A Courtly Hat Tip Says “It’s Been My Pleasure To Rob Your Bank This Morning, Miss”
Simple etiquette — it is so rare these days. Gentlemen donning chapeaux in this modern era seldom can be bothered to make the effort to tip their headgear in the most basic acknowledgement of interaction with a fellow human being. Not the dude who robbed a First Convenience Bank inside…
Robin Scott: Runs Over Cops’ Foot, Kicks & Screams In Backseat — Oh, And Pees Back There, Too, Allegedly
Some arrests are easier than others. But when an arrest begins with an alleged road-raging woman driving over a cops’ foot — and things only go downhill from there — you know you’ve entered pain-in-the-ass territory, at least from the viewpoint of law-enforcement officials. Such was the case with the…
Kelly Renee Hutchins: Smirkingest Mug Shot Ever After Cops Say She Tried To Rob Her Strip-Club Customer
Convicted on mugshot alone? It’s always a possibility, but we’re sure an on-the-ball defense lawyer will make sure a jury never sees Kelly Renee Hutchins’ mugshot should her robbery case ever get that far. Because, you know, it’s not like she’s exhibiting a whole lot of remorse, or “Dear God,…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 32, Pancakes at Fountain View Cafe
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…
How the Mighty Have Fallen: Ninfa’s Finds Its Nadir with Maggie Rita’s
When news broke that three of the city’s most popular Ninfa’s locations had been sold to Maggie Rita’s — a Tex-Mex chain owned, in part, by comedian Carlos Mencia — there was an uproar. Sure, Ninfa’s hadn’t been that great in a long time, but to many longtime Houstonians (me…
Margaret Miller’s Lovely Landscapes at Archway Gallery
Margaret Miller’s oil paintings of Texas landscapes in Archway Gallery’s new show, “Sky, Trees and Earth,” are not as banal as the straightforward title may imply. They’re certainly pleasing, as even mediocre landscape paintings can be, but they’re also strikingly detailed and have a sense of humor about them. There’s…
Spindletop Dog Refuge For Pit Bulls: What Went So Horribly Wrong?
For at least twenty years, Spindletop Dog Refuge was known as one of the few places in the country where rescued pit bulls had a second chance for a happy life. But somewhere along the way, Spindletop’s owner, Leah Purcell, lost control and the refuge appears to have turned into…
Report from TexSom: “Best Sommelier in Texas” 2012 Is Ryan Tedder (Dallas)
On Monday, the organizers of TexSom, the annual Texas sommelier conference, announced the winner of the “Best Sommelier in Texas” competition, Ryan Tedder of the yet-to-open FT33 Restaurant in Dallas. David Keck of Uchi took second place in the annual event, now in its eighth year. The competition’s rigorous testing…
Reality Bites: Here Comes Honey Boo Boo
“Things are different now.” – Erica, Red Dawn I won’t pretend America has undergone anything as disastrously transformative as a Commie invasion recently, but there have definitely been upheavals of a sort on the reality TV landscape. For most of its history, the genre has been a repository for pseudo-documentaries…
Last Night: Kool A.D., Fat Tony & Chingo Bling at Fitzgerald’s
Kool A.D., Fat Tony, Chingo Bling, Franchise n Yung, Amber London Fitzgerald’s August 14, 2012 Call it Underground Rap, or Alt-Rap, or Underground Alt-Rap, but whatever the fuck you call it, these guys won’t really care. They are making music, spitting rhymes, touring the country, and having the time of…
Isaias Gallegos a.k.a. Mickey: Coke Kingpin Gets Almost 22 Years in Federal Prison
The head of a large cocaine network has been sentenced to almost 22 years in federal prison, prosecutors announced this morning. Isaias Gallegos, also known as Mickey, is 32 and from Sugar Land and had previously entered a guilty plea for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and…
Laura Botkin: Houston Loses a Promising Opera Singer and Voice Coach
As reported this morning on Hair Balls, Houston opera singer Laura Botkin, 27, was killed late Sunday in a car crash in Lubbock. The Rice Shepherd School graduate was a voice coach at HITS Theatre. Botkin appeared in Houston Grand Opera’s Your Name Means the Sea, as well as the…
In Italy, Make Sure Your Silver Spoon Is a Measuring Spoon and Kid-Size
If The Silver Spoon cookbook is the bible of Italian cooking, then The Silver Spoon for Children is the Sunday school reader of Italian cooking for kids. The Silver Spoon for Children takes 40 recipes from the original The Silver Spoon, adapting them so they are very easy to read,…
