year to pursue a modeling career. Actor Owen Wilson and writer/director Wes Anderson each attended the university. There they wrote Bottle Rocket together which became Anderson's first feature film. Another notable writer, Rob Thomas graduated with a BA in History in 1987 and went on to write the young adult novel Rats Saw God and created the series Veronica Mars. Notable illustrator, writer and alum, Felicia Bond, is best known for her illustrations in the If You Give... children's books series, starting with If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Chinese singer-songwriter, producer, actress

rs attended the University, though most dropped out to pursue their respective careers. Janis Joplin, the American singer who was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and who received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award attended the university,[128] as did February 1955 Playboy Playmate of the Month and Golden Globe recipient Jayne Mansfield.[129] Composer Harold Morris is a 1910 graduate. Noted film director, cinematographer, writer, and editor Robert Rodriguez is a Longhorn, as are actors Eli Wallach and Matthew McConaughey. Rodriguez dropped out of the university after two years to pursue his career in Hollywood, but he officially completed his degree from the Radio-Television-Film department on May 23, 2009. Rodriguez also gave the keynote address at the university-wide commencement ceremony. Radio-Television-Film alumni Mark Dennis and Ben Foster took their award winning feature film, Strings, to the American film festival circuit in 2011. Web and television actress Felicia Day and film actress Renée Zellweger also attended the university. Day graduated with dual degrees in music performance (violin) and mathematics, while Zellweger graduated with a BA in English. Writer, recording artist Phillip Sandifer attended the university and graduated with a degree in History. Farrah Fawcett, one of the original Charlie's Angels, left after her junior year to pursue a modeling career. Actor Owen Wilson and writer/director Wes Anderson each attended the university. There they wrote Bottle Rocket together which became Anderson's first feature film. Another notable writer, Rob Thomas graduated with a BA in History in 1987 and went on to write the young adult novel Rats Saw God and created the series Veronica Mars. Notable illustrator, writer and alum, Felicia Bond, is best known for her illustrations in the If You Give... children's books series, starting with If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Chinese singer-songwriter, producer, actress Cindy Yen (birth name Cindy Wu) graduated with double degrees in Music (piano performance) and Broadcast Journalism in 2008. Noted composer and arranger Jack Cooper received his D.M.A. in 1999 from UT Austin in composition and has gone onto teach in higher education and become well know internationally through the music publishing industry.
Many alumni have found success in professional sports. Legendary pro football coach Tom Landry '49 attended the university as an industrial engineering major but interrupted his education after a semester to serve in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II. Following the war, he returned to the university and played fullback and defensive back on the Longhorns' bowl-game winners on New Year's Day of 1948 and 1949. Seven-time Cy Young Award-winner Roger Clemens entered the MLB after helping the Longhorns win the 1983 College World Series.[130] Three-time NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant entered the 2007 NBA Draft and was selected second overall behind Greg Oden, after sweeping National Player of the Year honors, becoming the first freshman to win any of the awards. After becoming became the first freshman in school history to lead Texas in scoring and being named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year, Daniel Gibson entered the 2006 NBA Draft and was selected in the second round by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Several Olympic medalists have also attended the school, including 2008 Summer Olympics athletes Ian Crocker '05 (swimming world record holder and two-time Olympic gold medalist) and 4x400m relay defending Olympic gold medalist Sanya Richards '06.[131][132] Mary Lou Retton (the first female gymnast outside Eastern Europe