New, improved Big Tex statue unveiled before State Fair begins.
New Big Tex unveiled
DALLAS—The new Big Tex made his debut Thursday afternoon, a year after the towering cowboy that’s an icon of the State Fair of Texas was destroyed in a blaze.
The new Big Tex is supposed to look similar to the old one, though at 55-feet tall, he is 3 feet taller. And unlike the figure that was destroyed last year, he has a fire-suppression system.
The big reveal of the new Big Tex had been set for Friday, the opening day of the fair. But fair spokeswoman Sue Gooding said officials decided to move up the unveiling to Thursday after winds started ripping the lightweight curtains surrounding him.
“We decided that although we wanted to keep it a secret, we needed to go ahead and drop it,” Gooding said.
With the unveil coming a day before the fair’s start, only fair workers and members of the media were there to see him in person Thursday.
An electrical short two days before the end of last year’s fair caused the blaze that destroyed the old Big Tex.
Big Tex wears a red-white and-shirt featuring stars and a 95-gallon hat. A giant belt buckle adorns his blue jeans and his boots feature American and Texas flags and the state Capitol.
Fair spokeswoman Sue Gooding said Big Tex’s footwear are replicas of Lucchese boots from the 1940s that were part of a series featuring designs for each state.
“I love it. I think he looks great,” Stephanie Szatan said after pausing to snap a picture of the revamped cowboy. “I’m glad he’s back.”