You're not looking for slickness when it comes to local television ads. You're also not looking for rock-bottom cheapness, with one salesman shouting maniacally into an unmoving camera. Instead, you want to revel in the "Let's put on a show!" atmosphere where it looks like the advertiser's girlfriend and beer pals have gotten together, spun out some semblance of a script, and then enthusiastically headed for the bright lights of showbiz. And you ought to be able to see the absolute low-budgetness of it all: the difference between what the team thought they were getting on screen as opposed to the muddy-sounding, cheaply lit product they've had to settle for. And that's why no one beats the folks at Soundwaves. They are, simply, the Quentin Tarantinos of local TV ads.

You're not looking for slickness when it comes to local television ads. You're also not looking for rock-bottom cheapness, with one salesman shouting maniacally into an unmoving camera. Instead, you want to revel in the "Let's put on a show!" atmosphere where it looks like the advertiser's girlfriend and beer pals have gotten together, spun out some semblance of a script, and then enthusiastically headed for the bright lights of showbiz. And you ought to be able to see the absolute low-budgetness of it all: the difference between what the team thought they were getting on screen as opposed to the muddy-sounding, cheaply lit product they've had to settle for. And that's why no one beats the folks at Soundwaves. They are, simply, the Quentin Tarantinos of local TV ads.

Apparently there's a bit of a debate over how Houston's newest theater company, Mildred's Umbrella, got its odd name. Founding members Jennifer Decker and John Harvey tell the story two different ways. She says they were perusing a literature book, looking for a name that was really interesting, when they stumbled upon a poem by Gertrude Stein called "Mildred's Umbrella." He says Stein came to him in a dream in Ernest Hemingway's body. As hard as it might be to imagine Hemingway saying the words "Mildred's umbrella," Harvey's version is obviously more theatrical. Either way, the name is simply dreamy.

Apparently there's a bit of a debate over how Houston's newest theater company, Mildred's Umbrella, got its odd name. Founding members Jennifer Decker and John Harvey tell the story two different ways. She says they were perusing a literature book, looking for a name that was really interesting, when they stumbled upon a poem by Gertrude Stein called "Mildred's Umbrella." He says Stein came to him in a dream in Ernest Hemingway's body. As hard as it might be to imagine Hemingway saying the words "Mildred's umbrella," Harvey's version is obviously more theatrical. Either way, the name is simply dreamy.