Keep Austin Weird?
How a popular slogan for tourists contains a quiet fear of outsiders.
In order to understand Austin culture, it is necessary to know about Texas culture. In the required subject of Texas Studies, middle school students are introduced to a glorified account of how Texas was “won” from the Mexicans and set up its own country with a constitution and currency, and quickly glosses over how after facing bankruptcy, it agreed to join the US. These same stories are told in the Bob Bullock History Museum which focuses on the best of Texan History and veneration of the past. The state is also famously seen as a bastion for conservative politics and thoughts to such an extent that in 2017, conservative Californians were looking to move there in droves.
Most of the focus is of Texas as an iconoclast, set apart and above the other states. Winning or losing is less important than never surrendering as in the story of the Alamo. This can also be inferred by the slogans, “The Lone Star State, Don’t Mess With Texas, or Everything’s Bigger in Texas”. Ironically, they share this characteristic with states like California and New York who also see themselves as separate and special. In it’s own way Austin residents took this viewpoint and inverted it to establish a new character in the 1970s.
In 2000, a radio caller named Red Wassenich coined the term that would come to define Austin, Texas, “Keep Austin Weird”. Most outsiders and new residents seem to focus on the “weird” aspect of the phrase as a way to differentiate the city from others, specifically in Texas which is famously conservative. They see the town as eclectic and exotic, with a colorful character. A place where passion projects hold more weight than 9 to 5 jobs and where informality is king even in the boardroom. How a key difference between Austin and a place like NYC is how friendships revolve around interests as opposed to employment and less stress on status. Another thing that sets Austin apart is the fact that as the capital city, it is not representative of the state as it is far more liberal.
While these things are true, the true focus however, should be on the use of the word “keep” because it plays on a fear Austinites have about their unique culture and how they tend to view it. When Red phones in, he was donating money to a local radio station in danger of being closed down. A key component of this slogan has always been to support local businesses to avoid becoming corporatized like the big cities. This fear is what truly differentiates Austin from similar cities in the US who have mimicked them such as Portland, Louisville, and Indianapolis, cities who too focused more on the “wacky” aspect of their towns. Underneath the liberal veneer lies a place just as traditional as any other city in Texas. Native people who live there see the city as a haven of liberalness and nonconformity that is constantly at risk of being either taken over or given away to outsiders. For many Austinites there are many examples of a treasured hallmark of the city “turning away” from what it once was.
Whole Foods is a well known example because it began as an attempt to open a large scale healthy foods store in 1980. The setup was an Austin fairy tale with two small time stores barely making a profit, joining together to create something better. It was a great source of pride and many people went out of their way to shop there. Today, Whole Foods is more famous for charging exorbitant amounts for very little product exemplified with the “asparagus incident”, charging 5 dollars for asparagus dipped water. While still popular and successful, it is now seen in Austin as “less authentic” and “true Austinites” no longer shop there..
On a more personal level, is the story arc of a chain of used book stores called Half-Price Books. This bookstore originated in Dallas and then spread to Austin but with an understanding of what was needed for success. They knew that since it was a chain store that wasn’t homegrown, it would face an uphill battle. So they changed the design of their stores to give them a more “homey”, laid back feel in keeping with Austin’s lackadaisical style. Adding to this were the way they conducted business by giving people selling their used goods a chance to barter with the employees. The employees themselves didn’t have to follow a dress code and often picked their own schedules and were a part of the community. The most well known was named Lars Nielsen and will be mentioned later as he had an impact on another part of Austin culture.
Half-Price books’ tactics worked wonderfully and eventually they were able to open several more stores throughout Austin, all following the same basic setup. This sense of community allowed them to stay soluble even after other major bookstores had to close down as e-books and disinterest became a problem. However, seeing an opportunity, Half-Price closed their main store and re- opened it in a redesigned supermarket. In doing so, they completely changed their aesthetic and became more rigid and structured with a dress code and new hiring practices. Even though the store is still successful, it is no longer considered as part of “Austin culture” much like a Wal-Mart would be excluded regardless if it were true or not.
