03:54 AM CST on Sunday, November 13, 2005

By BERT LOZANO / WFAA-TV

WFAA-TV

A radical name change could bring free satellite service to Clark, Texas.

CLARK — Few things change in Clark, Texas, a small town in southwest Denton County.

There's no cable here; residents must rely on either off-the-air TV antennas or satellite dishes to watch their favorite programs.

But there's a big change in store at city hall that could end that battle. A name change.

How does DISH, Texas sound?

"Why change the name, and why in the world would you want to call it DISH, Texas?" asked former city council member Joe Ratliff.

If the city does make the move, all 125 residents will get 10 years of free satellite television plus a free digital video recorder from DISH Network, the nation's number two satellite service.

In order to comply with terms of the offer, the town would have to be the first to officially change its name to DISH (all capital letters).

Ratliff said said the proposed name change is a result of a running feud between the new mayor and the old mayor who the city was named after. "It's kind of a vindictive thing," Ratliff said.

But some residents of Clark aren't disturbed by the prospect of paying taxes to DISH, Texas.

"At first, I didn't even know I was living in the town of Clark," said Tony Earle, a relatively new citizen in the community. "Nobody even know's it's here, anyway, If I'm going to get the benefit of 10 years' free service, I don't have a problem with it."

But Ratliff argues that residents should vote on whether to let their city to become an advertising gimmick for DISH Network. "If we're going to be the laughingstock of the country, that's not a very good deal."

"Why don't we just call it 'double wide?'"

E-mail blozano@wfaa.com