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Austin Roots

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by Jason Mellard, Renee O'Connor, and TSSI

5.0(3 reviews)
20 episodes
Updated Daily
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Podcast Overview

In March 2020, when the world shut down, Eddie Wilson compiled an eclectic list of Austin's artists, authors, movers, and shakers who defined the city's cultural scene in the sixties, seventies, and eighties. In their words, we thread together what made the city they called home, a world renown destination for music, art, and food. Listen to Eddie (Threadgill's proprietor and author of Armadillo World Headquarters), historian Jason Mellard, and our esteemed friends connect on a nostalgic journey down memory lane, with stories of food, music, politics, measuring the true character of Austin, Texas. Music by Jake Andrews Music Content Warning: adult themes Host, Eddie Wilson - Armadillo World Headquarters founder @Threadgills Host, Dr. Jason Mellard - Cultural historian @jasondeanmellard Editor, Renee O'Connor Music Mixing, Matt Carlson @axemanguitar Producer, Renee O'Connor @realreneeoconnor Producer, Sandra Wilson @sandrawilson709 Executive Producer, TSSI Music by Jake Andrews Music @jakeandrewsmusic Production assistant, Miles Muir @miles_muir Production consultant, Katey Psencik

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Publishing Since

2/21/2026

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Recent Episodes

Episode thumbnail for "The 1960's Underground" with Alice Embree and Thorne Dreyer