For an example of a cultural staple that was able to successfully balance on the line between authenticity and corporate building, one should look at the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater. Founded in 1997 by Tim and Karrie League, it quickly became known for its unique programming as well as insistence on proper behavior etiquette. It also provides actual meals and alcoholic beverages delivered to your seats by waitstaff. As a theater, it did not show first runs which helped it fill a niche role only one other theater was utilizing before. The difference was that the other theater, the Dobie theater, was a college theater, mostly watched by students. The Alamo on the other hand was for the main public and as such it was located in downtown Austin. Interestingly, it was located in a place called the Warehouse District. In Austin, there are two places for downtown’s nightlife, 6th street and the Warehouse District. Each had its own flavor and characteristics, 6th street seen as being more for club hopping party-goers. Whether because of choice or finances, choosing the Warehouse District as its location gave it the image of being for the discerning customer.
As for programming, that is where the Alamo truly shined. They would have special themed screenings paired with specific meals or interactive activities. As time went on, they opened up another theater outside of downtown that did show first run films. This freed up the main theater to concentrate exclusively on special programming. While usually a random selection was used, there were some recurring screenings, the most well known was called “Weird Wednesdays”, helmed by the previously named Lars Nilsen. Starting in 1998, Weird Wednesdays is a screening held every week at midnight to show obscure and off-kilter films for a rowdy crowd. It was another outlet for a night owl crowd who wanted to get hammered, but in a different kind of setting than the bars.
It was created because of the community between the audience and the owners. As they weren’t standoffish, Lars was able to befriend them and impress them with his encyclopedic knowledge of film. His idea of midnight screenings became a huge success both financially and credibility wise. Lars would find films from around the world, working as a kind of procurer, and create monthly themes, or have the creators of the films show up. Which gave the theater even more credibility, and since even critically panned films were shown to a receptive audience, it helped bolster people’s willingness to loan Lars even more obscure films.
Today, the prices range from 1–5 dollars for a ticket because of the quality of the filmmaker that can be asked to appear. At the beginning, the films chosen were so obscure that the actors and directors likely had only made the one film and were thus happy to visit for the nostalgia factor and not for any kind of monetary gain. It also helped that Lars was only interested in those films that were as far from mainstream recognition as possible, as well as predating the 1980’s. That changed as Lars began to take a more advisory approach as his talents were being sought after by other Austin institutions, such as the Austin Film Society, which also held special screenings that could use a film procurer. Lars leaving Half-Price and stepping back from the Alamo were just illustrations of how success can change a culture.
When “Weird Wednesdays” first premiered it was free to watch, the only payment came from food, drinks, and tipping. However, because of a culture where it was expected to tip and a craving for alcohol, business did well. So well in fact, that the Alamo became a franchise with several other theaters opening in Austin, all showing first run films, with some special programming tossed in. In 2004, the Leagues would sell the name and rights to the theater, but only to those built outside of Austin, showing the view of Austin culture as something to be protected. In 2006, ironically, the main theater closed and reopened on 6th street with 2 screens, showing both 1st runs and special programming. There are now 35 theaters in 11 states.
Austin also has many festivals throughout the year that started out local and then became famous world-wide. Festivals like Austin City Limits or SXSW, which helped give Austin the moniker of the “Live music capital of the world” are now doing big business with an even bigger market than just Austin and its local acts and therefore greater concern for keeping tourists and more famous musicians coming in droves. While this can be a good thing, there’s always the fear that in appealing to tourists, that Austin will be handed over to its corporate masters. This was a huge talking point when it was agreed that Austin would hold Formula 1 races that would not be available for the locals, but only for wealthy tourists.
Austin and its residents , for all their eclectic appearance, are still rather conservative when it comes to any kind of changes brought in by tourists. As Austin continues to grow and work to bring in new residents, it’s inevitable that they will bring their own cultural ideas that will have varying influences. As time goes on Austin’s culture might in fact keep being “Weird”, but not in a way that can be policed by anyone. After all, even the phrase “Keep Austin Weird” has been trademarked and commercialized by a company not connected to the creator.