We’re Looking for a Few Good Interns
The Houston Press is recruiting undergraduate journalism and communications students for its Fall 2012 internship program, and the deadline is fast approaching. By “student,” we do not mean “a student of life”; we mean “currently enrolled in college.” There’s no cash offered with this gig, only college credits. Still interested?…
Texas Hicks That Talk Funny and Kill People: Jesse Baget’s New Black Comedy, Breathless
Breathless stars Gina Gershon, Kelli Giddish, Val Kilmer and Ray Liotta; Jesse Baget co-writes and directs. Filmmaker Jesse Baget admits Breathless isn’t his first project featuring dumb Texas rednecks who talk funny, but says the script gets its twang and accent directly from Lone Star State residents. “My co-writer, Stefania…
Laura Botkin: Opera Singer Killed in Second Fatal Traffic Accident for Houston’s Art Scene This Week
Still reeling from the death of local artist Jeremy Choate, Houston’s fine-arts scene was reeling again with word of a promising opera singer dead from a Lubbock car crash. Laura Beth Botkin, 27, died late Sunday when the vehicle in which she was a passenger was hit by a truck…
A Chocolate and Almond Cake for Julia Child
As Katharine Shilcutt noted this morning, today is Julia Child’s 100th birthday, and in honor of this special day, I have made one of her best cakes, Reine De Saba, as seen in Julie & Julia. It’s a semisweet chocolate cake with pulverized almonds and rum. I love everything about…
Last Night: Sublime With Rome at The Woodlands
Rewind: Friday: Sublime with Rome at Discovery Green (April 1, 2011) Friday Night: 311 & Sublime with Rome at The Woodlands (August 12, 2011) Sublime with Rome Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion August 14, 2012 Fifteen minutes into their set Tuesday night at the Woodlands Pavilion, Sublime with Rome began playing…
Forget #SharkWeek: Alternate Modified “Shark Weeks” We Really Want to See
Every year around this time, the Discovery Channel feeds our national blood lust with endless loops of amazing and spectacular footage of sharks eating the shit out of stuff. Yes, “Shark Week” is now almost as anticipated as the Super Bowl, the World Series or even American Idol. Think of…
Think You Feel Old? Ben Affleck is 40 Today
It is amazing how quickly time can fly. Just yesterday, Ben Affleck was a little squirt sharing his knowledge of marine life with kids everywhere through the educational miniseries Voyage of the Mimi, and now the guy is over the hill. He reached the top of the hill today, August…
10 Lobster Dishes to Try in Houston: No. 5, The Lobster Roll at Triniti
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…
Ask a Rapper: Bigg Fatts & Rap’s 7 Best Food-Related Moments
The hip-hop world is a less than sensible place — lots of times, you’re even required to clarify when bad means bad and when bad means good — so once a week we’re going to get with a rapper and ask them to explain things. Something you always wanted to…
Comment of the Day: Campus Shooters & Emily Dickinson
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…
Maria Salinas: The $194 Hug of An Old Man
When you’re a guy who’s reached the august age of 84, it can be gratifying to find a 22-year-old woman who wants to chat with you a bit and share some time. It can also be an expensive proposition, it turns out. We don’t know whether Maria Delrosario Salinas, 22,…
Our Favorite Julia Child Clips for Her 100th Birthday
For many of us, Julia Child was the first cook they ever saw on television. Mine was Graham Kerr, but Julia Child was a quick second after I became hooked on cooking shows. And boy, do they not make cooking shows like they used to. Julia Child was far less…
Music World Stands Up for Embattled Russian Punks Pussy Riot
Above: A burka-clad Madonna talks about Pussy Riot to her Moscow audience Rewind: Vladimir Putin: No Pussy Riot on His Watch Free speech is a valued thing in this country. It’s why journalists, writers, musicians and artists exist and are able to do what they do. However, in Russia, it…
100 Creatives 2012: Flynn Prejean, Poster Artist
What He Does: Flynn Prejean makes his home over at Bad Moon Studios. Originally he made comic books, but these days his main work is as a gigposter printmaker unleashing a wave of pop art to plaster the city in so you know where you’ll need to be to rock…
We’re Looking for a Few Good Interns
