YOU'VE
YOU'VE HEARD IT, SEEN IT ON T-SHIRTS AND BUMPER STICKERS, YOU'VE PROBABLY EVEN
SAID IT. ITS A
PHRASE WELL-KNOWN ACROSS THE
COUNTRY.
BUT WHERE DID IT COME FROM? AND
IS AUSTIN STILL "WEIRD?"
HERE'S KVUE'S CULTURAL REPORTER
BRITTANY
FLOWERS
BRITTANY FLOWERS
FLOWERS
FLOWERS 1:42:24 I PRETTY MUCH GREW UP IN
AUSTIN, AND IT ALWAYS HAD THIS REAL DIFFERENT FEELING THAN THE
REST OF TEXAS TO ME.
IT'S A PHRASE FIRST COINED
NEARLY 20 YEARS AGO BY RED
WASSINECH, WHEN HE CALLED A
LOCAL NON-PROFIT RADIO STATION,
TO MAKE
A DONATION..
A DONATION..
0:55:21
0:55:21 WHEN I CALLED IN MY DONATION, THE PERSON TAKING IT SAID "WELL WHY ARE YOU DONATING
TO THIS" AND I SAID "OH IT HELPS
KEEP
AUSTIN WEIRD".
AND SOMETHING IN HIS MIND
CLICKED.
1:03:05 AND I MENTIONED IT TO MY
WIFE AND SHE SAID "WELL, LET'S
GET BUMPER STICKERS MADE.
AND THEY DID. HE ALSO STARTED
THE WEBSITE KEEP AUSTIN WEIRD
DOT
DOT
COM,
COM, AND,
COM, AND, AFTER THE PHRASE WAS ADOPTED BY LOCAL BUSINESSES, BOOK
PEOPLE AND WATERLOO RECORDS, IT
TOOK OFF.
2:31:21 I THINK WE DID A PRETTY
GOOD JOB OF PROMOTING KEEP
AUSTIN WEIRD FOR A TOTALLY
DIFFERENT REASON, I THINK,
OR IN A TOTALLY DIFFERENT WAY,
THAN MAYBE SOME OF THE PEOPLE
HAD INTENDED
IN 2003 THE PRESIDENTS OF BOOK
PEOPLE AND WATERLOO
RECORDS TEAMED UP TO FIGHT THE
OPENING OF A BIG BOX STORE THAT
COULD POTENTIALLY PUT THEM OUT
OF BUSINESS.
0:58:01 STEVE BERCU, THE
PRESIDENT OF BOOK PEOPLE, AND
MYSELF WERE SAYING "HEY THEY'RE
ONE BLOCK AWAY FROM
US" 1:04:28 AND WE'VE BEEN
COMPETING WITH BORDERS, YOU
KNOW, FOR A GOOD WHILE. THEY'VE
GOT OTHER STORES HERE IN
TOWN.
THEY CREATED BUMPER STICKERS,
AND USED AN EMAIL CAMPAIGN TO
ENCOURAGE AUSTINITES TO SHOP
LOCAL.
2:17:29 THESE INDEPENDENT
BUSINESSES ARE IMPORTANT.
THEY'RE WHAT MAKE AUSTIN,
AUSTIN.
SO WHAT IS IT ABOUT AUSTIN THAT
MAKES IT "WEIRD"?
00:01:03 I THINK IT STILL
CELEBRATES BEING ORIGINAL.
6:11:02 THINGS LIKE MOONTOWER
COMEDY
COMEDY AND ALL OF THE FILM FESTIVALS THAT WE'VE GOT GOING ON HERE AND SO FORTH
2:44:16 I THINK THAT AUSTIN
STILL VERY MUCH SUPPORTS ITS
INDEPENDENT BUSINESSES, WHICH I
THINK IS FANTASTIC. I THINK THAT
YOU DON'T FIND THAT IN ALL
COMMUNITIES.