July 1, 2026

"The 1960's Underground" with Alice Embree and Thorne Dreyer

<p>"The 1960's Underground" with Alice Embree and Thorne Dreyer</p> <p>"And so to me, one of the stories is to look back at that time and go, "Look, there was a lot of crossover that younger people don't know about," right? And when I tell people about it, they're like, "Oh, I had no idea." … These narratives tend to live in textbooks and not come from people's lives, it seems like sometimes… if you pay attention to how people experience the times they lived through, it looks much different than the stories that get told much later on." (Alice Embree)</p> <p>In this episode, co-hosts Dr. Jason Mellard and Eddie Wilson, sit down with two of Austin's most enduring activist voices: Thorne Dreyer and Alice Embree, co-founders of The Rag, the sixth underground newspaper in the United States and one of the longest-running, publishing 377 issues from 1966 to 1977. Together they trace the arc of Austin's radical counterculture, from the origins of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) to the birth of a national movement.</p> <p>Content Warning: adult themes<br /> Content created during the global pandemic, in the room, and on Zoom.</p> <p>Chapters:<br /> 01:00 - Thorne's background: Houston upbringing, artistic family, acting in New York, arriving in Austin<br /> 02:10 - Alice's background: growing up in Austin during Jim Crow; Austin's civil rights battles on campus with segregated dorms, segregated football, and the fight to change both<br /> 02:55 - Kennedy assassination as a radicalizing moment; Lyndon Johnson's daughter in a segregated dorm; UT's delay tactics<br /> 04:10 - Frank Erwin and the Board of Regents; Thorne placed on disciplinary probation in 1967<br /> 04:25 - The founding of The Rag (October 1966); John Economidy's right-wing takeover of The Daily Texan<br /> 05:45 - "SDS": Students for a Democratic Society's trip to Haight & Ashbury pre-Summer of Love; overlap between Rag staff and SDS<br /> 06:15 - The Rag's 11-year run; 377 issues available on JSTOR via Independent Voices<br /> 07:33 - Reading of Thorne's October 1966 letter announcing The Rag to the underground press<br /> 12:05 - "Hippies and politicos merge": Austin's unusual counterculture-political fusion explained<br /> 13:25 - The "Prairie Power" movement inside SDS and why Austin's chapter stood apart from its East Coast counterparts<br /> 14:40 - Drugs: Austin as a national hub for peyote distribution; the 1963 Playboy "Assassination Issue" on psychedelics<br /> 16:45 - Jim Franklin stirring the peyote kettle outside Lockhart; the sheriff encounter<br /> 17:32 - Peyote Orange Juliuses; Dave Richards and Sam Houston Clinton exploit the legislative misspelling<br /> 19:00 - Surveillance of New Left activists and hippies; solidarity across counterculture and politics<br /> 19:25 - Texas SDS members standing out at national conferences; hostile state environment breeding unity<br /> 20:30 - Eddie Wilson and Shiva's Headband; carrying the band's pot to an East Texas benefit<br /> 21:40 - Shiva's Headband and the Conqueroo as politically active bands; doing benefits constantly<br /> 22:22 - The Armadillo and Vietnam Veterans Against the War; beer garden fundraisers<br /> 23:03 -  United Farm Workers march; Economy Furniture strike; November 1972 Armadillo benefit with Greasy Wheels, Steve Fromholz, Willie Nelson, Teatro Chicano<br /> 25:25 - Eddie on the Armadillo as "a giant Petri dish"; bikers, ballet, grandmothers<br /> 25:45 - Stanley Hall run off from Austin Ballet Theater for being gay; moves dance classes to the Armadillo<br /> 26:25 - The UT folk singing club as a gateway to campus political culture; Janis Joplin performed there<br /> 27:00 - Austin's export to San Francisco: Chet Helms, the Avalon, Janis, 13th Floor Elevators, Doug Sahm, Rip-Off Press, San Francisco Oracle<br /> 29:50 - The YMCA building as nerve center: two locations, Frank Wright, Chris Cunningham as directors<br /> 30:30 - Alan Pogue: Vietnam vet photographer who essentially lived in his darkroom at the Y<br /> 30:55 - Women of The Rag set up birth control and abortion counseling hotlines within the office<br /> 31:15 - Those women persuaded Sarah Weddington to take the Roe v. Wade case<br /> 32:00 - The Rag ahead of the underground press on women's issues; papers elsewhere split apart (Berkeley Barb, Rat)<br /> 32:55 - Women bringing new content; collective leadership model enabling more women's involvement<br /> 33:10 - Alice's time in New York: NACLA, cross-fertilization with The Rat; Jeff Shero and the women's takeover of The Rat<br /> 34:00 - Collective editorial model at The Rag, Space City, and Liberation News Service<br /> 36:00 - Underground papers' lack of financial sustainability; why the underground press died; The Rag's 11-year run as exceptional<br /> 38:00 - The obligation to pass these stories to younger generations</p> <p>Follow us on Instagram and on Facebook, at @Threadgills</p> <p>AND</p> <p>Check out our store here and collect our gear: https://Threadgills.com/merch </p> <p>Guest: Thorne Dreyer and Alice Embree, founders of The Rag, Austin's influential underground newspaper; prominent figures in the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).<br /> Their ongoing work: The Rag Blog, Rag Radio, anthology Celebrating The Rag, Alice's memoir Voice Lessons</p> <p>Production Team:<br /> Host, Eddie Wilson - Armadillo World Headquarters founder @Threadgills<br /> Host, Dr. Jason Mellard - Cultural historian @jasondeanmellard<br /> Editor, Renee O'Connor <br /> Music Mixing, Matt Carlson @axemanguitar<br /> Producer, Renee O'Connor @realreneeoconnor<br /> Producer, Sandra Wilson @sandrawilson709<br /> Executive Producer, TSSI<br /> Music by Jake Andrews Music @jakeandrewsmusic<br /> Production assistant, Miles Muir @miles_muir<br /> Production consultant, Katey Psencik</p> <p> </p> <p> </p>