The Houston Press is recruiting undergraduate journalism and communications students for its Fall 2012 internship program, and the deadline is fast approaching. By “student” we do not mean “a student of life”; we mean “currently enrolled in college.” There’s no cash offered with this gig, only college credits. Still interested?…
The Mean, Evil, Bored & Ashamed Faces on 13 NFL Team Logos, Ready for Their Close-Ups
Our long national nightmare, otherwise known as the football offseason, is nearing an end. Exhibition Preseason games are in full swing, for better or worse. (If you watched all — or even most of — the Cowboys’ 3-0 win over Oakland Monday, seek help.) Still, the appearance of the pads…
Keep on Truckin’: Chi’Lantro BBQ
Chi’Lantro BBQ is a Korean Mexican fusion truck — the name is the combination of two of the most important ingredients in the two cuisines, kimchi and cilantro, respectively. The truck started in Austin and came to Houston at the beginning of this year. My first encounter with Chi’Lantro was…
Most Depressing Video Ever: Teens Listen to the New Taylor Swift Song
This week saw the premiere of Taylor Swift’s new single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” online. It’s about an ex-boyfriend, which comes as a shock because the rest of her catalog is pretty romantically ambiguous, and she normally never vaguely discloses anything about her personal life in her…
3 Reasons to Be Afraid of the Google Car
The future is here, and it is scaring old people. I am not talking about Miley Cyrus’s new pixie cut; I am referring to Google’s autonomous car. If you haven’t heard about Google’s latest venture, the company has been perfecting the self-driving car for several years now. The technology, which…
Texans Rewind: I Found a 2008 NFL Preview Magazine, Man Alive Was the Texans Defense Bad
On our radio show on 1560 The Game this past Monday, John Granato and I were breaking down various aspects of both the Texans’ 26-13 win over the Panthers and the preseason in general. The topic was the defense, specifically Whitney Mercilus and the various ways that Texans defensive coordinator…
This Week in Food Blogs: Everything’s Coming Up Houston
New York Times: Houston is getting all the national love this week. After being called “Texas’s best and most diverse food city” by Andrew Knowlton in Bon Appétit, it’s getting a spotlight from none other than The Gray Lady herself. The New York Times noted our sprawling Chinatown over the…
Houston Kickstarter Round-Up: August with Miss Leslie
Once a month we’ll be bringing you a look at some of the best local Kickstarter campaigns in order to let you know what’s getting ready to be unleashed through the help of small investors. Noble Path Harold L. Davis Jr. of Zendoart is looking to bring a classic, top-down…
Hey, Let’s Put David Crosby Moustaches On Everyone
Pared down to just David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash (Neil Young is now touring with Crazy Horse), Wednesday night with these three geriatric strummers whose list of influential cuts starts with 1969’s “Marrakesh Express” is a good way to knock a few legends off of your concert bucket…
Friends, Colleagues Remember SXSW’s Brent Grulke
Rewind: Brent Grulke, SXSW Music Creative Director, Dies of Heart Attack Tuesday afternoon, SXSW staff began posting testimonials to their late friend and colleague, Brent Grulke, who had been SXSW Music’s Creative Director from 1994 until he died after suffering a heart attack Monday morning in Austin. In our time…
We’re Looking for a Few Good Interns
The Houston Press is recruiting undergraduate journalism and communications students for its Fall 2012 internship program, and the deadline is fast approaching. By “student,” we do not mean “a student of life”; we mean “currently enrolled in college” student. There’s no cash offered with this gig, only college credits. Still…
Enjoy These 5 Dancing GIFs From Outside Lands
The following is a dispatch from Outside Lands Festival, from our VVM sister paper SF Weekly. One thing crowds at San Francisco’s Outside Lands festival do pretty well is get down. Despite the relentless wind, heavy fog, and numbing temperatures, we saw plenty of good moves last weekend — and…
Jack L. Baker: Radiologist To Pay $650,000 To Settle Kickback Case
A man described by prosecutors as “a prominent Houston radiologist” has agreed to pay $650,000 to settle claims that he provided kickbacks to get physicians to refer business his way. Jack L. Baker of the Fairmount Diagnostic Center in Pasadena entered into the agreement today, settling claims filed under the…
Pose Nicely for Your HDTV-Robbing Video, Please. Thanks!