IT'S NOW BEEN 19 YEARS SINCE
WASSINECH FIRST SAID "KEEP
AUSTIN
WEIRD". WHERE DOES THE WEIRDNESS
STAND NOW? IS AUSTIN
STILL WEIRD?
6:44:19 I THINK.. IT'S SLIPPING
A BIT. BUT I THINK IT COULD
STILL BE
REVITALIZED.
2:52:16 IS IT AS WEIRD AS IT WAS
IS 2003? WHO'S TO SAY? THERE'S
LOTS OF ISSUES FACING AUSTIN.
IT'S NOT AS EASY TO LIVE HERE
FOR PEOPLE WHO HELP MAKE IT
WEIRD, RIGHT. SO THE
AFFORDABILITY IS A REAL ISSUE.
6:08:15 IF YOU JUST SIT AROUND
AND COMPLAIN ABOUT IT, YEAH,
IT'S NOT GOING TO SEEM WEIRD,
BUT IF YOU GET OUT AND ACTUALLY
GO DO THINGS, YOU GO 'WOW,
THERE'S STILL A LOT OF WACKY
PEOPLE IN TOWN'
2:02:04
2:02:04 I
2:02:04 I THINK YOU HAVE TO LOOK FOR IT A LITTLE MORE THAN WHAT YOU USED TO.
MAX MORELAND PRESERVES THE
WEIRDNESS OF LALA'S LITTLE
NUGGET.A SMALL BAR IN NORTH
AUSTIN . WITH A YEAR-ROUND
CHRISTMAS THEME
2:08:03 IT'S JUST AS WE GROW AND
CHANGE, WE CAN'T STOP GROWTH AND
WE CAN'T STOP DEVELOPMENT. IT
STILL EXISTS ITS JUST SOMETHING
THAT YOU'VE GOT TO LOOK FOR
AROUND SOME CREEPY CORNERS
TO FIND SOMETIMES.
SO, HOW CAN EVERYONE HELP
PRESERVE THE WEIRDNESS THAT
REMAINS?
0:47:20 I THINK THE FUNDAMENTAL
THING ABOUT KEEP AUSTIN WEIRD
WAS
THE WHOLE ATTITUDE OF BEING
OPEN.
4:52:29 I REALLY DO THINK THAT
KEEPING AUSTIN WEIRD IS ABOUT
MAKING SURE THAT THE SMALL AND
LOCAL AND INDEPENDENT
BUSINESSES THRIVE BECAUSE THAT'S
WHERE AUSTIN'S
CHARACTER COMES FROM.
11:23:21 HOPEFULLY THE ONES THAT
AREN'T FROM AUSTIN TALK
TO THE ONES THAT ARE.
IN 2016 WASSINECH WROTE A BOOK
ABOUT AUSTIN'S WEIRDNESS. IT'S A
GUIDE TO THE STILL ODD SIDE OF
THE CITY. THE PEOPLE AND PLACES
THAT
MAKE AUSTIN WEIRD. PLACES LIKE
THE CAROUSEL
LOUNGE, ROOM SERVICE VINTAGE,
AND SPARKY PARK.
8:19:04 IT'S JUST KIND OF
FINDING THE ODDER ONES AND
PUSHING
PUSHING THEM. SO WHETHER YOU READ BOOKS ABOUT AUSTIN, TALK TO THOSE
THAT HAVE LIVED IN AUSTIN FOR
AWHILE, OR JUST SHOP LOCAL,
9:58:00 I LOVE THIS PLACE AND I
WANT IT TO BE LIKE THE PLACE I
MOVED TO
MOVED TO
IN
IN 1972,
IN 1972, I KNOW THAT WON'T BE THE CASE. WE ALL CAN PLAY A ROLE IN
KEEPING AUSTIN WEIRD.
0:37:24 WELL I JUST HOPE THEY
KEEP
KEEP OPEN
KEEP OPEN MINDED AND NOT GET JUDGMENTAL..0:42:24 AND TRY NOT TO WORSHIP MONEY.
BRITTANY FLOWERS. KVUE NEWS.
WEATHER
WEATHER THANKS