AG Slaps the Texas Highway Patrol Museum for Defrauding Victims’ Families
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced today he’s settled an enforcement action against a noble-sounding fund-raising group that allegedly did not fulfill its promises to law-enforcement families. The Texas Highway Patrol Museum, which was never much of anything to begin with, has closed its doors and will send what funds…
Aaron Smith: Capital Murder Charges in Death of Hamza Raza, 18, Killed in Alleged Botched Drug Deal
Capital murder charges have been filed in the case of an 18-year-old Sugar Land man who was killed when an alleged drug deal went bad two weeks ago. Aaron Jamal Smith, 19, was arrested without incident Monday, HPD says. He is charged in the death of Hamza Raza, which happened…
From The GOP Convention: The Seven Craziest Souvenirs
Our sister paper Miami New Times is hard at work covering the 2012 Republican convention in Florida. To which we say Thank Christ because, you know, someone has to. We did our time in the Dome in 1992. New Times’ Victor Gonzalez has been roaming the halls, looking for the…
John Lydon: “You Can’t Hold Prejudices To Brick And Mortar”
On Wednesday morning I had the pleasure of speaking with one John Lydon, the founding member of Public Image Ltd and the lead screamer of punk legends the Sex Pistols. PiL — that’s what he calls it, never the full name — released a new album This Is PiL earlier…
Federal Judge Agrees Threatened Dams Near Grand Parkway Project Need More Study
Back in June, we looked at how extensive new development along the Grand Parkway is contributing to a scary scenario where the Addicks and Barker dams could fail with Katrina-like effects. Now a federal judge has agreed with us, kinda. U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison has issued a 42-page memorandum…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 22, Gumbo at Danton’s
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Houston Texans 2012 Preview Time: Our Bingo/Drinking Game Card, and Are the Texans “The Real” or “The Jobroni”?
There’s a reason why we ridicule Charlie Brown every time he falls for Lucy’s tired “No really, this time I promise, I’m going to hold the ball in place while you kick, Charlie Brown!” We do it because we don’t think it’s humanly possible for people to fall for the…
Last Night: Chris Isaak at Arena Theatre
Chris Isaak “Beyond the Sun Tour” Arena Theatre August 28, 2012 Chris Isaak is an accomplished singer and actor. He is also, as his performance at Arena Theatre Tuesday night proved, a great dancer, a snazzy dresser and a pretty funny guy. The Houston leg of his “Beyond the Sun”…
Reality Bites: Stars Earn Stripes
Being called a “star” in this country used to be something of a rarefied honor. We reserved the term for our most celebrated actors, musicians and sports heroes. Once upon a time, we even allowed non-traditional celebrities like astronauts into the category. Whatever your thoughts on how deserving they were…
Bombay Pizza: A Downtown Beacon on Main Street
It’s often tempting to refer to restaurants as beacons, especially if they’re bright points in otherwise dark areas (whether metaphorically or literally). I once referred to Moon Tower Inn this way, noting the power that the hot-dogs-and-beer joint had to draw people in like moths to a flame. It was…
Osasuyi Victor Uhunmwangho, 27, Bayou Body Count No. 141
A Katy man was shot to death on a sidewalk on the far west side of town shortly before midnight Tuesday, Houston police say. Osasuyi Victor Uhunmwangho, 27, was taken to Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital after the 11:45 p.m. shooting in the 100 block of West Parkwest, at the Parkwest…
10 Iconic Final Concerts Plus The End Of Beatlemania
The Beatles’ concert at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park 46 years ago today was the end of an era for the band. Except for a famously unannounced appearance on top the Apple building two and a half years later, it would be the final live performance that the Fab Four would…
Middle Eastern Wine for Xenophobic Times
Let’s face it: Texas is often the butt of our nation’s jokes. Nearly every day, The New York Times shares some of our less savory idiosyncrasies with readers across the country. Today it’s voter discrimination by our state’s legislature. Yesterday it was Lubbock County Judge Tom Head’s plans to rise…
Bruce Lumpkin, New Artistic Director at TUTS, Is Ready to Partner Up
Bruce Lumpkin, the new artistic director at Theatre Under the Stars, was both enthusiastic about what TUTS has achieved in the past and full of plans on how it can stay on top of things in the ever changing world of theater in a recent interview with Art Attack. Lumpkin…
Austin Ray Cobb: Naked, Eye-Shadowed Bryan Man Busted for Trashing Best Western
Bad craziness in a Best Western has landed a Bryan man behind bars for the sixth time since December. Police were summoned to the hotel when a maid told management that a room rented by 22-year-old Austin Ray Cobb had been ransacked. Actually, make that two rooms, because Cobb rented…
(UPDATED) Incubus’ Brandon Boyd Played Dallas, Um, Houston Last Night
Look, I am sure it happens. You are in a touring rock band — a major one at that — and the days they run together. Hours pass by and the next thing you know it’s two months later, and you have maybe changed your pants twice, plus you are…
Last Night: Linkin Park At Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Why have the assholes got to ruin it for the rest of us? Last night, only two songs into Linkin Park’s set list at the Woodlands Pavilion, a young woman directly in front of me, who had clearly drank at least half her weight in alcohol, stood up on her…
The September Issues: At a Glance
The best month of the year is September, when all of the glossies release their giant, unwieldy fashion issues. There is nothing better than walking up to your favorite magazine rack and seeing it groaning under the weight of The September Issues. We went to three different stores and couldn’t…
A Lesson in Decadence at Kata Robata Sushi + Grill
I usually reserve fine dining for the weekend, when I can take some time and really enjoy myself, but some weekdays also call for a decadent meal. One Wednesday evening after a grueling day at work, I headed to Kata Robata. Since being named number two on Alison Cook’s list,…
More Than Just Seafood Po-Boys at Antone’s
Although Antone’s is a Houston institution, I am still a relative newcomer to the city, and therefore I have only had its po-boys a few times. Sometime this fall, I’m gonna order three of them with various species of (fried) fish and watch the Steelers. I’m an especially big fan…
Michael Petry’s ‘Bad Restoration’ Shows There’s Still Beauty in the Damage
There’s a bit of backstory to Michael Petry’s new body of work. While the Texas-born, London-residing multi-media artist was in a residency last year at Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, the museum was undergoing a restoration project. This idea of restoration pervades his pieces — they’re works that are…
The Gothic Council on Maintaining Facebook Sanity
The illustrious, honorable, and not at all to be taken seriously Gothic Council went on a membership drive this week, seeking the cream of the goth world for their inspiring insights into every day life… Or I just grabbed the first six people I found in my newsfeed. One of…
Comment of the Day: Ted Cruz & The GOP Convention Playbook
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning or afternoon from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous…
Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan: Don’t Let That San Jac River Dioxin Be Part Of Your Holiday Meal
The Labor Day weekend is fast approaching, and what better way to celebrate than taking the family out fishing for some good ol’ Texas seafood fresh from the water? Especially if it’s fresh from dioxin-laden water, like the stuff down by the San Jacinto River Waste Pits. Frankly, any family…
Backyard Barbecue Flavors at Burger King? Yeah, Kinda!