If you’ve set up a security camera in your backyard, it’s pretty clear you’re expecting trouble. One Montgomery County homeowner found the trouble that was being looked for when his or her camera captured perfectly someone breaking into a back door and carting off a giant television. It happened the…
Shovels & Rope’s Cary Ann Hearst On the Dying Record Industry & C.C. DeVille
Tonight husband and wife country duo Shovels And Rope play McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, a venue that as of late has become their main Houston stomping grounds when they aren’t opening for their friend Hayes Carll in bigger venues. The pair — Cary Ann Hearst and Michael Trent — just released…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 33, Moules Congolaise at Jeannine’s Bistro
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…
As It Was Written: The Red Tide Riseth from Sea, Kills Thousands (of Fish)
Some Biblical-type shit has struck Galveston, killing hundreds of thousands of fish and littering the beaches with their carcasses. The first dead washed ashore on Friday, and it wasn’t until Monday afternoon that scientists gave this hidden killer a name: The red tide. It’s composed of microscopic algae, which has…
Insane Clown Posse Incites Spiritual Debate, Asks “Where’s God?”
Here’s a Video of the Entire Geto Boys Show From Saturday’s Juggalo Gathering We’ve all asked the question, believers or non-believers alike: “Where’s God?” In times of personal trial, family strife, financial disaster, or just sailing the choppy seas of relationships, when we need some sort of supernatural solution or…
Brett Cullen Wants UH’s Theater & Dance Department to Get Its Due
Fresh off his turn as a sleazy, womanizing congressman who gets kidnapped by Anne Hathaway’s Cat Woman in The Dark Knight Rises, actor Brett Cullen was in Houston last week working on the details for the University of Houston’s School of Theatre & Dance’s upcoming fundraising event designed to raise…
A&M Shooter Thomas Caffall’s Disturbing Facebook Page: Yoda, Emily Dickinson, Commie Guns
Thomas Caffall’s mother told the media yesterday that she had been worried about her son’s mental state, and from looking at his Facebook page, it’s easy to see why. Having a right-wing gun nut in the family is one thing. Having one who goes around quoting Yoda and Emily Dickinson…
Upcoming: Delta Spirit, GZA, John Legend, Guttermouth, Waka Flocka Flame, Etc.
Akron/Family: Fri., Sept. 7, 8 p.m., $12/$17. Fitzgerald’s, 2706 White Oak, Houston. Alanis Morissette: Sun., Oct. 28, 8 p.m., TBA. Bayou Music Center, 520 Texas Ave., Houston. Balmorhea: Mon., Oct. 1, 8 p.m., TBA. Fitzgerald’s, 2706 White Oak, Houston. Blaggards: Sat., Sept. 15, 10 p.m., $10. Continental Club, 3700 Main,…
What’s Cooking on Pinterest? Nutella Twix Bars
I’d do anything for a Twix bar. They are my absolute, hands-down, favorite candy bar. You can’t go wrong with a crunchy cookie, sticky caramel and irresistibly delicious chocolate coating. So, when I found a how-to recipe on Pinterest, of course I decided that I had to make them. However,…
RIP Ron Palillo: Another Sweathog Bites the Dust
Actor Ron Palillo, best known for his role as Arnold Horshack on ABC’s Welcome Back, Kotter in the the late ’70s, has passed away after a heart attack. The smallest and most inquisitive Sweathog in the cast, he was only 63 years old. Earlier this year Robert Hegyes, who played…
Comment of the Day: The Astrodome Debate Sounds Familiar To Detroit
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: Jaws Remastered, a Breathless Giveaway, and Much More
Jaws stars Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss; Steven Spielberg directs. Universal has been cranking out Blu-ray releases of its most treasured films as it celebrates its 100th anniversary. This week it’s the Steven Spielberg classic Jaws. The highly anticipated release features a completely remastered and fully restored film…
A Sinner Departed: A Look Back at Drowning Pool’s Dave Williams
On June 26 of this year someone edited the Wikipedia page of former Drowning Pool lead singer Dave Williams to add in the following note: “A common rumor is that he drowned himself in a pool, hence the band’s name.” That’s such a silly notion it seems hard to believe…
Where Are We Drinking? Clue: Coffee and Cajeta
This photo was snapped during a recent coffee crawl around town, during which I felt as if I could conquer the world with my left hand and reconcile quantum mechanics and general relativity with my right. Afterward, however, I crashed for three hours and felt at least 1,000 of my…
Adoption Time: Are You On Team Annise Puppy Or Team Annise Kitty?
