Friday Night Lights

Darian Ward, Reporter (On "Friday Night Lights")

Ten Other Instances of "Sloppy Seconds"

Sean Avery of the NHL's Dallas Stars was suspended for an indefinite period by the NHL on Tuesday for comments he made in Calgary on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, he made a comment about several players dating his "sloppy seconds." And I know most of you in Houston would rather talk high school fo ... More >>

Aftermath: The Killers at Verizon Wireless Theater

Photos by Torey Mundkowsky Next year this decade will be over, and very few new bands have distinguished themselves either at the turnstiles or the cash register. Even one of the main ones that has, the Killers, chose to hit the theater circuit this winter after releasing its th ... More >>

Mail Call: Heartless Bastards, Riverboat Gamblers, Steve Forbert, Thursday and More

Pick of the Litter Cambria HarkeyHeartless Bastards (Austin/Cincinnati), The Mountain (Fat Possum) PR Says: "The record delivers the swamped-up rock howl that fans have always loved - but also brings in this amazing expansion into their sound with pedal steel, mandolin, banjo and st ... More >>

Houston-Born TV-Theme Composer W.G. "Snuffy" Walden Enjoys His Wonder Years

Up to Snuff

Port Vale

The Music The Lights The Fire (Ojet)

Hancock Is A Superzero

The movie squanders potential greatness with lame humor and a half-baked hero

The Kingdom

Peter Berg sends Jamie Foxx to fight the enemy over there in The Kingdom

Our top DVD picks scheduled for release this week

Peter Berg sends Jamie Foxx to fight the enemy over there in The Kingdom

For the Children

Peter Berg sends Jamie Foxx to fight the enemy over there in The Kingdom

Lights On or Off?

The fight for a TV show about truth, justice and high school football

Tough Guys

Full pads, full contact, no slackers allowed

Making the Call

Broadcasting high school games, ESPN-style

Gridiron Gang

Heavily padded football movie hits all the familiar notes

Explosions in the Sky, with the Octopus Project and A Hawk and a Hacksaw

Saturday, January 28, at the Engine Room, 1515 Pease, 713-654-7846.

Funky Bunch

Mark Wahlberg stars in an odd remake that, oddly, isn't so bad

Big Boss Man

Jimmy T99 Nelson predated and outlived Elvis P. and has won the affections of Elvis C.

Broadway Baby

Somehow, Odessa will be Woodstock this summer for Sondheim lovers

Not Rockne

A worthy actor rides the bench in the listless Coach Carter

Dome of Doom

Can the county's rehab plans save the Astrodome from demolition?

What Price Glory?

In an era when booster dollars give high school football teams a high-tech edge, scratching out a winning season gets tougher and tougher

Hell of a Catch

Friday Night Lights goes deep -- a rare route for football movies

Shooting Star

Houston’s busiest filmmaker relies on Zen calm — and guerrilla tactics

Friday Night Lights, Houston Style: What Ever Happened To The Yates-Madison Rivalry?

Photo by Paul Knight​Hair Balls traveled to HISD's Barnett Stadium on Friday to check out the James Madison Marlins play the Jake Yates Lions, a refreshing change of pace from last week's Battle of the Super Suburbs. Madison and Yates are apparently old rivals, and we went to the game with high ex ... More >>

This Week In TV: Idol's Coming, Whether You're Ready or Not

My car's in the shop, I can't figure what season it is, and I don't know what to do about the Indians in the lobby. This was Thanksgiving week in TV Land: • Glee is going bye-bye for a while. The last episode of the year will air on December 9, completing the original 13-episode order, and the s ... More >>

This Week In TV: NBC Imploded. Again

​I had no idea Houston could get this cold, I'm tired of reruns, and I still think your Batman voice sounds like Cookie Monster. This was the week in TV Land: • So, NBC imploded. Again. As last week drew to a close, rumors started spreading that NBC was going to reorganize its late-night s ... More >>

The Week In TV: We're With Coco

​The weekend's gone, the sun is out, and the only marathon I did this weekend consisted of Whataburger taquitos. This was the week in TV Land: • So! Conan and Jay are probably not going to make buddy comedies together any time soon, or ever. The growing animosity between the two -- mainly ... More >>

A Rock & Roll Time Capsule From Friday Night Lights Country

myspace.com/sweetmikeycThat's right, that's former Elvis Presley guitar-picker Scotty Moore on the far left.​ As Lonesome, Onry and Mean noted yesterday, even in an age when no one supposedly buys, listens to or reviews albums anymore - three words: Record Store Day - too many albums pour into our ... More >>

The Week In TV: Betty White and the Rich Dicks

I've got clear eyes, a full heart, and can't help but notice that you seem pretty practiced at putting on panties with one hand while holding a gun. This was the week in TV Land: • Because Facebook now controls us all, Betty White hosted Saturday Night Live a couple days ago after the booming po ... More >>

The Week In TV: Lost and Found

​I'm tired, hungry, and probably just experiencing all this in a pleasant purgatory of my own making. This was the week in TV Land: • So, Lost ended. I'd be lying if I said I was completely pleased with the way it went down. I wasn't expecting bursts of exposition to answer every little de ... More >>

The Week In TV: Charlie Sheen's Career Not Hurt By Punching Women

Back, for some reason​The dog days are here, people keep dying, and there's plenty of static on the dial. This was the week in TV Land:• When I was very young, my heart and soul were ruled by Thundercats. I even at one point made the regrettable decision to wear a watch featuring Lion-O to schoo ... More >>