The last couple of weeks, Fast Times has been an exercise in second chances (okay, fifth or sixth chances, even). First, Taco Bell proved to me that they can make a big, fresh, delicious salad, and now Burger King has gone and redeemed itself with the Carolina BBQ Tendergrill Chicken…
Happy Birthday GG Allin: 10 SFW Inspirational Quotes From The Poo-Poo Rocker
Note: This is a rerun of a popular post from Mr. Allin’s birthday last year. We’d be remiss in not sharing our some of the outlaw scumbag’s best quotes on a day like this. Today would have been shock-rock icon GG Allin’s 56th birthday, making him a senior citizen. But…
Angelina’s New Co-star Is her 4-Year-Old, and 7 Other Celebrity Parent and Child Movies
It didn’t take very long for the Pitt-Jolie power couple to find a way to work their highly visible family into their business of show. Little Vivienne, twin to brother Knox, is only four years old but will be appearing alongside mom in the upcoming Disney movie Maleficent. The movie,…
A&M’s Bumpy Start to the SEC Era: La. Tech Game Postponed
So the Aggies have turned tail and decided they can’t face the mighty Louisiana Tech (looking it up….looking it up…BULLDOGS!) in the first game of the school’s SEC Era. And yeah, we know La Tech is not part of the SEC, but it is in SEC Country and it is…
100 Creatives 2012: Florence Garvey, Actress
Check out our Houston Theater Awards and the category that Florence Garvey won. From a young age, Florence Garvey recalls having a passion for being the center of attention and being onstage, which she feels may be partly attributed to Middle Child Syndrome. The actress, born and raised in Houston,…
Unknown K. Phillips Records With Dream Team on American Girls
Above: K. Phillips and the Concho Pearls doing NSFW “Rambler” Most people won’t have heard of K. Phillips, but his new album American Girls is getting some serious critical raves. Checking the list of personnel on the album — Rick Richards on drums, Bukka Allen on keys, Jimmy Pettit on…
Sixpoint Brewery Makes Its Mark on Texas
“It was very planned out,” said Sixpoint founder Shane Welch of his brewery’s recent move into the Texas market. The Brooklyn, New York-based brewery hit Texas this week with an initial offering of five different beers, a number Welch promised would grow in the near future. We had a chance…
5 Sports Figures Who Follow Absolutely Nobody on Twitter and Why
Someday, if they ever come up with a graduate degree in social-media forensics, I’m going back to school and getting my PhD because I am of a firm belief that you can learn a lot about a person by the way they utilize and conduct themselves on Twitter. For example,…
This Week in Food Blogs: Churro Porn and Houston As Mutt City
Robb Walsh: In his continuing series on where Texas cuisine is headed, Robb Walsh talks to Underbelly chef Chris Shepherd about Houston’s role as a “new Creole city,” citing a recent article by Southern food writer John T. Edge called “Savoring Mutt City.” (Mutt City is us, by the way…
Video Game Atlas: High Hrothgar
Once a week Art Attack will offer you a handy little travel guide to the fictional worlds of video games. Name: High Hrothgar, Elder Scrolls Series Population: 4 permanent, many iterant pilgrims Government: Religious order Having refreshed myself at the End of Time, I decided to step into a random…
Gimme Gimme: Etta James Live at Montreux, 1993 DVD Review (And Giveaway)
You’ll see Etta James in a series of performances at the Montreux Jazz Festival, from her first European appearance (with a stylish big ‘fro) to her triumphant 1993 concert, in the new DVD Etta James Live at Montreux, 1993. Visually, it’s a slightly uneven release (the early footage hasn’t been…
Bachman & Turner Keep Their Business Open On New DVD
Bachman & Turner: Live at the Roseland Ballroom, NYC $14.98 90 mins. Eagle Rock While some politicians have faced a musician’s wrath for using unauthorized music in their campaign events, Randy Bachman and Fred Turner were more than happy to perform their enduring tune “Takin’ Care of Business” at a…
Feds Toss Out Texas’s Redistricting Maps: Biased Against Minorities, Panel Says
The Texas GOP’s lengthy effort to create redistricting maps that federal judges say don’t discriminate against minorities hit another snag today when a three-judge panel in D.C. threw out the latest plan. The judges said the proposed maps failed to meet fairness standards using various tests and analyses. It appears…
RNC Hoopla: Ted Cruz Saying Stupid Things, Fitting in Just Fine
Ah, the Republican National Convention. Glitz. Glamour. Ted Cruz — our newly-anointed Texan conservative savior — saying really dumb things. And Christianity. Lots and lots of Christianity. But first, back to Cruz, who’s scheduled to address the convention tonight. So here’s the deal: This is his first major appearance on…
Eric Dick Takes on Geico for Denying Customer’s Claim
If there’s one thing everyone can agree on, it’s that auto insurance companies are freaking awesome. They universally love their customers, who are legally required to purchase a service they may never actually use, and if a customer does have to pay a claim, insurance companies never bend over backwards…
The Mink On Main Changing Hands Again, Closing For Renovations
According to an email I received late this morning from their management, The Mink is changing hands again and closing this Saturday night after last call for an unspecified span to allow for retooling and renovation. There was no clue on what the changes may entail or who the new…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 23, Lamb at El Hidalguense
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Comment of the Day: Swamplot Spat Brings World’s Worst Pun
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning or afternoon from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous…
DVDs & Blu-rays: Penumbra and an Etta James Live at Montreux, 1993 Giveaway
Penumbra stars Cristina Brondo and Berta Muñiz; Adrián García Bogliano and Ramiro García Bogliano co-direct. Filmmaker Adrián García Bogliano didn’t set out to make a cut-and-paste horror film when he started Penumbra. It wasn’t enough to take the successful elements of American, Japanese and Italian horror film traditions, mix them…
Fifteen Minute Lunches at Big Woodrow’s, Sushi Delivery Downtown, and More Delicious Deals in Houston
Big Woodrow’s is celebrating 20 years, and to say “thank you” they are offering a half-off coupon just in time for football season! Today’s Houston Press Voice Daily Deal is good for 50 percent off ($12 for $24) at Big Woodrow’s. If you’ve got other plans for watching the big…
Leading Ladies from Texas Repertory Theatre: Strong Performances Enliven a Pedestrian Farce
The setup: In the farce Leading Ladies, two Shakespearean actors down on their luck seek to impersonate the heirs to an estate, and follow through even when they discover that the heirs were actually heiresses. The execution: This comedy employs the familiar theatrical staple of men in drag, and strong…
Upcoming: Geoff Tate, Jill Scott, Action Bronson, Propain, Two Gallants, Etc.
The 71’s: Sat., Sept. 15, 1 p.m., Free. Cactus Music & Video, 2110 Portsmouth St., Houston. Action Bronson: Sat., Sept. 22, 8 p.m., $15/$23. Numbers, 300 Westheimer, Houston. Another Run, The Soapbox Revolution: Sun., Sept. 23, 8 p.m., $5/$10. Scout Bar Clear Lake, 18307 Egret Bay Blvd., Houston. Baroness: CANCELED…
Surburban Shakeup: Houston Community Newspapers Sold to Nevada Chain
Houston Community Newspapers, a chain that publishes 28 suburban editions throughout the Harris County area, has finally announced its long-pending sale. 1013 Communications, a chain based out of Reno, Nevada, will be the new owner of the chain, which says it goes to 500,000 homes. HCN operates such papers as…
Morgan Page: On The Road, In The Air, and Going Green
Morgan Page, like many of his fellow producers who are enjoying the surging popularity of EDM here at home, is a busy man. His weeks are dedicated to working on new music, remixes, and producing his radio program/podcast In The Air while he spends his weekends playing club and festival…
Where Are We Drinking? Clue: Heaven on Earth
You can feel like an angel at this bar — even if you’re drinking naughty stuff — thanks to the sculpted backs of the angel wing barstools at this Galleria area hotspot. Does the tableau below look familiar you? If you think you know where we’re drinking this week, leave…
App of the Week: A Lot to Like in the Facebook App Update, But Still Missing Key Features
Facebook has never moved quickly — or with great agility — in the mobile domain. The Zuckerberg empire has made a number of mind-numbingly ridiculous maneuvers when it comes to providing a quality mobile experience for its wildly popular social network. From multiple apps to handle various features of the…
Wanna Feel Old? These Are Pamela Anderson And Tommy Lee’s Kids
Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and pinup gal Pamela Anderson were one of the most read-about and photographed couples of the ’90s. Their leaked honeymoon sex tape would make millions for porn company IEG and it would cement Lee’s legend as a wangsman of the highest order and make lonely…
What’s Cooking on Pinterest? Blackberry Sticky Buns
One of my new favorite talk shows is The Chew. It’s a morning talk show with co-hosts Mario Batali, Carla Hall, Clinton Kelly, Michael Symon and Daphne Oz. They talk about recipes, tips and tricks for hosting parties, how to dress, eat healthy and other lifestyle topics. Daphne Oz, author…
Lillian Warren’s Deeply Human Portraits of Waiting at Lawndale Art Center
We’ve all been there before — compulsively staring at our cellphones to occupy our minds with something, even just a colorful screen. Or maybe you’re the dozing type, propping your head up on your arm in an uncomfortable half-slumber. Or maybe you do nothing at all and stare off blankly,…
David Mamet’s November Doesn’t Respect Any Politicians, Its Director Promises
Sanford Robbins, in town directing the Alley Theatre’s production of David Mamet’s November, says he knew he needed to switch from actor to director when he started to find himself on stage thinking about where stage props should be and how lines should be delivered. “I’d be on stage thinking…
Rice University Offers a Beer Education Your Own College Probably Didn’t
When you talk about getting educated on beer at college, I am going to assume that you mean learning about the finer points of keg tapping and Natty Light hauling. Because until recently, a real beer education was something that most universities didn’t teach. Wine appreciation classes? Sure. Beer? Forget…
Video Game Parody Song Battle: BioShock vs. Portal
This has been a very good year for the small, but awesome genre of video game parody songs, and today I thought we’d pit the best so far against each other to see which one is truly the better effort. They come from two series that I love completely equally,…
Annise Parker Tries to Get You to Adopt World’s Saddest Cat
Meet Callie!!! This wee ball o’ fire is just about to bound out of Mayor Annise Parker’s arms and straight into your heart with all the exuberance of a fun-lovin’ furball!! Or, on the other hand, maybe she’s the single most depressed cat ever seen. Her eyes: Either a sullen…
Pop Rocks: What Does Dorothy Parker Know About Writing Anyway?
