a secondary school located in Duncanville, Texas. ... USA Today is a national American newspaper published by the Gannett Corporation. ... The first issue of Sports Illustrated, August 16, 1954, showing Milwaukee Braves star Eddie Matthews at bat in Milwaukee County Stadium. ...

Baseball is also very popular in Texas, with Major League Baseball, with the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros are equally popular in the state, as North Texas, West Texas, and Panhandle residents are predominantly Rangers fans, while Southeast Texas, Central Texas, and South Texas is predominantly inhabited by Astros fans. Minor league baseball is also closely followed. A view of the playing field at Busch Stadium II St. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Major league affiliations American League (1961–present) West Division (1972–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 26,34,42 Name Texas Rangers (1972–present) Washington Senators (1961-1971) Ballpark Ameriquest Field in Arlington (1994–present) a. ... Astros redirects here, for other uses see Astros (disambiguation) Major league affiliations National League (1962–present) Central Division (1994–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 24,25,32,33,34,40,49 Name Houston Astros (1965–present) Houston Colt . ... A Class A California League game in San Jose, California (1994) Minor baseball leagues are North American professional baseball leagues that compete at a level below that of Major League Baseball. ...

Other popular sports in Texas include golf (which can be played year-round because of the South's mild climate), basketball (the state has three NBA teams, the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, and Dallas Mavericks), fishing, and auto racing. Lacrosse, originally played by some of the indigenous tribes, is a visible sport and growing. Soccer is a popular participatory sport—especially among children—but as a spectator sport, it does not yet have a large following despite two Texan teams in Major League Soccer. Hockey has been a growing participatory sport in the Dallas/Fort Worth area since the Minnesota North Stars became the Dallas Stars in 1993. Minor league pro hockey has become quite popular in the last decade; Texas is home to eight of the Central Hockey League's seventeen teams. Texas is also home to the Houston Aeros and San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League and the Texas Wildcatters of theECHL Greg Norman on the 18th tee at St Andrews. ... Sara Giauro shoots a three-point shot, FIBA Europe Cup for Women Finals 2005. ... The National Basketball Association of the United States and Canada, commonly known as the NBA, is the premier professional basketball league in North America. ... The Houston Rockets are a professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. ... The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. ... The Dallas Mavericks (also known as the Mavs) are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. ... Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish. ... Auto racing (also known as automobile racing, autosport or motorsport) is a sport involving racing automobiles. ... For other uses, see Lacrosse (disambiguation). ... Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... A spectator sport is one that is characterized by the presence of spectators, or watchers, at its matches. ... Major League Soccer (MLS) is the top soccer league of both the United States and Canada. ... Hockey is any of a family of sports in which two teams compete by trying to maneuver a ball, or a hard, round disc called a puck, into the opponents net or goal, using a hockey stick. ... The Minnesota North Stars were a team in the National Hockey League between 1967 and 1993. ... The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. ... The Central Hockey League (CHL) is a mid-level professional hockey league. ... This article is about the American Hockey League team. ... The San Antonio Rampage are an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. ... The American Hockey League (AHL) is regarded as the top professional hockey league in North America outside the National Hockey League (NHL). ... The Texas Wildcatters are the East Coast Hockey League team based in Beaumont, Texas. ... The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey with teams scattered across the United States and Canada, generally regarded as a tier below the American Hockey League. ...

Further information: List of Texas sports teams