The city and BARC are continuing their hard sell to win the ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge, and if that means getting the mayor to pose with cute widdle animals, she’s up for the task. Not looking to limit potential adoptee’s options, Mayor Annise Parker sat with a puppy and…
The Ace of Bass: Sue Mingus on her Jazz Giant Husband, New Box Set
One of the — if not the — premier bassists in the history of jazz, Charles Mingus (1922-1979) was also a composer in many musical styles, a performer of wide talents, a prose writer of deep thoughts and an outspoken, opinionated observer about…well…everything. Columbia/Legacy has released Charles Mingus: The Complete…
Trey Songz Slips New Chapter V to Wire Road Studios
Heights’ Wire Road Studios Celebrates Grand Opening Trey Songz has good people. An hour before his scheduled arrival at Wire Road Studios — quite a cutting-edge, modern music chamber, considering the humble neighborhood living around it — to join about 20 hip-hop heads, hype men, helpers and hangers-on for an…
Houston Restaurant Weeks Dinner at Vic & Anthony’s
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better deal than a $35 three-course meal at our 2011 Best Expense Account Restaurant. Lucky for us, Vic and Anthony’s is participating in this year’s Houston Restaurant Weeks. A top-notch filet and a donation to charity? I’m in. Last Friday was my first time…
$7 or Less: Smashburger Tempts with New Dishes
Just in time for the throes of August, Smashburger is rolling out some new items that just might help finish out the summer with a bang. Best of all, the base price of everything on the menu is $6.99 or less. (Of course, there are plenty of add-ons, so feel…
The Bangles’ Susanna Hoffs: “I Listen a Lot to the ’60s Still”
In the ’80s, Susanna Hoffs was at the top of her game as a member of all-girl band the Bangles, who had many hits including “Hero Takes a Fall,” “Walking Down Your Street,” “Walk Like an Egyptian,” “Eternal Flame,” and countless others. Though the band split in 1989, Hoffs reunited…
Tasty Waves and Cool Buzzes: 30 Years of Fast Times at Ridgemont High
This week marks 30 years since the world met Jeff Spicoli, Mr. Hand, Mike Damone, the Hamilton siblings and the chest of Linda Barrett. The Cameron Crowe-penned, Amy Heckerling-directed summer teen flick has become a classic comedy, dealing with teen pregnancy, masturbation, fast-food malaise and the epidemic of stoned surfers…
App of the Week: AroundMe Points You in the Right Direction
App: AroundMe Platform: iPhone, Android, Windows Mobile Website: AroundMeApp.com Cost: Free (with ads), $2.99 (without) One of the most usable features of any smartphone is its mapping technology. In essence, the smartphone is a simplified GPS tracker and because of Google’s open mapping technology, a whole host of different apps…
Pop Rocks: Jennifer Aniston’s Engagement Is The Event Horizon Of Celebrity Gossip
The title of this USA Today article made me laugh…and then it made me think. Has Jennifer Aniston finally found her happy ending? For an American sweetheart who has it all — looks, talent, fame, fortune — Jennifer Aniston has not been lucky in love, so her engagement to actor…
Texas’ Tax-Free Holiday: More Hassle Than It’s Worth?
This weekend brings the annual Tax-Free Holiday to Texas, and if ever a grimmer event deserved less to be called by such a festive honorific, maybe it would be Depression Eve. What began as a vote-getting way to keep some money in schoolparents’ pockets has evolved into a death march…
Rap Round Table: What Is Your Favorite Non-Rap Activity?
Some rappers happen to be thoughtful, intelligent people. Sometimes Rocks Off has some of them here discussing issues relevant to their culture. This Week’s Panel: Bun B, ESG, Delo, UZOY, Surreall, Les, Hollywood FLOSS, Eskabel, hasHBrown, Yves and more. Not Invited: Plies again. That guy, sheesh. This Week’s Prompt: What…
Leggo My Eggo? Me First!
My number one food rule is this: Eat breakfast. I wasn’t a big breakfast eater until I was in my thirties, but once I converted, that was it — breakfast is nonnegotiable. I’m generally happy with cold cereal and fruit on a weekday, though I will enjoy the occasional leftover…
One Year Ago, Rick Perry Entered The Presidential Race. How’d That Go?
