2005 State Fair of Texas

I recently went to the Texas State Fair in Dallas. I've been going to the fair since the early 80's and I always have a good time. This year I happened to go on the coolest fall day of the week, and it was fantastic. Of course, if you asked my feet about it, they went on strike for a few days afterwards.

My fair food intake (12PM-9:30PM) consisted of:
• 1 Footlong chili/cheese/onion dog
• 2 Root beers
• 1 Sausage roll up (a spicy sausage wrapped in a flour tortilla with cheese & onions
• One grilled chicken sandwich with fries and iced-tea
• 2 Cokes
• 2 Margaritas
• 1 Box of popcorn
• A few bites of an awful corndog (This is the 2nd year in a row. I officially give up), before I relucantantly threw it away. The batter was total bland crap. It was from Fletcher's too!
• A few bites of an AWFUL "Cajun" chicken-on-a-stick thing...again, before I tossed it in the trashcan. BLECH! Cajun food sounded sooooo good too! Dammit!

So, all in all I didn't get anywhere NEAR as bananas as I had intended. I regret nothing...except that I didn't buy some taffy or a candied apple. Wait. I lied. I DO regret blowing 15 coupons (Rides, shows and food all have to be paid for with 'coupons', which you buy for $10 for a sheet of 20) on that shitball corndog and that Cajun chicken stick thing. Rip-off!

Annnyway, I took a lot of pictures, these are just the tip of the iceberg (and my immediate favorites). I also took a disposable camera (for the night shots), but I know me and it will be a long time before I get around to taking them in to get developed, so I thought these would tide you over for now. Just think of this collage as Volume 1 in a series. I have plenty more digital photos though (the Elvis butter sculpture, various people, architecture, Midway rides, etc.), so if you're interested in seeing them, just let me know by leaving a comment and I will get to work on another collage. I just thought I'd see if there was enough interest before I did, that way you don't O.D. By the way, keep in mind that it was kind of a gray day, so some of the outdoor shots aren't that hot.


[1] Big Tex, the official landmark of every Texas State Fair since 1952. Big Tex is 49 ft. tall and has an articulated mouth (imagine the mouth of a ventriloquist's dummy) that opens when he speaks. Big Tex wears a size 70 boot and a 75-gallon cowboy hat. He makes announcements every hour that can be heard throughout the fairgrounds. Big Tex also has the ability to periodically wave to fair guest with his right arm. To read more about the history behind Big Tex, click here. The building behind him is known as The Tower Building. The Texas State Fair is held at Fair Park, in Dallas, which covers approximately 277 acres.

[2] One of the many beautiful Deco statues outside of one of the bldgs. located within the park.

[3] One of the Deco murals on one of the many Deco-era buildings within Fair Park.

[4] Mmmmm! Cotton Candyland!

[5] The Texas Star Ferris Wheel. Another Texas State Fair landmark. The ferris wheel is 212 ft. high, which classifies it as the tallest one in North America. Of course I rode it. It's a must when coming to the fair!

[6] Alive! Alive! Alive! That's right, I went to see live snakes! There was a HUGE green rattlesnake. I had no idea there even was such a thing. I initially thought it was just another python...until I saw its rattler! Eek! I'm talkin' HUGE. Imagine if you will, the diameter of a double roll of toilet paper. Yeah! If I ran into one of those in the wild I'd need that toilet paper! Scary!

[7] Aw, piggy go nap nap. This picture will make sense to anyone whoever read Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. A childhood mainstay.

[8] The Hall of State building located within Fair Park.

[9] Candy! Candy! Candy! Me likee!

[10] One of the antique dolls in the basement of The Hall of State bldg. This also where the dollhouse exhibit is located. If you like dolls, you'll dig it.

[11] A pot-bellied seahorse at The Dallas Aquarium. What a cutie.

[12] One of the many music celebs painted on the side of the Jukebox Music Fun House located in the Midway. Some of the artwork on the rides are really amazing. I thought this rendering of Prince looked great.

[13] Mmmmm! Chili dawg time! My first of many delicious cuisines.

[14] Live croc! I didn't pay to see this one, but I thought the artwork was great. Since the whole "freak show" part of the fair was done away with back in the late 80's, these types of things are the closest things we have.

[15] 'K' is for Kirk!

[16] The infamous Green Rattlesnake I told you about earlier. I told him to say "cheese!" and he did! So cooperative!

[17] One of the MANY magnificent Deco light fixtures within The Hall of State. This one was my favorite. Breathtaking.

[18] The first ride I rode on: Crazy Mouse! It looked so innocuous, but it ended up scaring the shit out of me. Not literally, but pretty damn close. Afterwards it was a lot of fun, but at the time, it creeped me OUT. I kept envisiong that scene from The Fury.

[19] A couple of those cute Campbell Soup Kids. Too cute. So retro.

[20] Taffy! Talk about variety, it came in 7 flavors: Black Walnut, Vanilla, Pecan, Strawberry, Banana, Chocolate and Peppermint. I could kick myself for not getting a box of the banana-flavor! Hindsight is 20/20. Sigh.

[21] Day-glo jellyfish at The Dallas Aquarium! Pretty!

[22] Awwww, Elsie the Cow is a sweetie-face. Her son, Beauregard ("Beau), was there too, but he was in his crib nearby. Elsie needed some kisses. Just look at that face. She was just too sweet (and was loving the attention).

[23] Another shot of The Texas Star and the aforementioned Jukebox Music Fun House.

[24] The Deco-riffic detail on the ceiling in the foyer of The Hall of State.

[25] Ice cream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

[26] I this stand on more than one occasion. And when it says 'ice cold' it means it! Mmmmm!

[27] The entrance to the Midway. Make that the 'Super' Midway.

[28] A little sandwich shop (a permanent fixture) inside one of the buildings.

[29] My seat at The Fair Park Band Shell (where they have the Birds of the World Show, during the fair).

[30] Another piece of airbrush art on the side of one of the fun houses. Dorothy looks a little like Karl Malden, but the rest are great. Very colorful.

[31] A placard at the entrance of the fair. Right after you go through the turnstyle.

To read more about the history of the Texas State Fair and/or online photo galleries (not mine), go to:

• BigTex.com
• Texas State Fair Facts
• History of the Texas State Fair
• Architectual Guide
• Galleries 1
• Galleries 2