Episode thumbnail for "Developing Austin" with Perry Lorenz

June 24, 2026

"Developing Austin" with Perry Lorenz

<p>"Developing Austin" with Perry Lorenz</p> <p>"We all got liberal arts degrees, and a whole lot of my friends are, you know, are casualties in one way or another. Either, either drug casualties or lifestyle casualties, and never quite made it through school, although that's the reason that they came to Austin. And again, it was so inexpensive… People weren't having to work three jobs to figure out how to pay for their school. Student debt, what the hell is student debt? I mean, nobody I knew graduated with student debt. So it was just a completely different scene… and it was just a liberal bastion." (Perry Lorenz)</p> <p>Perry Lorenz has been at the center of Austin's transformation for nearly six decades, from printing underground comics in San Francisco, to developing some of downtown Austin's most iconic real estate. In this conversation with co-hosts, Eddie Wilson and Dr. Jason Mellard, Perry traces his unlikely journey from University of Texas student and counterculture participant, to one of the city's most consequential developers, reflecting on what Austin gained and lost along the way.</p> <p>Content Warning: adult themes<br /> Content created during the global pandemic, in the room, and on Zoom.</p> <p>Chapters: <br /> 01:30 - Coming to Austin in 1966; feeling "born" in Austin<br /> 02:00 - UT culture: liberal arts, no fraternities, no business school<br /> 02:43 - Visiting San Francisco, discovering the underground comix scene<br /> 03:05 - Joining the Ripoff Press as production manager<br /> 05:00 - Returning to Austin; entering the car business<br /> 05:30 - Downtown Austin in the late '70s: ignored, owner-financed, no banks<br /> 08:40 - The true story of the Rainey Street rezoning<br /> 10:00 - The shift from planned high-rises to a bar district; owners ultimately profiting<br /> 11:18 - Soap Creek Saloon's opening night bartender, tequila Wednesdays<br /> 13:00 - George Majeski making the worst of enemies get along<br /> 14:00 - Appearing in Texas Chainsaw Massacre; cooking on opening night at Pecan Street Cafe<br /> 15:50 - The Independent ("Jenga Tower")<br /> 16:15 - The Nocona at 9th & Lamar with Robert Barnstone<br /> 17:00 - Ann Richards' support; proving the downtown condo market<br /> 18:03 - East Austin condo development; the railroad land; Larry Warshaw<br /> 21:25 - UT in the '60s & '70s: open admissions, cheap tuition, student culture<br /> 23:10 - Cambodia protests; marching on the Capitol; Austin's liberal identity<br /> 24:00 - Working with Dave Moriarty in San Francisco; the warehouse culture with Jerry Garcia and Angela Davis<br /> 25:00 - Working alongside Gilbert Shelton, printing the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers<br /> 26:00 - Printing for Robert Crumb, Spain Rodriguez, Dave Sheridan<br /> 28:08 - The Convention Center relocation story: Suzanne Cannon's idea; Larry Speck's scoring matrix; convincing the city council.<br /> 31:15 - West 33rd Street: hippie houses, Joe Long, motorcycles indoors<br /> 32:50 - Reflections on Austin's change: "it was better 18 months before you got here"; history as ongoing</p> <p>Follow us on Instagram and on Facebook, at @Threadgills</p> <p>AND</p> <p>Check out our store here and collect our gear: https://Threadgills.com/merch </p> <p>Guest:  Perry Lorenz - Principal of Constructive Ventures, participant in early underground comix movement, community commissioner, and decades-long figure in Austin downtown development.</p> <p>Production Team:<br /> Host, Eddie Wilson - Armadillo World Headquarters founder @Threadgills<br /> Host, Dr. Jason Mellard - Cultural historian @jasondeanmellard<br /> Editor, Renee O'Connor <br /> Music Mixing, Matt Carlson @axemanguitar<br /> Producer, Renee O'Connor @realreneeoconnor<br /> Producer, Sandra Wilson @sandrawilson709<br /> Executive Producer, TSSI<br /> Music by Jake Andrews Music @jakeandrewsmusic<br /> Production assistant, Miles Muir @miles_muir<br /> Production consultant, Katey Psencik</p> <p> </p>

Episode thumbnail for "Outstanding Stories in the Criminal Legal System" with Dick Deguerin