It seems like several lifetimes ago, but in fact it was exactly one year ago today that the world got its first full day of Rick Perry, presidential candidate. With all the pomp, not to mention circumstance, attendant on such an august occasion, the governor of Texas deigned to allow…
L.A.’s Tremoloco Drops Smokin’ Salsipuedes With Local Help
Nothing gets Lonesome, Onry and Mean’s blood pumping like opening the mail and finding a long overdue album from Los Angeles roots outfit Tremoloco. The band’s previous release, 2008’s Dulcinea, was in heavy rotation on the jukebox at our local water hole for several years, and the album seldom left…
Wigstock: The Wild and Wonderful Girls of Space City Con
Yet another comic book and sci-fi convention hit Houston this past weekend when the Space City Con landed at the Westin Galleria. How can you beat a “geek festival with free parking”? You really cannot. Fans of science fiction, fantasy, comics, gaming, literature and art came together to benefit the…
10 Lobster Dishes to Try in Houston: No. 6, Lobster Tacos at Jonathan’s The Rub
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…
Watch This Alligator Chomp This Dude’s Arm Damn Near In Half! (w/ VIDEO, Obviously)
People often ask me “Sean, how do you come up with your content each day? That must be awfully hard to do five days a week!” (Actually, nobody ever asks me that, I just couldn’t think of a way to start this post. Also, the “awfully hard to do” part…
Reviews for the Lazy Gamer: Sleeping Dogs
Game: Sleeping Dogs Platform: PS3, X360, PC Publisher/Developer: Square Enix/United Front Genre: Open World Crime Action Describe This Game in Three Words: Grand Theft Asian Plot Synopsis: Wei Shen is a San Francisco police officer who returns to his native Hong Kong in order to settle a score with the…
Who On Earth Is Searching for “Hipster John Denver”?
Here at Houston Press HQ, Rocks Off has a program where we can see every search someone types into that window with the magnifying glass in the top right-hand corner of our home page and any of the four Houston Press blogs. That’s right, we’re watching you. Be careful. It’s…
Three Houston Restaurants Top Bon Appetit‘s Best New Restaurant List
Oxheart, Uchi and Underbelly have a lot more to crow about after last week: The three restaurants — two of which have received rare four-star ratings from Houston Chronicle food critic Alison Cook — have been named to Bon Appétit’s list of the nation’s 50 best new restaurants. Even more…
Here’s a Video of the Entire Geto Boys Show From Saturday’s Juggalo Gathering
There are benefits to going to a concert, of course. Like, there are the obvious things. The surge in energy in the room right before the performer comes out is always fun. It will never not be cool to start a show by shutting off all the lights. The moment…
Brent Grulke, SXSW Music Creative Director, Dies of Heart Attack
Brent Grulke, a former Austin Chronicle music writer and editor who rose to the head of SXSW’s Music division, died Monday in Austin. The cause of death was a heart attack following oral surgery, wrote Raoul Hernandez, one of Grulke’s successor as the paper’s Music Editor, on the Chronicle’s Web…
The 2012 Houston Press Best of Houston® Ballot Is Live: Go Vote!
Always a city with muscle, Houston gets stronger by the day — hence the theme of this year’s Houston Press Best of Houston® edition: Growth and Regrowth. That’s not news to us, but it is to some. The city that used to feel like our little secret seems to be…
The 2012 Houston Press Best of Houston® Ballot Is Live: Go Vote!
Always a city with muscle, Houston gets stronger by the day — hence the theme of this year’s Houston Press Best of Houston® edition: Growth and Regrowth. That’s not news to us, but it is to some. The city that used to feel like our little secret seems to be…
The 2012 Houston Press Best of Houston® Ballot Is Live: Go Vote!
Always a city with muscle, Houston gets stronger by the day — hence the theme of this year’s Houston Press Best of Houston® edition: Growth and Regrowth. That’s not news to us, but it is to some. The city that used to feel like our little secret seems to be…
The 2012 Houston Press Best of Houston® Ballot Is Live: Go Vote!
