Big Tex’s Original Head Lives in UP?
Since the untimely demise of Big Tex, Zac Crain over at D Magazine has been musing about the future of the gentle giant — specifically how to replace him.
And because we all know comments are half the fun when it comes to blogging, I was reading the responses when I stumbled upon this one.
The original Big Tex head is in University Park.
— DLP
Is this true? The original wide-grinned face of Big Tex still lives? Is someone pulling our strings?
A 1993 article from the Houston Chronicle said a Dallas collector bought the head for $1,300 at a Fair Park auction. They name the collector as Wayne Smith.
I figure there is no one better than our readers to help us substantiate this claim. So if it’s a cold, hard fact that Big Tex hangs his large hat in UP, then let me know in the comments or at andrew.plock@peoplenewspapers.com
dcad shows a Wayne Smith living in UP on Southwestern.
This is very true. I went to the gentleman’s house and I could have stayed and studied all of his awesome collection for days! Mr. Smith is alive and well in the Dallas area, and he does indeed have the head of Big Tex. Such a nice and genuine person with a wonderful family!
He would be the epitome of a true Texan with a sincere and friendly nature. I’m willing to bet that when he bought that big head at auction, some people might have thought he was nuts!
However, his insight on cool bits of history is going to benefit the public, so he’s not a big “dummy” after all for buying that thing! Thank you, Mr. Wayne Smith.