Paris, Texas

[Rob-F]

After reading, on RFF, a number of recommendations for the film Paris, Texas, my wife and I decided to watch it. We liked it quite a bit; in fact we will probably add it to our DVD collection. On our way back home from Texas back in March, we found ourselves passing through PAris. We decided to spend the night, and naturally I photographed. So here are my impressions.

Paris has a very attractive park with the downtown buildings arranged in a quadrangle around it.

Some wise words; I don't know how long they have been there, but this is especially relevant today:

This looks like a party spot:

Campbell's Soup has a presence in Paris:

Thanks for watching!

 

[Paulbe]

Rob-F--love it! Great pix of the small town of Paris. The downtown square is wonderful. Is it a thriving little town?
Thanks again for posting!
Paul

 

[Dogman]

I love the small towns in Texas.

 

[TXForester]

Very nice. You caught some of the charm.

There are some nice old homes if you are just outside of the downtown area on the road coming in from Commerce, TX. One of them is an 1880's mansion that one of my uncles restored. It was built my an Englishman who came to TX to deal in cotton. Also coming in to the city from that direction is the old train depot. However it has become a restaurant and lost a bit of its charm. Not far from the depot, if it is still there, is a large, wood-timbered cotton press.

 

[TXForester]

Rob-F--love it! Great pix of the small town of Paris. The downtown square is wonderful. Is it a thriving little town?
Thanks again for posting!
Paul

It's thriving and not so little anymore.

 

[Michael Markey]

Nice set of shots Rob .... lovely place.

 

[aizan]

that's one of my favorite movies. if anyone wants, i can share scans of the photobook wenders made there.

 

[Larry Cloetta]

Thanks for the evocative shots, Rob. People of a certain age who grew up in small Texas towns are likely to see things in those photos not immediately obvious to others. Maybe after viewing "The Last Picture Show" someone could post pictures of Archer, Texas🙂

 

[fdarnell]

It should be noted that the mayor of Paris, TX, a notable heart surgeon, has led the efforts to rebuild the closed hospital in Clarksville, TX, about 30 miles away, into a state-of-the-art cardiac care facility. His team is highly motivated to rebuild this hospital to provide much needed care to the rural population. It is a substantial capital investment and will provide about 100 much needed jobs.

 

[hwntw]

Links btween the film and the town are tenuous . Filming included an area close to the border and I am not sure any shots are actually of P,T. The film is not based on actualite and neither is the Last picture show, but both are highly evocative of something and are two of my favourites. America is strange, to Europeans at least

 

[charjohncarter]

Here is some music to go with Paris, Texas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6ymVaq3Fqk

 

[Larry Cloetta]

Links btween the film and the town are tenuous . Filming included an area close to the border and I am not sure any shots are actually of P,T. The film is not based on actualite and neither is the Last picture show, but both are highly evocative of something and are two of my favourites. America is strange, to Europeans at least

"Paris, Texas" was a nice piece of movie making Wim Wenders style, but it had nothing to do with Paris, Texas, which is fine. On the other hand "The Last Picture Show" was based on a semi-autobiographical novel and was uncomfortably close to actuality for some people in some small Texas towns at that time, though, thankfully, not everyone. And, 1960's small town Texas would be strange to people from lots of other places, not just Europeans. Think Boston, NYC. Yet, there was a hardscrabble beauty to it which might be hard to appreciate as beauty if you hadn't lived it.
Rob's photos captured some of that for me, especially the photo of the old movie theater. Sort of a hopeful decrepitude🙂
If we are doing music to go along with the original photos, I would suggest this bit, which is very true to life for certain parts of the state at the time.
Steve Fromholz's "Texas Trilogy ", For those so inclined.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hvFaKxN03-o

 

[TXForester]

Here is some music to go with Paris, Texas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6ymVaq3Fqk

What's up with that video? Route 66 passes through the panhandle, but Paris on the side of the state where we have trees.

 

[TXForester]

Rob's photos captured some of that for me, especially the photo of the old movie theater. Sort of a hopeful decrepitude🙂

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hvFaKxN03-o

While visiting family I saw (years after the original release) "Darby O'Gill and the Little People" and later "Kelly's Heroes" in that theater. Amazing this can trigger a memory that old, but I can't remember where I put my car keys.

 

[charjohncarter]

What's up with that video? Route 66 passes through the panhandle, but Paris on the side of the state where we have trees.

You are correct, lots of mistakes, maybe a CNN reporter did it.

 

[huddy]

Thanks for the evocative shots, Rob. People of a certain age who grew up in small Texas towns are likely to see things in those photos not immediately obvious to others. Maybe after viewing "The Last Picture Show" someone could post pictures of Archer, Texas🙂

I taught in a small town near Archer not so long ago. Afraid some pictures from the country near there will have to suffice

On the other hand "The Last Picture Show" was based on a semi-autobiographical novel and was uncomfortably close to actuality for some people in some small Texas towns at that time, though, thankfully, not everyone. And, 1960's small town Texas would be strange to people from lots of other places, not just Europeans.

Things are still uncomfortably close to reality for lots of folks in small towns like the one I taught; admittedly, the human condition isn't terribly different in more urban locales; just a change of scenery and more opportunities, both for better and for worse

Horseshoe bend of the Brazos river south of Mineral Wells, TX



Windmill along US281 north of Mineral Wells, TX

 

[Larry Cloetta]

Lovely windmill shot.

 

[Larry Cloetta]

While visiting family I saw (years after the original release) "Darby O'Gill and the Little People" and later "Kelly's Heroes" in that theater. Amazing this can trigger a memory that old, but I can't remember where I put my car keys.

If you are like me, it never hurts to look in the refrigerator.

 

[robert blu]

Being myself a great fan of Wim Wenders work, both as movie director and as photographer I appreciate very much the photos in this thread, the atmosphere they evoke, the lights, the colors. Thanks
robert