He once said, "Texas is twelve million people who are 
bright and dumb, conservative and liberal, tall and 
short and slim and fat, courageous and cowardly—just 
like people in Connecticut and Oregon."  And, "The 
philosophy of the cowboy is not spoken, but tacit.  It 
must remain what he was, not what he said." And, 
"Academics everywhere are generally as rigid as rednecks, 
as conservative as successful farmers, and as irrational 
as zealots."


Joe B. Frantz was noted for his entertaining talks, his 
love of anecdote, and his wit in phrase-making.  He spent 
his life working as a college professor of history at the 
University of Texas at Autin and at Texas A&M—Corpus 
Christi.  He was director of the Texas State Historical 
Association from 1966 to 1977 and gathered the oral 
history of the Lyndon B. Johnson administration.  Along 
the way he taught graduate students, wrote books and 
articles, and gave speeches.  "Joe," as he preferred to 
be called, received the mantle of Texas history from his 
mentor, Walter Prescott Webb, and progressed to become a 
recognized western and national historian.  His era 
spanned the time when the University of Texas became a 
major doctoral school that trained research historians, 
and his students are now senior professors in departments 
across the country.


This engagingly written biography of Frantz traces his 
lifetime from an orphan in Dallas until his death in 
Houston in 1993.  Written by Texas historian David G. 
McComb, a former student of Frantz's, Travels With 
Joe is based upon Frantz's personal papers, interviews, 
and writings.  It narrates the story of Frantz's triumphs 
and storms and captures the essence of this fascinating 
and influential man.  Life, for Joe B. Frantz, was a grand 
journey, an adventure that he preferred to share with 
others.  This book is about his journey. 

_________________________________________________________

DAVID G. McCOMB, a professor at Colorado State 
University, has published many books and articles on 
Texas history, including Galveston:  A History and 
a Guide.