June 17, 2026

"Outstanding Stories in the Criminal Legal System" with Dick Deguerin

<p>"Outstanding Stories in the Criminal Legal System" with Dick DeGuerin</p> <p>"Well, I accept a lot of cases. Basically, my criteria is something that needs to be challenging. So you get some tough cases that way, and if you get the reputation for trying tough cases, people come to you. Growing up, I was younger than all my classmates…and I was smaller. But what I learned was the law and the rules of evidence…great equalizer…In the hands of someone that knows the law, you're as big as anybody in the courtroom." (Dick DeGuerin)</p> <p>This episode of Austin Roots features Dick DeGuerin, a legendary Houston-based criminal defense attorney with deep Austin roots. Raised in the city and educated at UT Law, Dick shares wide-ranging stories spanning his college days, legal career, famous cases, and lifelong love of Texas music. The conversation begins with memories of 1960s Austin, fraternity life, underground rock and roll radio (KTXN), the Ranger humor magazine, and colorful campus characters like Frank Irwin and "Daddyo" (Bill Whitliff). Dick recalls early encounters with Kinky Friedman and the Terrytown scene. The discussion shifts to his legal career: his time at the Harris County DA's office, then 12 years under legendary attorney Percy Foreman, who mentored him through high-stakes criminal cases. Dick explains his philosophy of taking on seemingly unwinnable cases, as exemplified by the Robert Durst trial in Galveston, and his representation of Billy Joe Shaver. A standout segment covers his direct involvement in the 1993 Waco siege, where he entered the Branch Davidian compound multiple times as David Koresh's attorney, offering a rare ground-level perspective on the standoff and ATF's use of force. Throughout, Dick weaves in his passion for Texas music, playing ukulele and guitar since childhood, friendships with Guy Clark, Terry Allen, Billy Joe Shaver, and Jimmy Dale Gilmore, and his New Year's gatherings in Marfa.</p> <p>Content Warning: adult themes<br /> Content created during the global pandemic, in the room, and on Zoom.</p> <p>Chapters: <br /> 01:04 - University of Texas in the '60s: Fraternity life, booking bands, Dave McNeely<br /> 01:47 - Underground rock and roll radio: KTXN<br /> 02:10 - Lavada Durst Jr. and the fraternity party scene<br /> 06:43 - A high school epiphany, Tarrytown, and a close call with a plainclothes cop<br /> 10:01 - Percy Foreman: mentorship and the DA's office<br /> 10:21 - Learning from Percy: trying capital cases in his early 30s<br /> 15:51 - Taking "unwinnable" cases; how the Robert Durst trial in Galveston proved the strategy<br /> 18:16 - Representing Billy Joe Shaver and quoting his lyrics in closing argument<br /> 20:38 - Guy Clark, black diamond strings, and a life in Texas music<br /> 24:28 - The Armadillo World Headquarters: Dick's memories of Eddie and the scene<br /> 26:25 - Waco & the Branch Davidians: the call that started it all<br /> 26:30 - Inside the compound: a firsthand account</p> <p>Follow us on Instagram and on Facebook, at @Threadgills</p> <p>AND</p> <p>Check out our store here and collect our gear: https://Threadgills.com/merch </p> <p>Guest List: Dick DeGuerin, one of the most storied criminal defense attorneys in Texas history.</p> <p>Production Team:<br /> Host, Eddie Wilson - Armadillo World Headquarters founder @Threadgills<br /> Host, Dr. Jason Mellard - Cultural historian @jasondeanmellard<br /> Editor, Renee O'Connor <br /> Music Mixing, Matt Carlson @axemanguitar<br /> Producer, Renee O'Connor @realreneeoconnor<br /> Producer, Sandra Wilson @sandrawilson709<br /> Executive Producer, TSSI<br /> Music by Jake Andrews Music @jakeandrewsmusic<br /> Production assistant, Miles Muir @miles_muir<br /> Production consultant, Katey Psencik</p>

20 total episodes available

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What is Austin Roots?

In March 2020, when the world shut down, Eddie Wilson compiled an eclectic list of Austin's artists, authors, movers, and shakers who defined the city's cultural scene in the sixties, seventies, and eighties. In their words, we thread together what made the city they called home, a world renown destination for music, art, and food. Listen to Eddie (Threadgill's proprietor and author of Armadillo World Headquarters), historian Jason Mellard, and our esteemed friends connect on a nostalgic journey down memory lane, with stories of food, music, politics, measuring the true character of Austin, Texas.

Music by Jake Andrews Music

Content Warning: adult themes

Host, Eddie Wilson - Armadillo World Headquarters founder @Threadgills Host, Dr. Jason Mellard - Cultural historian @jasondeanmellard Editor, Renee O'Connor Music Mixing, Matt Carlson @axemanguitar Producer, Renee O'Connor @realreneeoconnor Producer, Sandra Wilson @sandrawilson709 Executive Producer, TSSI Music by Jake Andrews Music @jakeandrewsmusic Production assistant, Miles Muir @miles_muir Production consultant, Katey Psencik

How often does this podcast release new episodes?

This podcast updates daily.

Where can I listen to this podcast?

This podcast is available on 4 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.

Does this podcast accept guests?

Yes, this podcast regularly features guests.

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