The other day, a colleague of mine brought up a quote by legendary writer Dorothy Parker, best known as a founding member of that group most often used for purposes of derogatory comparison (” look like the Algonquin Round Table”): “I hate writing. I love having written. Parker was speaking…
Sharon Anne Maxwell: Life Sentence for Shooting, Torching Body of Tenth Husband
You might say that bottle-blond, blue-eyed Sharon Anne Maxwell was the dark belle of Ore City, Texas. Over the past couple of decades, the 44-year-old femme fatale had married ten men in the town of 1,100 souls — or roughly two percent of Ore City’s total male population — and…
Where the Chefs Eat: David Denis, Jean-Philippe Guy and Philippe Schmit
When we think of French dining in Houston, the following three chefs should assuredly come to mind: David Denis, Jean-Philippe Guy and Philippe Schmit. David Denis has made a name for himself with his elegant Le Mistral Restaurant on the Energy Corridor, where big-name oil execs come to sample exquisitely…
Incubus’ Brandon Boyd On Music, Imagination, And Moustaches
Tomorrow night, Incubus performs up in the Woodlands, flanked by Mutemath and Linkin Park for the 2012 Honda Civic Tour. On paper, it’s a pretty odd lineup. But, at the suggestion of vocalist Brandon Boyd, we’ll substitute the word ‘odd’ for another one: Eclectic. As it stands, all three bands…
Semi-NSFW: Playmates & Maxim Girls Take Over Ei8ht Bar
Friday night was what the folks at Washington Avenue’s Ei8ght Nightclub called “the night we have all been waiting for: Playboy’s playmates are going to be taking over Ei8ht Nightclub.” Among those appearing for the “Midsummer Night’s Fantasy” (oy) were Brande Roderick, Colleen Shannon (“The World’s Sexiest DJ”), Nicolette Nightingale,…
Skin Contact Is How Wines Get (or Don’t Get) Their Color
Last week’s post on our Pinot Grigio Nation reminded me of the first time I visited a winery, when I was 20 years old. I was a senior in college at U.C.L.A. (majoring in Italian), and I made a road trip to northern California with some European friends to visit…
Best Comics in August: That Ol’ Messed Up Religion
Once a month the amazing staff at 8th Dimension Comics selects a pile of the best new releases for us to peruse and judge. Justice League Dark #12 The magical arm of the Justice League has gotten a lot better since Jeff Lemire took over the writing, but in some…
Vince Young Cut By the Buffalo Bills: 6 Awesome Things About VY’s Twitter Account
It’s hard to believe now that in April 2006, there was actually a legitimate debate nationally over whom the Texans should take with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft — Mario Williams, Reggie Bush or Vince Young. It’s less hard to believe that here in Houston, there was…
Radney Foster Revisits the Streets of Del Rio Texas 1959
When his debut album Del Rio, TX 1959 was released in 1992, it wasn’t just the beginning of singer/songwriter Radney Foster’s solo career. It also marked the end of his four-year, three-album-run as one-half of cowpunk duo Foster & Lloyd. Bill Lloyd had moved on to other things, and Foster…
Top 10 Last Lines in Film
Some movies save the best for last. One last quote that just sums up the whole experience like a combination exclamation point/kick in the dick. Today I thought we’d count down the ten best ones that were laid out just before the credits and left an audience strumming with genius…
An Invigorating Brunch at a Reinvigorated Down House
“I can’t believe this was only $14,” I marveled as I left $20 on the table at Down House after occupying one of its booths for several hours over brunch this past Sunday morning. We’d just eaten two huge plates of excellent food — much of it from local producers…
Here’s Some Very Aces New Music From Houston Rappers
Botany Boys: Not new, still great. The amount of music that is coming out in Houston — specifically the amount of GOOD music — has grown to such an unignorable volume that it not only forces me to make up words like “unignorable,” but also warps the editorial calendar. Originally,…
Swamplot vs. Condo Head Mark Thuesen: Inside the World of Jewish Conspiracy, Bitten Penises and Man-Ginas
Every once in a while, a lawsuit is filed in Harris County that makes us jump for joy over its allegations of pure, unadulterated cray-cray. And this latest, filed Monday afternoon by the founders of Houston real-estate blog Swamplot against a condo owners association head named Mark Thuesen, doesn’t disappoint…
Pedro Rosales, Who Tried to Pin Child-Porn Stash on a Young Relative, Gets 20 Years
If you’re going to get caught with a computer filled with hundreds and hundreds of stills and videos of child pornography, it might be best to have some kind of explanation. Pedro Rosales, 33, thought he had one. The Houston resident tried to convince a “a minor relative” to take…
Copper Brings The Noise With “Husbands And Fathers”
Last week’s episode we met the whole gang, Corcoran, his partner Maguire, Civil War battlefield doc Matthew Freeman, and the ladies at the brothel who aid the detectives. The child-whore storyline continues as Corcoran struggles to hide Annie from the clutches of Winford Haverford, a wealthy pedophile, whose wife will…
Rick Perry Has Message for Schools: Tea Party Favorite Michael Williams to Head TEA
Governor Rick Perry didn’t go safe and sound when picking a new commissioner of the Texas Education Agency — instead he’s installed bomb-throwing Tea Party favorite Michael Williams. The former Railroad Commission chair has been nosing around a few political options in the past couple of years — considering a…
Taikoza Performance at Miller Outdoor Theatre: Rolling Thunder
On Taikoza’s website, the drums or taiko that the group performs on are described as: “a large, barrel-like drum that can fill the air with the sounds of rolling thunder.” What perfect timing it was, then, that Taikoza performed this past Saturday, a day filled with rumbling thunder of its…
Baroness Cancels Upcoming Dates Including FFFF and Houston Stops
This year has been a bittersweet one for metal act Baroness. The long-running Georgia bruisers released one of the best album of 2012 with July’s double-album Yellow & Green, and were touring the world behind it. That was until a bus crash in the UK sidelined all activity and the…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 24, Kinilaw at Reef
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
The Republican Candidate’s Guide To Picking Campaign Music
This week Republicans from around the country gather in Florida to celebrate all things conservative and curse Issac for stealing the national spotlight. For me the 2012 Republican National Convention marks the true start of the presidential campaign season, the playoffs to the primaries’ regular season. Hard to believe that…
5 Things the Right Doesn’t Understand About Atlas Shrugged One More Time
Editor’s note: In honor of the Republican National Convention going on in Florida right now, we decided to bring back this oldie but a goodie. Despite the fact that we lean pretty left, one of our favorite books of all time is Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. We must’ve read it…
Crystal Marie Mosquera: Accused Shoplifter Planned Ice Cream, Beer and Cucumber Party, Police Say
This week’s entrant in the Crystal Crime Report is Crystal Marie Mosquera. College Station cops say they picked up the 19-year-old Thursday evening outside an area Walmart after she was seen placing numerous items in a reusable shopping bag, defying a security guard’s order to stop and attempting to leave…
Last Night: Jennifer Lopez and Enrique Iglesias at Toyota Center
Check out more pics of Jennifer Lopez and Enrique Iglesias in our slideshow. Jennifer Lopez and Enrique Iglesias Toyota Center Houston August 26th, 2012 “I’m just a simple girl from The Bronx, don’t let the sparkly pants fool you” — Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lopez has played many roles. She has…
The Return of Roger Clemens and Some Other Dumb Ideas for Jim Crane
I’ve been onboard with most of what the Houston Astros have done this season. The team needed to be blown up. New blood was needed in the front office, the dugout and on the roster. All that has happened, and though the team has been bad, the promise of the…
True Blood Season Finale: Thank God for Stabbing Westward
Alan Ball was known for his masterful use of music in Six Feet Under. He’s lost none of his touch when it comes to his current HBO series, True Blood — which happens to be set in the Louisiana swamps, not terribly far from Houston. My favorite chapter in Atlas…
A Sneak Peek At the Remodeled Blaffer
Friday night Art Attack was invited to an exclusive first look at the newly remodeled Blaffer Art Museum on the University of Houston’s Main Campus. The Blaffer has been under construction for roughly a year racking up a price tag of about $2.3 million, which for all intents and purposes…
Karen Stokes Dance Shines at 19th Annual Theater District Open House
The Hobby Center teemed with people and activity on Sunday afternoon. Lines packed the lobby as anxious Les Misérables fans vied for tickets. A trio of food trucks stood outside the front doors, motors grumbling, doling out cake balls and burritos. Trolleys unloaded dozens of theater-goers only to pack in…
