How to survive a Cocaine Bear attack: - Make yourself big. - Wave your arms around. - Refuse to engage with any of its opinions on music. - Shout “I DON’T HAVE ANY CIGARETTES” - Turn on the overhead light. - Say you’re going to bed.

Tender Mercies, Paris Texas, Terms of Endearment, Blood Simple, Fandango, Last Night at the Alamo: 1983 was a pivotal year for Texas film. Return with me to a magical time when everyone was drunk, depressed, and alone. texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

"Texas reveres its heroes, but it relishes its bastards." Paul Newman plays a brutish, morally repugnant monster in the classic anti-western "Hud." So why do Texans admire him anyway? Sean O'Neal breaks it down: texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

"Whatever audition had just taken place, our house had nailed it." HBO Max turned Sean O'Neal's house into a set for #LoveandDeath. Then things got hyperreal. texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

Always a treat to hear my recorded voice and the sound of me nervously rubbing my palms as I strain to be extemporaneously articulate and now we can all experience it together. I'm near the end of this episode after the actual talent. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/enc…

I'd like to thank whoever uploaded a VHS boot of this movie to YouTube so I could write about it, seeing as it's currently unavailable on HBO Max or any other streaming service. A huge missed opportunity and a baffling fate for one of the best TV movies ever made, imo.

For the September issue of Texas Monthly, I take a look at Smithville, the tiny Texas city that has served as the quintessential small town in more than 100 movies and TV shows. That’s more screen credits than Tommy Lee Jones. How does it stay so humble? texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

I profiled Jesse Plemons across two cities, two Hollywood strikes, and one pretty bad game of golf (mine, not his). My first cover story for @texasmonthly is up now. texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

A show on Bentkey, Daily Wire’s new streaming service—its cofounder positions it as an alt to Disney, which he decried as indoctrinating children “into the LGBTQIA cult”—films right here in Dripping Springs. It’s got puppets! by Sean O'Neal Texas Monthly texasmonthly.com/arts-entertain…

Breaking through the morass with a rare bit of good news:

I never thought I’d say this but could we please hear more from Kid Rock.

The late great Freddy Krueger, very tough guy, you remember him, with the knives on his fingers, big beautiful knives. They called him the Dream Master, I don’t know. Everyone asking me, are you ready for Freddy, remember that? They were Fat Boys, just tremendously fat. Boys.

Just recklessly playing “Fight Song” at the DNC like they’re opening a tomb filled with toxic mold spores. This whole campaign is now cursed.

Just so we’re clear, this is the guy who’s going to help RFK stop Americans from eating unhealthy food? This guy?