Francis Tolbert better known as Frank X. Tolbert, was a Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

 journalist, historian, and chili enthusiast. For the Dallas Morning News, he wrote a local history column called Tolbert's Texas that ran from 1946 until his death in 1984.

Biography

Tolbert was born in Amarillo

Amarillo, Texas

Amarillo is the 14th-largest city, by population, in the state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 190,695 at the 2010 census...

, and was raised in Wichita Falls

Wichita Falls, Texas

Wichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay and Wichita counties. According to the U.S. Census estimate of 2010,...

 and Canyon

Canyon, Texas

Canyon is a city in Randall County, Texas, United States. The population was 12,875 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Randall County. It is the home of West Texas A&M University and Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum. Palo Duro Canyon State Park is some twelve miles east of Canyon...

. He attended various colleges, but never received a degree. He worked as a sports writer for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal is a newspaper based in Lubbock, Texas, U.S. It is owned by the Morris Communications Company.-History:The Lubbock Avalanche was founded in 1900 by John James Dillard and Thad Tubbs. According to Dillard, the name "Avalanche" was chosen due to his desire that the...

, the Wichita Falls Times Record News, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram is a major U.S. daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. Its area of domination is checked by its main rival, The Dallas Morning News, which is published from the eastern half of the Metroplex. It is owned...

. He also wrote articles that were published in Collier's, Esquire

Esquire (magazine)

Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...

, and the Saturday Evening Post. He served in the Marine Corps during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and married Kathleen Hoover in December 1943. In 1946 he joined the Dallas Morning News, and became a regular columnist on Texas topics, including colorful Texas people from all walks of life.

He was also a food connoisseur, wrote a history of chili con carne

Chili con carne

Chili con carne is a spicy stew. The name of the dish derives from the Spanish chile con carne, "chili pepper with meat". Traditional versions are made, minimally, from chili peppers, garlic, onions, and cumin, along with chopped or ground beef. Beans and tomatoes are frequently included...

 called A Bowl of Red, and ran Tolbert's chili restaurant in Dallas. In 1967 he founded, with Wick Fowler, the World Chili Championship held annually in Terlingua, Texas

Terlingua, Texas

Terlingua is a mining district in southwestern Brewster County, Texas, United States. It is located near the Rio Grande and the Texas villages of Lajitas and Study Butte, Texas,as well as the Mexican village of Santa Elena. The discovery of cinnabar, from which the metal mercury is extracted, in...

, which was later named for them. He appeared in television commercials for Dennison's canned chili during the late 1970's.

He died of heart failure at age 71. His son, Frank X. Tolbert 2, is an artist and chili chef. His daughter, Kathleen Tolbert Ryan, re-opened a Tolbert's Restaurant in May 2006 on Main Street in Grapevine, Texas

Grapevine, Texas

Grapevine is a city in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States located within the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census the city population was 46,334. The city's moniker is derived from the native grapes prevalent in the area. In recent years several wineries have...

. Tolbert's Restaurant serves Frank X. Tolbert's famous chili recipe and has been named one of the "52 things Every Dallasite Must Do" by D Magazine as well as one of the best chili spots in America by Bon Appetit magazine . Sister in-law Bertha Theile Tolbert.

Fiction

• Bigamy Jones (1954)
• The Staked Plain (1987) with Tom Pilkington, Southern Methodist Univ. Press, ISBN 9780870742538.

Non-fiction

• An Informal History of Texas (1951)
• Neiman-Marcus, Texas (1953)
• The Day of San Jacinto (1959) Jenkins Publishing.
• Dick Dowling at Sabine Pass (1962)
• A Bowl of Red (1972) Doubleday, ISBN 9780385057639.
• Tolbert's Texas (1983) Doubleday, ISBN 0385085826, 9780385085823.
• Tolbert of Texas: the Man and His Work (1986) ed. by Evelyn Oppenheimer, TCU Press, ISBN 0875650686, 9780875650685.