It’s National Banana Lovers Day: Mini Banana Pudding Pies
My dad absolutely loves banana desserts. I can guarantee any time we go to a restaurant that serves a banana dessert, he will order it. Whether it is the banana cream cheesecake at The Cheesecake Factory or a banana split from Sonic, he is going to order it. So, in…
Happy 60th Birthday Pee-wee Herman: The Best WTF Picture Pairings
Today is actor Paul Reubens’ 60th birthday. Born August 27, 1952, 30 years and change later, he would reach icon status for his character Pee-Wee Herman, through a television series, two films, and a long-line of pop-culture cameos. I was one of those kids that begin every Saturday morning with…
Friday Night: Bury the Crown, Skeleton Dick and More at Fitzgerald’s
Gathering the tribes of Houston’s local punk, metal and hardcore fans together for one wild night is no easy task, particularly on a busy weekend of live music. Throwing a free extravaganza of loud, aggressive sounds at Fitzgerald’s is a good way to start, however. Ten bands unleashed a wide…
Ashlyn Treadway: Courageous Survivor of Molestation, Killed in Car Wreck
Ashlyn Treadway, 23, who was scorned by her paternal grandfather, a Pentecostal pastor, and many in her Beaumont church after she accused her uncle of molesting her, was killed in a single-car accident in Liberty County Saturday night. Her younger sister, Brea, a passenger in the car, is recovering from…
Next Fall from Celebration Theatre: An Unusual Gay Love Story and Off-B’way Comedy Hit
The set-up: A gay male relationship sails through the reefs of an age gap, polarized religious views, and a semi-closeted existence, in Next Fall, an off-B’way comedy hit that was moved to B’way itself for a respectable run. The execution: Young Luke (Zach Lewis) likes older men, and makes an…
Where Are We Eating? Clue: Hometown ‘Cue
Is there anything more Texan than a plate of barbecue and a Lone Star beer? You can get them both at this hometown barbecue “chain,” where the pecan pies are as popular as the brisket. Think you know where we’re eating this week? Leave your best guess below…
Rest Easy, Texas (Well, Not Too Easy): Tropical Storm Isaac Inching Its Way Toward Louisiana
Fortunately for everyone along the Gulf Coast, Isaac is still a tropical storm as of Monday morning. The storm has yet to form a solid inner core thanks to some wind shear from an upper-level disturbance near it, but that will change as it moves toward the northern Gulf Coast…
Introducing LTD, a Fab.com for the Art World — And It’s Looking for Work To Sell
Calling all Houston artists. A new website is selling art in flash sales, a la Groupon deals and designer clothes, and it’s on the lookout for artists to promote. “We want to help independent artists get exposure and bring art in affordable ways to the masses,” said LTD co-founder Adrian…
Put a Fork in Me, I’m at Well Done Cooking Classes
Oh, lawd. So I can’t just be brilliant, toned, fit, witty, charming, book-smart, street-smart, warm, welcoming, friendly, super stylish aaaand great to your mother — I gotta cook, too? Man alive. But alas. I cave and put on my apron. Like most people who learned to cook from their mothers,…
Fashion Houston Returns With Local and Global Designers
Fall is one of the most exciting times of the year…cool air, pumpkin spice lattes, the changing of the leaves…and fashion shows. Most already know that this is the season that New York’s famous fashion week takes place. Houston will be having one as well. Fashion Houston, modeled after New…
How To: Ice Cream Cupcakes
With the summer heat at its peak, we are all trying to find ways to keep cool. Ice cream is my go-to treat to fight the heat. While making a whole ice cream cake can be a tedious and many times unsuccessful task, decorating cupcakes with ice cream is so…
Yes, Public Image Ltd Is Playing Scout Bar
The runoff attached to Fun Fun Fun Fest during the first weekend in November has paid off for Houston, which will see dates from Baroness — fingers crossed, Tomahawk, Converge, Red Fang, Valient Thorr, and now Public Image Ltd. The post-Sex Pistols John Lydon project will play Clear Lake’s Scout…
Sofia Rojas, 8-Month-Old Girl Allegedly Stabbed By Father, Bayou Body Count No. 140
A Houston man is in jail and charged with stabbing his eight-month-old daughter to death, according to court documents. HPD investigators say in court documents that Pedro Rojas-Martinez, 23, killed his daughter Sofia Rojas early Saturday morning at their trailer-park home near Telephone Road and Fuqua on the southeast side…
Saints 34, Texans 27: Five Things We Learned
In name, Saturday did represent the clichéd dress rehearsal for the Texans. In practicality, it was only the case on one side of the ball. With the defense missing Shaun Cody, J.J. Watt and Brian Cushing, there isn’t that much use to reading fortunes on that side of the ball…
10 Lobster Dishes to Try in Houston: No. 1, Poached Lobster De/ReConstructed at BRC Gastropub
One of the many things that intrigue me about the Victorian era was how the general overabundance of shellfish meant foods like lobster were more fare for the hoi polloi than the aristocratic minority. This year, a bumper crop in the Northeast has once again made lobster cheaper for the…
R.I.P. Telephone Museum: 5 More Small Houston Museums To See
News broke last week that the Heights AT&T building that houses the little-known Telephone Museum had been sold, leaving the collection of communication history homeless as of December 1 of this year. The 46-year-old Telephone Museum (full name: The Doc Porter Museum of Telephone History) posted a frantic message on…
6 Songs for LBJ Day… One’s About His Dick
Today is officially Lyndon Baines Johnson Day here in the state of Texas. The late 36th president’s birthday was hallowed in his home state after he died in 1973 of a massive heart attack at the age of 64. He would have been 104 today. Johnson ascended to the presidency…
RIP Neil Armstrong: Songs For The First Man On The Moon
This weekend was marred by the death of the first man on the moon, Apollo astronaut Neil Armstrong, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 82. The trio of Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin made up the Apollo 11 crew that set foot on the moon on…
HISD’s First Day Of School: What To Watch Out For, Whether You’re A Parent, Student Or Just Someone Getting Hit With Brutal Traffic
And there goes summer. Suddenly, schedules have changed, cranky, sleep-deprived kids have to be manhandled, assignments and paperwork have to be dealt with, morning traffic gets even crappier. It’s school time!! The bulk of HISD begins classes this morning. As always, it takes some adjustment for both those with and…
What’s Cooking This Week? Vodka Sauce, Spinach Salad & More
I love cooking for my fiancé and me, but most of the time, cooking for two proves to be difficult. If I don’t make a plan, I end up running around in circles at the grocery store and wasting half the ingredients I’ve bought (and I hate wasting food). Enter…
Hey, Teacher, Leave Those Kids Alone: A Back to School Playlist
I have been a teacher for six years now. I joke about it, but it really is the best job of all, and remains to be the only one I’ve ever had that didn’t make me want to drive right the fuck into a tree after doing it for three…
5 Things That Become Really Annoying on a Diet
That is a picture of me from roughly a decade ago. At the time I worked for the Landmark River Oaks Theater, which means I basically ate nothing but popcorn which contains A) few calories and B) some chemical that makes you forget what hunger is. I was also training…
Texans-Saints: 4 Winners, 4 Losers (The Trindon Holliday Conundrum Edition)
If you are a sports couch potato (and if you are reading this, chances are that is the case), Saturday night was one of those nights that we probably take for granted all of the technological advances that allow us to consume all of the fare on the sports buffet…
Friday Night: Journey at The Woodlands
Journey Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion August 24, 2012 Rewind: Saturday Night: Styx & REO Speedwagon at The Woodlands Journey’s enduring popularity might seem a little improbable at first, but it’s not that hard to figure out. Core members Neil Schon, the former Santana guitarist, and bassist Ross Valory founded the…
Southern-Fried Dim Sum from Yaki Snack Attack and Bernie’s Burger Bus
Austin King is a nervous ball of energy. He hops around the small kitchen at the rear of Grand Prize Bar like a character in Super Mario Brothers, head down and face fixed in a grimace of determined concentration. He pulls dumplings from a fryer with one hand, sprinkles Tabasco-infused…
The Need For A Nickelodeon Classic Channel
Picture this circa 1995: a young girl comes in from a day of playing outside. She switches on Nickelodeon and watches The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo. Now, fast forward to the present: a young girl switches off her Wii so that she can watch another episode of Spongebob Squarepants…
The 5 Best Shows In Houston This Week: Lightning Bolt, Stoney LaRue, Etc.
