Archer City, Texas

Archer City is a city in Archer County, Texas, United States. The city lies at the junction of State Highway 79 and State Highway 25. It is the county seat of Archer County. It is located 25-miles south of Wichita Falls, Texas, and is part of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,848 at the 2000 census. The city is named for Branch Tanner Archer, a commissioner for the Republic of Texas. Its most famous native son is the author Larry McMurtry. Archer City and its Royal Theater are the basis for McMurty's fictional towns of "Thalia" and "Anarene" in his novels, including The Last Picture Show. The films The Last Picture Show (1971) and its sequel Texasville (1990) were filmed in Archer City. Archer City is also home to several other authors. Bill Crowley has published three books, his newest being a Christian devotional. Archer City is also home to actress Angela Kinsey. She portrays Angela in the comedy series The Office. 12 miles west-southwest of the city lies a 1.5 mile antenna, the Lake Kickapoo Field Station, operated by the 20th Space Control Squadron, and part of the Air Force Space Surveillance System, used for observing objects passing over the United States. It is the primary anchor transmitter for the Space Command southern "fence" (or "Space Fence") network for monitoring the space defense system. It extends east-to-west across America at about the 33rd parallel north. The antenna has no public access, restricted entry. The current mayor of Archer City is David Levy.