The families who once lived on Rainey Street all left. One man is still there.
Episodes
July 30, 2026
BONUS: A live riff on our Master Pancake story at ATXplained Live in October 2025
John Erler from Master Pancake Theater joins us to riff on the story about him as it’s performed live. There’s also video of this story. It helps — especially during the snake part.
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July 30, 2026
How did Austin’s ‘Master Pancake’ get started?
A fan of the movie-riffing show at the Alamo Drafthouse wanted to know more about how they got their start. Don’t miss the bonus episode after this one — a recording of the ATXplained Live where this story gets riffed on live!
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July 16, 2026
What happened to all the fireflies in Austin?
The summer air is supposed to filled with magical, twinkling insects. But you might have noticed — depending on where you live in Austin — that there don’t seem to be as many of them lately. KUT’s Chelsey Zhu went on a bug hunt.
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July 2, 2026
Is this Fourth of July tradition in Northwest Austin the work of some kind of cult?
Austin’s weirdest Independence Day parade has been going for decades. Now the husband of one participant wants answers: how did it begin and why do dozens of women (and a few men) do march like this every year? Watch this story at our May 21, 2026 ATXplained Live at Bass Concert Hall — including a […]
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June 4, 2026
What happens to all the dead animals the city collects from roads in Austin?
Thousands of animals are picked up from the road around Austin every year. But where do these animals go when they die?
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May 7, 2026
Was Austin’s Barton Springs sacred to Indigenous people before Europeans showed up?
The springs that feed Barton Springs were formed millions of years ago. So what have human relationships with Austin’s “Crown Jewel” been like in that time?
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April 23, 2026
Are there wild elk lurking in southwest Austin?
Darren Smith swore the dark, antlered figure he saw in the early morning hours was an elk. No one believed him. This story was originally part of KUT’s ATXplained Live on Oct. 29, 2025. Tickets for our next show on May 21 are available here.
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April 9, 2026
What’s the story behind this freaky sculpture hanging in the Barton Creek Greenbelt?
The story starts with a mysterious, long-nippled figure lurking among the tree tops, but it gets weirder from there.
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