Stampeding Providence, R.I. noise-rock duo Lightning Bolt, a two-piece as loud as it is heavy, destroys an otherwise quiet Monday night at Fitzgerald’s behind its forthcoming Load Records release, Oblivion Hunter, which the label describes as “amped-up and free, with an ear on the railroad tracks to the big sounds…
RIP Gene Thomas: Swamp-Pop Singer of “Sometimes” Passes Away at 74
Gene Thomas, the Texas singer and songwriter whose 1961 swamp-pop hit “Sometimes” was recorded at Houston’s Gold Star Studios (later SugarHill), and was later covered by Doug Sahm, passed away Sunday morning. Houston musician Buzzy Smith announced Thomas’ death on his Facebook page. The Palestine native was 74. He had…
Roger Clemens Impressive in Start with Sugar Land Skeeters, What’s Next?
Check out our slideshow of Roger Clemens, who returned to the mound five years after his retirement. If you build it, they will come. And if you start a 50-year-old, multiple Cy Young award-winning World Series champion, who has been in the headlines fighting doping and perjury allegations, they will…
Neil Armstrong, First Man on the Moon, Dead at 82: No, the Korean War Ace & Icy Test Pilot Did Not Tell a Blow-Job Joke on the Moon
Sad news for NASA and its Houston family, as word has come down that the first man on our moon has died today. Armstrong was 82. Breaking News and NBC News reported the news over Twitter around 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon Houston time. NASA has its own obit up now,…
For the Weekend: Remember to Watch for the West Nile Virus
West Nile virus cases continue to ominously pop up, with victims in Fort Bend and Harris counties. Two human cases have been found in Fort Bend. All told, three people in the area have died from the virus, which is carried by nasty mosquitoes. It’s expected to rain a bit…
Bastrop State Park, One Year After the Wildfire: Almost Ready for Its Close-Up
Just about one year after a devastating wildfire that torched much of its 6,000 acres, Bastrop State Park is getting ready to show visitors it’s made a comeback. Symbolizing the recovery is “a shade shelter originally built by the Civilian Conservation Corps at Bastrop State Park during the 1930s,” says…
Joshua Edward Williams Shoots at Cop, Faces Charges
A man has been arrested and charged with shooting at a cop on the northwest side Tuesday night, police say. Joshua Edward Williams, 23, faces charges of aggravated assault against a police officer, and also suffered a non-life-threatening injury in the shootout, HPD says. Police say they responded to a…
Here Comes the Montrose Rock Revel
As if Houston’s music calendar wasn’t busy enough this weekend — that’s a good thing — here comes the Montrose Rock Revel Saturday night at Rudyard’s, home of tater tots, darts and one of the best atmospheres in town. The MRR is headlined by The Trimms, who were standouts at…
Chef Chat, Part 3: Bill and Matt Hutchinson of Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana
Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana 14028 Memorial Drive 713-855-0085 www.pizarospizza.com This is part three of a three-part Chef Chat series. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. This week, Bill and Matt Hutchinson — the father-and-son team at the strikingly unique, unequivocally delicious Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana — told us how they…
Houston’s Austin Tice, Missing: The Most Dangerous of Assignments — Freelance Journalism in a War
When Houston journalist Austin Tice left for Syria eight months ago to cover the country’s devolution and nascent civil war, he melted into a country that has become, both anecdotally and statistically, the most dangerous place in the world to be a journalist. He did it as a freelance reporter,…
High-End Boutique Elizabeth Anthony/Esther Wolf Holds Three Trunk Shows in One
“I’m just going to pick this up here so my husband doesn’t find out about it,” whispered a woman to a sales rep at the Elizabeth Anthony/Esther Wolf trunk show, held Thursday. The lady behind the counter — Kat Tanita — giggled conspiratorially and quickly swiped the other’s credit card,…
This Week in Deliciousness: Someone Bring Me Some Food
Welcome back to the weekly roundup here at Eating…Our Words, where the chicken ‘n’ waffles phenomenon has us throwing waffles on everything. Steak ‘n’ waffles, barley soup ‘n’ waffles, asparagus ‘n’ waffles…We just don’t care anymore. We started the week off right with Haven’s take on the Big Mac, and…
Brave New Waves Celebrates Electronica
Whether you know it or not, Houston has a thriving electronic music scene. The fact that this genre is relatively unrecognized is what has been bugging composer Paul Connolly for a while. So, he decided to do something about it and that something is called Brave New Waves, which is…
Seven-Month-Old Girl, Bayou Body Count No. 139
Police are investigating the death of a seven-month-old girl who died after being left in the care of her grandfather. An autopsy is being performed to determine the cause of death for the child, whose identity has not been released. HPD says the baby was left with her grandfather at…
What’s Next For Randy Travis? 5 Fantasy Scenarios For Country’s Newest Outlaw
Embattled and sorta-awesome country singer Randy Travis got into trouble again Thursday night, fighting drunk in a church parking lot in Plano, in an altercation involving another man and woman. According to TMZ — which should stand for “Travis, Man, Zoinks” now — there was “a “family argument” taking place…
Zen Full: The Week in Photos
It’s time again to check out the Houston Press Flickr Pool and see what kinds of art shots our talented photographers have added. We love street art, unique perspectives and beautiful photos of Houston’s creative community. If you think you’ve got a good eye, drop your pictures in the pool…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 25, Shrimp and Grits at Shade
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Norman Escobar: Sues Girlfriend for Not Protecting Him from Stabby Ex-Boyfriend
When good dates go bad….. Norman Escobar probably thought things were progressing nicely with his new girlfriend; after all, he was sharing her bed, so that’s a start. Unfortunately for him, according to a suit he filed that’s cited by Courthouse News Service, things went downhill from there…
Wine Classes in Houston This Fall, Foreign and Domestic
If there were two lessons to be drawn from the current wave of wine connoisseurship in our country, they would be the following: 1. Wine is the new golf. 2. Every wine tasting is a singles event in disguise. There are a couple of cool wine-tasting series coming up in…
Venezuelan Brotherly Love: Marcel Rasquin’s Hermano Opens in Houston
It took five years for Venezuelan filmmaker Marcel Rasquin to bring his feature Hermano to the big screen. It was an exhausting, exhilarating and, ultimately, life-changing experience for him. “There were moments with Hermano that I didn’t want to hear anything about it, that I wanted to hide it under…
Last Night: The Old 97’s at House of Blues
The Old 97’s House of Blues August 23, 2012 Too Far to Care is an album about growing up the hard way but having a lot of fun while you do it. It was made by a band who thought the world was about to be at their feet, that…
5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Trying to Sneak Into a Nickelback Show
Rewind: So Chad Kroeger and Avril Lavigne Are Engaged: How Should You Feel? Saturday Night: Nickelback & Bush at Toyota Center I’d like to tell you a cautionary tale. A few weeks back Kevin Beaudette of Tupper Lake, N.Y., decided he really a) wanted to see Nickelback and b) wanted…
Looking to Get Your Movie Made? Filmmaker Michelle Mower Has Some Advice (and She Has A Movie Coming Out, BTW)
When you see the trailer for the upcoming Lifetime film The Preacher’s Daughter, you can’t help but replay it again, and again maybe for a third time. In just a minute and a half, there is enough excitation to give you your fill for a week. Somewhere in among those…
Upcoming Events: Food Truck Fridays and Feliz Cumpleaños to El Gran Malo
Do you take a little extra tima at lunch on Fridays? If so, come and spend it with us. Starting in September, the Houston Press will be hosting Food Truck Fridays on the first Friday of each month from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the House of Deréon (2204…
Reviews For The Easily Distracted: Premium Rush
Title: Premium Rush It Really Is August, Isn’t It? It really is. This is just another movie to drop in the dead zone between summer blockbuster season and Oscar consideration. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To The Film: Two snakehead fish out of five. Tagline: “Ride like hell.” Better Tagline:…
Health Department Roundup: BB’s, Ragin Cajun, the Montrose Valero and More
