Text color of a closed spinner

You can change the text colour or can access the textview in setOnItemSelectedListener event,

            spinnerObject.setOnItemSelectedListener(new AdapterView.OnItemSelectedListener() {
            @Override
            public void onItemSelected(AdapterView<?> parentView, View selectedItemView, int position, long id) {
                 ((TextView)parentView.getChildAt(0)).setTextColor(Color.rgb(249, 249, 249));   

            }

To modify the text color create a new xml file in your res/layout folder (for example my_spinner_text.xml). Add a text view to the new xml file and modify how you want:

<TextView android:id="@+id/spinnerText" 
    android:layout_width="fill_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
    android:layout_centerHorizontal="true"
    android:textColor="#CCCCCC" 
    android:textSize="20dp" 
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"/>

Create an ArrayAdapter that uses the new TextView and set it to your spinner:

    Spinner localSpinner = (Spinner)findViewById(R.id.mySpinner);
    ArrayAdapter<CharSequence> adapter = ArrayAdapter.createFromResource(this,
                R.array.spinner_array,
                R.layout.my_spinner_text);
    adapter.setDropDownViewResource(android.R.layout.simple_spinner_dropdown_item);
    localSpinner.setAdapter(adapter);

I understand that the closed spinner is actually a View, I think.

Yes. Specifically, it is whatever you told your SpinnerAdapter to create.

But I am guessing it has a TextView there somewhere to show the text.

That would depend on what you told your SpinnerAdapter to create.

How do I get access to that TextView so I can change the textcolor?

Ideally, you don't -- you give it the right color in the first place, via whatever you told your SpinnerAdapter to create. If the color varies, override getView() in your SpinnerAdapter and change the color at that point.

In a pinch, you can try calling getSelectedView() to get the current View being shown by the closed Spinner, but whatever change you make here may be eliminated on the user's next selection, and the alternate color may return later on if the earlier View gets recycled.