The Week In TV: Enjoy Hulu While It Lasts

The good stuff won't be free for much longer.​My backyard flooded, I went half-blind on fireworks, and I am exponentially losing my agility. This was the week in TV Land: • As if to taunt my very desires, Hulu announced last week that it's launching Hulu Plus, a paid version of the site th ... More >>

The Week In TV: Emmy Nominations, Good and Bad

​The Cup is over, the king has moved, and I replaced the C in "circle" with the Z from "zucchini." This was the week in TV Land: • Nominations for the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards were announced last week, and befitting an industry built on low standards and an organization dedicated to filli ... More >>

The Week In TV: Who Watched Mad Men?

We didn't watch it. But, hey, at least we're honest.​The best thing I watched last week was an airing of Ratatouille on ABC Family. This was the week in TV Land: • I'll tell you right now: I didn't watch Mad Men. "BUT DAN," I can hear you shouting even though you're reading this at work, " ... More >>

The Week in TV: Ellen Degeneres Realizes American Idol Sucks

Rob Lowe will soon join the cast of Parks and Recreation.​The dog days are upon us, the networks are planning for fall, and there's always money in the banana stand. This was the week in TV Land: • The Television Critics Association summer press tour has been going on for the past few days ... More >>

This Week in TV: Football Season is Over

Friday Night Lights: Go Lions​One football season ended, another warmed up, and I am this close to canceling cable and just using the Internet. This was the week in TV Land: • I have never wanted a team to win a game as badly as I wanted the Lions to beat the Panthers in Friday's season fi ... More >>

High School Football: If Hollywood Were In Control, These Five Things Would Happen

Sacred grounds​This evening marks the start of another high school football season. Entire cities and towns will be shuttering their doors and congregating at the central holy ground: the football stadium. Well, that may not be the case in Houston, but certainly in Dillon and West Canaan. (Oh, tho ... More >>

Last Night: Paramore At The Woodlands

Photos by Marco Torres​Paramore, Tegan and Sara, New Found Glory Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion September 8, 2010 Concerts on Wednesdays are a strange ordeal. What's even stranger are concerts that begin at 6 p.m. in The Woodlands, especially when their target audiences are probably just get ... More >>

TV & Film Production: Why Are Dallas And Austin Kicking Houston's Ass?

Action!! (In Austin or Dallas)​Yesterday we spoke with Bob Hudgins, the head of the Texas Film Commission, about the mini-brouhaha over the movie Machete and possible Texas tax breaks.We then moved on to another subject: Why is Dallas getting all the film and TV work these days?Currently five majo ... More >>

Ring Toss

Fratboy fracas has Aggies on edge.

Texas & Concealed Handguns: Lone Star State Becoming Wimpy

Texas, we can do better​The New York Times has published an utterly embarrassing look at how Texas has completely allowed other states to take the lead when it comes to concealed-handgun idiocy.Hear this, Texas: Tennessee allows people to take their Glocks into bars. We here in the Lone Star state ... More >>

Last Night: Miranda Lambert At RodeoHouston

Photo courtesy of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo​Miranda Lambert Reliant Stadium March 16, 2011 Shucks, ma. Our lil' ol' East Texas gal done all growed up. Sugar and spice and definitely everything nice, unless you piss her off, Miranda Lambert is a different kind of crossover act. A r ... More >>

Off the Sidelines

Crashing a birthday party didn't work, but young rapper J. Cole eventually got Jay-Z's attention.

Top 10 Texas Movie Soundtracks

​This weekend, as the rest of the world catches Harry Potter mania for (perhaps) the final time, Houston gets a serious dose of Urban Cowboy nostalgia. Theater Under the Stars' production of the Tony-nominated 2003 musical - which The New York Times called "a conclusive demonstration that it's ... More >>

Timothy Porter: Teacher, Volleyball Coach, Alleged Steroid & Cocaine Dealer

Timothy Porter: Jack of all trades.​High school coaches can be inspiring figures, like Coach Taylor in Friday Night Lights. Except we can't quite picture Taylor dealing coke and steroids, possibly to his own students and players. That's what Friendswood police accuse Timothy Porter of doing, ... More >>

Pop Rocks: We Must Avenge Patrick Swayze

​Assholes: Surf thriller "Point Break" will get a modern update by Alcon and Warner Bros., much to fans' chagrin. According to Deadline.com, the new version will be set in the world of extreme sports. Kurt Wimmer ("Salt," the upcoming "Total Recall" remake) has written the script for the ne ... More >>

Gene Kurtz, "Treat Her Right" Co-Writer, Passes Away

Photo by Winker​Bassist Gene Kurtz, who co-wrote Roy Head's 1965 hit "Treat Her Right" and went on to play with a wide range of artists across rock, R&B, jazz and country, passed away Sunday night, according to a post on his Facebook page. Kurtz had just celebrated his 69th birthday last week. ... More >>

Scale the Summit

Photo by Winker​Bassist Gene Kurtz, who co-wrote Roy Head's 1965 hit "Treat Her Right" and went on to play with a wide range of artists across rock, R&B, jazz and country, passed away Sunday night, according to a post on his Facebook page. Kurtz had just celebrated his 69th birthday last week. ... More >>