Let’s start with something fun: The Valero at the nexus of the universe, also known as the intersection of Montrose and Westheimer, was cited and closed thanks to a river of shame that threatened to back up the plumbing and flood the sort of nice Cibolo coffee stand they’ve got…
Katherine Howe Touches on Seances and Psychics in The House of Velvet and Glass
Houston native Katherine Howe burst on the publishing scene in 2009 with her debut novel, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, a story about a woman who discovers her ancestor was involved in the Salem witch trials. Now she’s back again with The House of Velvet and Glass, about Sibyl…
Bury the Crown Debut New EP, New Direction Tonight at Fitz
Brand-new band Bury the Crown celebrates the release of its debut EP tonight at Fitzgerald’s. When they take the stage, don’t be surprised if you recognize a few familiar faces (and tattoos). That’s because Bury the Crown is the new group comprising the members of Houston Press Music Award-winning hardcore…
Houston Chronicle Sports Goes Bleacher Report
The Houston Chronicle sports page is a sad shadow of what it used to be. Tons of talented writers have been laid off the past several years, or they have departed on their own because they just couldn’t take it anymore. Many of the reporters left are having to double…
Week in Photos: Maple 3
Each week, we take a dip into the Houston Press Flickr pool and see what our talented photographers have been up to. We’re looking for pictures that represent the best of Houston, from food to art to events, to secret hidden spots of beauty. Just drop them in our Flickr…
App of the Week: My Top Ten Most Used Apps
Almost five years ago, I was talking to a friend who had an iPhone. I swore up and down that after a failed BlackBerry experience in the mid-’90s, I had zero interest in another so-called smart phone. My friend said it would change my life if I got one. I…
A Healthy Twist on Fries: Baked Eggplant Fries
There’s nothing better than a crispy french fry; golden and crunchy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside. However, sometimes a greasy french fry is too much. But there is a substitution you can make that will satisfy those crispy and crunchy fry cravings, minus the extra calories…
Secret Broadcast Does It For Kids In “Raygun”
Houston audiences are tough audiences, no doubt. I’ve spent half my life performing in front of them and it takes quite a bit of talent to get them on your side, though I’m happy to say that once you do they’re the best. Still, even with 15 years of that…
5 Advantages Video Games Have Over Hollywood
I have a friendly rivalry with our movie guru Pete Vonder Haar…and by friendly rivalry I mean I’ve tattooed a reminder to murder him for his beat onto my chest so I see it every morning when I wake up. It’s not fair, I tell you! He gets to go…
HISD Takes the “No Fun” Route: Fake Science 101 Is Not for Them
It can take a lot to get kids interested in a textbook these days; for some it can mean taking a novel approach, one based on a Daily Show/Colbert Report take on things. That seems to be the thinking of the creators of Fake Science 101, a book that bills…
10 Lobster Dishes to Try in Houston: #2 Lobster and Shrimp Margherita Pizza at La Fisheria
One of the many things that intrigues me about the Victorian era was how the general overabundance of shellfish meant foods like lobster were more fare for the hoi polloi than the aristocratic minority. This year, a bumper crop in the Northeast has once again made lobster cheaper for the…
100 Creatives 2012 Julia Gabriel, Artist, Designer & Backpack Maker
Julia Gabriel is a self-taught artist and designer. She started out as a fashion major at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, where she learned the basics of sewing. Soon after she transferred to Virginia Commonwealth University, where she majored in craft material studies. There she took classes in woodworking, glassblowing, ceramics…
7 Cool & Cheap Weekenders: A Cactus 2-Fer, Weird Party, Allen Oldies Band, Etc.
It’s hard to single out just one of the Cactus Music in-stores Rocks Off is sponsoring Saturday, so we’ll go with… both! At 1 p.m., mystical Houston singer-songwriter Tyagaraja previews his new solo acoustic EP As Is, before his Warehouse Live Green Room show Saturday night with DJ Sun and…
Texans-Saints: Five Things to Watch
Every even-numbered year since I got into radio in 2007 (and perhaps even before that, I just wasn’t paying attention), the Houston Texans would travel east on I-10 in mid-August (actually, to be more accurate, they probably flew charter) to practice for the entire week against the New Orleans Saints…
Great (Imaginary) Back-to-School Lunchboxes
Very soon schoolkids across the country will be trudging their technology-addicted butts back to school for another year of classes. The Houston Independent School District starts back up again on August 27, and most teachers across the area have already been back in their classes working on lesson plans for…
Openings & Closings: Cuchara Slices Up a Soft Opening and the Gift Horse Lounge Opens Its Mouth
It’s been a busy week, so straight to the dish: Cuchara, the Montrose restaurant at the corner of Taft and Fairview that’s been under construction since February, is set to have its soft opening this coming Sunday. I peeked in one afternoon this week and saw an open, semi-industrial dining…
5 More Sudden Awful Musical Marriages We’d Like to See
Rewind: So Chad Kroeger and Avril Lavigne Are Engaged: How Should You Feel? Boy, that Avril Lavigne/Chad Kroeger engagement announcement came out of left field, huh? Who knows which other terrible music makers are secretly seeing one another right now? Why, it could be anyone! Even… Ke$ha and Scott Weiland…
Local Musicians Come Together For Charalambides’ Tom Carter
Rewind: Charalambides Guitarist Tom Carter On the Mend Some local musicians are rallying to help out one of their own this weekend, and it appears that some good, weird tunes will be a happy side effect for the rest of us. Tom Carter, guitarist for long-running H-town expatriate avant-gardists Charalambides,…
Something Wicked: Huge EDM Show October 27 at Sam Houston Race Park
Rewind: Saturday: Identity Festival at The Woodlands 10 Bonus Identity Festival Deleted Scenes It was just a matter of time before a huge dance-music festival landed in the Houston area. Now it has, just in time for Halloween. Thursday night, promoters Disco Donnie and Nightculture announced Something Wicked, billed as…
Joseph Orin Perry, 50, Stabbed While Behaving Erratically, Bayou Body Count No. 138
A man who was acting erratically died from a puncture wound to the neck early this morning, Houston police say. Joseph Orin Perry, 50, was acting strangely in the front yard of a house in the 4100 block of Dorchester on the north side of town, HPD says. The incident,…
The Houston Press Fall 2012 Photo Intern Program
Calling all photo students! The Houston Press is recruiting photography students for its Fall 2012 Photo Intern Program. By “student,” we do not mean “a student of life.” There’s no cash offered with this gig, only school credit. Don’t bother applying if this doesn’t apply to you. Still interested? Read…
Uh-Oh, Texas: Why You Shouldn’t Ignore Tropical Storm Isaac Just Yet
With all the advances in computer modeling and meteorological technology, ultimately, weather is just sometimes difficult to predict. Case in point: current Tropical Storm Isaac, floating along in the Caribbean Sea worrying the crap out of people all along the Gulf Coast. For the past couple of days, forecast tracks…
BREAKING: Whistleblowing Precinct One Constables Allege Retaliation in Aftermath of Jack Abercia Indictment
Two Precinct One Harris County Constables have filed suit against Harris County and their immediate supervisor, Constable Kenneth Berry, successor to indicted former chief Jack Abercia. In both of the suits filed yesterday, plaintiffs Sergeant Kevin Williams (formerly of the Civil Division) and Mark Harrison (formerly an Internal Affairs investigator)…
Dr. Rick, Physician Turned Patient, Learns to Enjoy Every Sandwich
Rewind: RIP Leo Aston: Local Guitarist, Leo Trio Leader Passes Away There’s an old saying about what happens when a doctor becomes a patient. Dr. Richard Patt, once a high-placed anaesthesiologist at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, became a musician first. Patt, who musically goes by “Dr. Rick,” left the cancer-research…
Deepwater Horizon: Asian Hotel Owners Decry Proposed BP Settlement
Around 800 hotel owners have plans to descend on BP’s headquarters along I-10 West today, condemning a recent proposed settlement between the embattled monolith and thousands of business owners because, apparently, they weren’t invited to the get-lots-of-money-from-papa-BP party. A U.S. district judge in New Orleans will either confirm or deny…
Wait: Why Is Justin Bieber Making Perfume For Girls?
