“All new
states are invested, more or less,
by a class of noisy,
second-rate men who are
always in favor of rash and extreme measures, but Texas was absolutely
overrun by such men.”
- Sam Houston |
THE MENGER
HOTEL'S NAGNIFICENT BAR
OLD
TEXAS STYLE
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The Sunday morning before Memorial Day finds me anxiously
awaiting the
arrival of a young barkeep, who as per an agreement cast with the
manager a day earlier, will grant me unfettered access to the best
looking barroom in all of Texas; the one in. THE
MENGER HOTEL I will have
ninety minutes to
photograph this delicious gem before the hoards of overheated tourists
lined up across the street come in with the goal of trying to forget
the Alamo by dousing parched tongues with Margaritas and bottles of
Shiner
Boch.
Even though I had spent the better
part of the previous day trying to
remain upright and out of the San Antonio River after several hours at
Waxy O’Connors Irish Pub, located alongside the city’s famed Riverwalk,
I was surprisingly fit and well focused. I suspect the source of my
renewed vigor was the Menger Bar itself. Here I was alone in the room
that was the exact replica of London’s House of Lords Pub, a room that
had provided libations and entertainment for such notables as Cornelius
Vanderbilt, Babe Ruth and Mae West, and the room where a young Teddy
Roosevelt recruited the Rough Riders.
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SAN ANTONIO
RIVERWALK
| After what turned out to be a remarkably quick photo shoot,
I sat down
and ordered a bottle of the aforementioned local Texas brew. Since the
bartender was still busy with getting ready for his long day, I did not
attempt to engage in conversation. Instead I turned my attention to the
activities beyond the side door and began to daydream about the Alamo. |
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Flag
of Texas
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The Alamo
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My contemplations followed the usual course. I
reviewed the history, I
measured the politics, I imagined the actual combat and I attempted to
gain empathy for both sides. Then somewhere along that path I
remembered how bad I felt when Fess Parker and Buddy Ebsen got killed
in the Walt Disney rendering of the story. My empathy for the Mexicans
began to wane. Then I remembered feeling not as bad when John Wayne
took the fall as Colonel Crockett; but I was devastated when Jim Bowie,
played perfectly by Richard Widmark, met his demise. I was relieved of
this internal conflict by the offer of another beer. |
BULL MOOSE
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A HUMAN BULL MOOSE
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My congenial host, Nelson, had completed his
daily setup and now had
the time to talk. We spoke a bit about my journey and the reason for me
coming to the Menger. Then the conversation turned to his time in San
Antonio. He told me that he had come to the city two years earlier to
be close to his brother who was in the military and stationed nearby.
He spoke about their profound friendship and the fears and concerns
that followed now that his brother would be leaving for Iraq. Soon he
too would leave Texas to be with the rest of his family, and to
participate in that ritual of waiting that has been the burden of
soldier’s families long before the fights at San Jacinto or San Juan
Hill.
I leave the MENGER
HOTEL BAR with a hope and
a prayer that Nelson’s future
Memorial Days will consist only of remembrances for historic figures
and fallen strangers. |
AMERICAN PUBLIC HOUSE
REVIEW text, images, and music © 2007-2009. All rights
reserved.
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