Look, I like money. It’s fun. It smells good in your hands. It can get you food, clothing, shelter and even booze. I get the appeal of money. I hope one day to have more money than I have now. Maybe even a credit card. Justin Bieber likes money too…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 26, Menudo at La Mexicana
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
RIP Scott McKenzie: A Flower-Pop Playlist For the “San Francisco” Folkie
This past Saturday, the world lost Scott McKenzie, the folk songwriter known best for his 1967 hit “San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair),” which would end up becoming one of the bedrock anthems of the flower-power generation. The song was written by John Phillips of the…
Free for All: Katherine Howe, Taikoza and Theater District Open House
Best-selling author Katherine Howe signs and discusses her new book, The House of Velvet and Glass, at Murder by the Book on Friday. Howe, who was born in Houston, was trained as an art historian and Velvet and Glass, like her debut release, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, features…
Chef Chat, Part 2: Bill and Matt Hutchinson of Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana
Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana 14028 Memorial Drive 713-855-0085 www.pizarospizza.com This is part two of a three-part Chef Chat series. Read Part 1 here and Part 3 in this same space on Friday. Yesterday, Bill and Matt Hutchinson told us how they left what they were doing to pursue the dream of…
Lubbock County Judge Tom Head: 5 Factors to Consider As You Protect Your Homeland from Obama’s UN Invasion
As you might have heard, Lubbock County Judge Tom Head has taken the bold, possibly insane stand that if President Obama is re-elected, a civil war will arise in the land and Panhandle pols will need a 1.7-cent tax increase to bolster their defenses against a United Nations invasion. Head…
Comment of the Day: Obama & Lubbock County Judge Tom Head
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning or afternoon from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous…
Celebrate National “Duck Out for a Drink Day” Tomorrow at OKRA’s Charity Saloon
I’m not sure if you are aware of this, but tell the boss now: Tomorrow is National Duck Out for a Drink Day. I couldn’t make up something this awesome. Even though the day itself isn’t technically tomorrow. “Unfortunately, August 25th, the day the holiday has traditionally been celebrated the…
Now That Marvel Has Daredevil Back, What Should They Do with Him?
It was recently announced that Fox was returning the film rights to the character of Daredevil back to Marvel, thus ending any continuation of the film series that started off badly with the Ben Affleck-helmed 2003 film and only got worse with Elektra. The move puts the final nail in…
New Lynyrd Skynyrd: What Have We Been Missing?
Though the plane crash that claimed the lives of singer Ronnie Van Zandt and guitarist Steve Gaines looms horrifically large over the history of Lynyrd Skynyrd, the band’s legacy is as much about survival as it is tragedy. More than 35 years since the band was nearly snuffed out for…
Jerrell Dwayne Lewis, 28, Bayou Body Count No. 137
A man was shot to death on the northwest side Wednesday night, police say. Jerrell Dwayne Lewis, 28, was found lying dead from several gunshot wounds in an apartment complex in the 5700 block of Lost Forest about 11:30 p.m. last night, HPD says. Officers responded to “a shots fired”…
The Pleasures of Edible Flowers and Other Lessons from Martha Stewart
When certain friends visit me in Houston, we’re all about Going Out To Eat. The itinerary revolves around much-anticipated dinners at fancy restaurants, leisurely cafe lunches and decadent brunches at The Breakfast Klub. With other visitors, however, it’s all about What To Cook. My dear friend Sophie (co-founder of the…
“I Can Do Anything” a Film Celebration for the Little Ones
Ahh, to be a kid again. Life was so much easier. You didn’t have to worry about bills or jobs, you never stopped laughing for fear of getting laugh lines. When you are a child (hopefully), your biggest worry is whether to be an astronaut or the president, or to…
You Better Run: 10 Other Great Pat Benatar Songs
Pat Benatar is one of the greatest vocalists of all-time, the woman behind numerous memorable hits such as “Heartbreaker,” “You Better Run” and the ever-popular “Hit Me With Your Best Shot.” However, she has had many other great songs throughout her career, from albums such as In the Heat of…
Use That Leftover Summer Squash: Easy Zucchini & Yellow Squash Quiche
Squash is in season…and it’s cheap…and it’s delicious — so there really is no reason not to pick some up from your local farmer’s market or grocery store, or even grow your own. One of my favorite summer squash recipes is a Zucchini & Yellow Squash Quiche. I use a…
Reviews for the Lazy Gamer: Retro/Grade
Game: Retro/Grade Platform: PSN Publisher/Developer: 24 Caret Games Genre: Rhythm Describe This Game in Three Words: Backmasked Gradius Musical Plot Synopsis: Rick Rocket is your typical 2D space fighter adventure dude on a quest to blow up a bunch of bad guys in space Gradius-style. Problem is, the final battle…
30 Seconds With The Word Alive’s Telle Smith
The Word Alive is in no way messing around. Their music hits you in the face like you’re a kid with a smart mouth. It’s a spine-shattering, vulgar, primitive, form of metal that will leave you bleeding in its wake. We fired off an email out of our email cannon…
Ninjas on the North Side? Suspect Wearing “A Black Uniform” Shoots Two
An odd shooting on the north side Tuesday night has police chasing the vaguest of leads. Two people were shot about 11 p.m. in the 4600 block of Beggs; police discovered them when they answered a call about shots being fired. Amanda Barajas, 24, is in critical condition at a…
Pop Rocks: Celebrities Other Than Prince Harry with Whom We’d Like to Party Naked
Lee Harvey, you are a madman. When you stole that cow? And your friend tried to make it with the cow? I want to party with you, cowboy. – John Winger, Stripes Bill Murray might as well have been talking about Prince Harry of Wales, the one member of the…
Ashley Nicole Richards: Videos Show “Ebony Crush Goddess” Going to Town on Crawfish, Crabs
Investigators with the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals say they’ve discovered more videos of animal torture linked to two Houstonians already charged with mutilating and killing a puppy and kitten on video. Stephanie Bell, associate director of PETA’s cruelty investigations department, told Hair Balls Wednesday that the footage,…
7Horse’s “Meth Lab Zoso Sticker” Hits Radio Brick Wall
7Horse playing their AAA Top 40 single “Low Fuel Drug Run” A 20-year member of Los Angeles rock ensemble Dada, drummer Phil Leavitt is no newcomer to the music business. Leavitt and Dada bassist Joie Calio formed their own band 7Horse last year, and dropped the hard-rocking debut, Let the…
Where Does This Indian Eat Indian? India’s Restaurant
No clue what a dahi papdi is? Aloo gobi or vindaloo? Wondering what the hell a paneer tikka is? I’m Indian, and I don’t even know what’s in chicken 65. Or jalfrezi. Indian food can seem wildly exotic, and sometimes mysteriously unappealing, just like the jolting aromas, loudly chaotic streets…
Marty Maule: The MySpace Weirdness of (Former) Conn’s Employee Accused of Molesting Autistic Teen Boy in Work Restroom
A trip to the big city for an East Texas family turned into a nightmare when, according to investigators, an autistic 15-year-old boy was molested by an employee at a North Houston Conn’s store. According to an affidavit filed by Harris County Sheriff’s investigators, the boy’s dad and sister and…
Rob Jay Gets Really Weird On “#Bars Intro”
Not sure what to do with this. Rob Jay, as surmised by temporary rap-group mate Hollywood FLOSS, reads too much. He’s too smart for his own good, too meta for meta, too heady for anything other than marginal underground acclaim. This here video here would seem to confirm that, which…
Did Doc Brown and The Doctor Ever Meet?
The new series of Doctor Who is coming soon. Having become acquainted, nay obsessed, with the Time Lord over the last year by watching everything Netflix has to offer, reading comics and books, listening to audio plays and basically turning into a nerdtastic fanboy at every opportunity, I simply can’t…
Nothing Bundt Cakes Opens in The Woodlands
It’s a bakery dedicated to one type of cake: the classic bundt. This week, Houston welcomes the newest location of Nothing Bundt Cakes to The Woodlands Crossing Shopping Center right next door to the new Trader Joe’s. While this location of Nothing Bundt Cakes has already opened up shop, the…
Houston Texans Roster-tology: My Latest 53-Man Roster Guess
After years of trying to get people’s respect, trying to force people to sit up and notice how smart I am, I finally figured out what the secret is. (And I’m so smart that I’m about to share this secret with all of you at no charge!) The secret is…
“Matt Weedman: Order No. 227” at Art Palace Displays a Great Work of Art
It’s worth stopping by Art Palace just to check out an artwork called Vacuum Singer. It’s a vintage Electrolux canister vacuum with its hose and steamer attachment propped up on a microphone stand like a cobra about to strike. Emanating from the canister is an eerie audio collage that mixes…
Chef Amanda McGraw Wows with New Specials at Brasserie 19
A perfectly poached 63-degree egg — one of only two things that Chef Amanda McGraw cooks sous-vide at Brasserie 19, the other being a giant pork chop — is spilling its saffron-colored yolk across the crispy top of a parmesan custard inside a shallow, white ramekin. Off to one side,…
The Old 97’s Rhett Miller: “We’ll Play Our Hit Twice”
Rewind: The Old 97’s Rhett Miller: “Then the Stage Gets a Lot Bigger” Streets of Where I’m From (music feature) When Nirvana upended the music business in the early ’90s, the major record labels saw dollar signs in every dive bar and honky-tonk in the lower 48. That extended all…
Sex Expert Rachel Khona’s Steamy Road-Sex Soundtrack
Nevermind the bushes, the parking garage, the vacant tollbooth, the Wendy’s bathroom, the Walmart gardening center. I guess we’ve all been there, when the urge and vapors and blood flow gets to be so troublesome that we just gotta have sex in the car. It has to happen in the…
David Koepp at the End of Civilization
David Koepp writes, and now directs, superior B-movies. This is an admirable and tough-to-master skill given how few major movie studios are willing to take chances on films with lower budgets that don’t employ a found-footage gimmick or generally look like they were made on an aglet-less shoestring budget. So…
New York Vacation
Calling back many of the same characters and more than a few of the same jokes, 2 Days in New York, Julie Delpy’s fourth film as writer-director, is a sequel to her 2007 2 Days in Paris. A spin-off of sorts itself, Paris piggybacked on the popularity of 2004’s justly…
Enrique Iglesias, Jennifer Lopez
We feel sorry for people who didn’t like the last set of singles from Latin pop superstar Enrique Iglesias. “Tonight (I’m Fucking You)” and “I Like It” were mini-symphonies of overly caffeinated pure pop power. Heard in the morning hours, the songs negated the need for coffee or tea and…
Intellectual Caca and DREAMers
Dear Mexican, I was in a taco shop in the bathroom stall and saw your racist dribble in La Prensa San Diego (the paper was being used as ass wipe I guess). Whatever you say or write will always be foreshadowed by the fact that you and all the dark-skinned…
Journey, Pat Benatar
For a band that once called an album Raised on Radio, Journey has proved remarkably adept at digital media. Consistently ranked near the top of iTunes’ Rock Songs (“Don’t Stop Believin'”) and Rock Albums (Greatest Hits) charts, they’re probably as popular now as they’ve ever been. Of course, the San…
Hit & Run
Hit & Run, a new action comedy engineered by faintly Muppety co-director/writer/star Dax Shepard, is as much about running mouths as running motors, and injects estrogen into the few remaining enclaves of American testosterone, muscle cars and FM cock rock. Shepard plays Charlie Bronson, a 35-year-old in Nowheresville whose life,…
Houston Theater Awards
Check out our slideshow, The Year in Houston Theater. Well, we guess it’s sort of official. Last month, influential money magazine Forbes bestowed upon our very own Houston its highest ranking as “America’s Coolest City to Live.” We’re number one! Thanks, guys, but you’re a little late. We’ve known this…
Action Movies Don’t Have to Suck
Remember how action movies used to be? The good old-fashioned American (but often European-accented) ones from the ’80s and ’90s, the type paid tribute to (but not necessarily re-created) in the Expendables movies? No offense to your Iron Men and your Jason Bournes, but I miss movies like Die Hard,…
Too Far to Care
Does a band know when it’s made a great record? Not necessarily, explains Old 97’s front man Rhett Miller, or at least not right away. In the case of the Dallas band’s 1997 album Too Far to Care, a high-water mark of both ’90s Texas rock and the then-sizzling “insurgent…
Marjane Satrapi: There Is No “Clash of Cultures”
“I have always been against this idea of the ‘clash of cultures,'” Marjane Satrapi says. “It’s the biggest piece of bullshit I’ve ever heard.” That’s apparent from her films and graphic novels, which bridge worlds. Born in Iran, Satrapi emigrated to Europe with her family when she was a teenager…
Your Gonzo Guide to the Republican National Convention
As Republicans prepared to renominate Richard Nixon for president, gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson had a crank-fueled moment of clarity inside his Miami Beach hotel room. “This may be the year when we finally come face to face with ourselves,” Thompson wrote in his classic Fear and Loathing: On the…
How to Speak Republican
Next week, the Republican Party will convene in Tampa to plot world domination. And you’re feeling left out. Yes, you badly want in on the ground floor of the next culture war or invasion of a small, preferably Muslim country. Yet the GOP speaks in an elusive language only its…
Suicide Silence Speaks
Intense barely scratches the surface when talking about Suicide Silence. The California extreme-metal outfit has been around for a little more than a decade, and in that time, they’ve created three of the most severe slabs of deathcore to be found. While on tour with Machine Head earlier this year,…
Bury the Crown EP Release
This summer, blistery local rockers A dream Asleep morphed into Bury the Crown, playing their first gig as a “new” band at the Abbey Pub in late July. Friday night, BTC and a few friends are giving both their new name and first EP as such a proper launch party…
Capsule Art Reviews: “Drawings & Air Conditioning,” “Interstitial Spaces: Julia Barello & Beverly Penn,” “Kyle Farley: Countenance,” “Layover,” “Perry House: Elegance/Violence,” “Six Apart,” “Sky, Trees and Earth”
“Drawings & Air Conditioning” With its current show, Front Gallery clearly wants to lure you out into the summer heat and into its Montrose bungalow space. There’s a free-form, experimental feel throughout many of the selections on view in the show, especially prevalent in the five pieces by Michael Blair,…
The Real Deal at Taqueria La Macro
See more photos from inside Taqueria La Macro in our trompo-filled slideshow. “Oh boy,” I nearly squealed with excitement the first time I pulled up to Taqueria La Macro with my boyfriend. “This place looks like it’s run by folks from Monterrey.” In my head danced visions of tacos de…
Incubus, Linkin Park
Linkin Park and Incubus, two of the titans of modern-rock radio in the early ’00s, join forces for this Honda-sponsored tour, coming around these parts just as the long, hot summer begins to wind down and school starts up again. Just last summer, Incubus released one of the best albums…
Tom Carter Benefits
Tom Carter is far from a household name, but he is revered (even internationally) within the close-knit experimental-music community, which explains the outpouring of support after his recent near-fatal illness. For the past two decades, Carter and now-ex-wife Christina have been Charalambides, the former Houston duo that has charted the…
Facebook Weirdness
Highlights from Hair Balls CRIME Facebook Weirdness A&M Killer: Yoda, Emily Dickinson Fan. John Nova Lomax The mother of Thomas Caffall, who killed two people including a constable, and wounded four more, in College Station, told the media that she had been worried about her son’s mental state, and from…
Drawn by Drunken Seven-Year-Olds
TOP 5 I can admit it: I am a packaging whore to some extent. A nice label is bound to catch my eye, be it laundry detergent, gin, beer, heroin…By the same token, bad marketing can turn me off of what may very well be a great product. Beer is…
Capsule Stage Reviews: Happily Ever at the Box, Life Could Be a Dream, Mr. Marmalade, Our Town, Tamarie Cooper’s DOOMSDAY REVUE (the greatest musical ever)
Happily Ever at the Box Fairy-tale archetypes get a scrumptious musical makeover from our favorite cabaret troupe, The Music Box Theater. In the tradition of their former shows, Music Box interlaces a little plot — here a mélange of fairy-tale types: princess, prince, wicked queen, godmother, narrator — with a…
Montrose Rock Revel
Summer is coming to an end (sort of), so the time is right for a Saturday-night party with several of the scene’s newer bands and the odd spanking or two. Hey, why not? Recent Houston Press Music Award Best Rock winners The Trimms go on last, if anything (or anyone)…