Always a city with muscle, Houston gets stronger by the day — hence the theme of this year’s Houston Press Best of Houston® edition: Growth and Regrowth. That’s not news to us, but it is to some. The city that used to feel like our little secret seems to be…
Pradaxa Lawsuits Consolidated in Beautiful East St. Louis, Illinois
Families suing the maker of anti-clotting drug Pradaxa will have their cases consolidated in an East St. Louis, Illinois, court — a decision the Texas-based law firm leading the suits is calling a coup. Pradaxa hit the U.S. market in 2010, hailed by manufacturer Boehringer Ingelheim as a major leap…
Texas A&M Issues a “Code Maroon”; Two Cops Shot, Suspect Arrested (UPDATED w/Constable Death)
Texas A&M officials issued a “Code Maroon” warning to the nearly empty College Station campus in connection with an incident in which two law-enforcement officers were shot. An “active shooter” in the 200 block of Fidelity near campus caused the warning, and the school warned students to avoid the area…
Last Night: Stevie Wonder at Outside Lands
The following is a dispatch from San Francisco’s Outside Lands Festival from our VVM Bay Area sister paper, SF Weekly. — ed. Photos by Christopher VictorioStevie Wonder Outside Lands Festival Golden Gate Park, San Francisco August 12, 2012 Stevie Wonder, in theory, is an American artistic treasure. He’s more than…
You Oughta Know Alanis Morissette Is Coming October 28
First off, did you know that Alanis Morissette’s trillion-selling smash album Jagged Little Pill turned 17 years old this summer? That means that the album itself is old enough to do some of the illicit things mentioned on the album, depending of course on its state of residency. Jagged has…
Saturday Night: Metallica at Outside Lands
The following is a dispatch from San Francisco’s Outside Lands Festival from our VVM Bay Area sister paper, SF Weekly. — ed. Photos by Christopher VictorioMetallica at San Francisco’s Outside Lands festival.Metallica Outside Lands Festival Golden Gate Park, San Fransico August 11, 2012 Metallica, headlining Saturday night of the Outside…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 34, Whole-Fried Speckled Trout at Liberty Kitchen
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: Testing Houston’s Honesty? Good Luck
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…
How To: Grind Your Own Meat
If you have a KitchenAid stand mixer, you can bypass the mystery behind what is in your ground meat and use the meat grinder attachment to make beef or chicken burger patties, and ground beef for pasta sauce, lasagna or taco night. This wonderful attachment allows you to use your…
Country Playhouse’s Mr. Marmalade: A Funny and Disturbing Portrait of Childhood
The setup: “How do I look?” asks goth babysitter Emily (Keshia Lovewell), salivating and pulling down her top in anticipation of her boyfriend’s arrival. Her four-year-old charge Lucy (Monica Passley, in one hell of a performance), doesn’t miss a beat. “Easy,” she squeaks out with Borscht Belt precision. Noah Haidle’s…
10 Bonus Identity Festival Deleted Scenes
Saturday: Identity Festival at The Woodlands ID Fest: The Crowd (daytime) ID Fest: The Crowd (nighttime) Here’s a peek behind the curtain: when taking notes on a show I average about one page per hour. That’s fine for a show like LMFAO, where the bulk of the review is on…
Dynamo Lose Game And First Place At New York
It’s funny how a 2-0 score line can mean the world of difference. On August 3, the Dynamo’s 2-0 home victory against the New York Red Bulls extended their shutout streak to three games, extended their winning streak to five matches, their unbeaten streak to eight matches, and lifted them…
Where Are We Eating? Clue: Flautas and Fountains
The combination plate is a classic Tex-Mex dish, featuring a little bit of everything off the menu and usually highlighting the restaurant’s best items. I ordered the combo platter you see below from the original location of one of Houston’s stalwart Tex-Mex chains, from a seat overlooking the fountain on…
Friday Night: Neil Young & Crazy Horse at Outside Lands Festival
The following is a dispatch from San Francisco’s Outside Lands Festival from our VVM Bay Area sister paper, SF Weekly. — ed. Photos by Christopher VictorioNeil Young and Crazy Horse at the Outside Lands festival.While he’s putting everything into a solo, Neil Young’s face looks like his electric guitar sounds:…
Falling Skies: “Looks Can Be Deceiving.”
Well, what a relief. The 2nd Massachusetts, after long months fighting aliens (and each other) and slogging through New England, has finally reached Charleston, site of the new United States provisional government. Things will be going smoothly from here on out, right? Right. Let’s not kid ourselves. As happy as…
Shannon Michelle Garcia: Wanted in Fatal Hit & Run That Killed Jeremy Choate (UPDATE w/Arrest)
Police are looking for a 25-year-old woman who they say hit and killed a motorcyclist Saturday and then took off without rendering aid. Shannon Michelle Garcia, 25, has been charged with accident involving injury or death in the incident, which left a 33-year-old man dead. His identity has been withheld…
We’ve got our Grimm Season One DVD Giveaway Winner, Breathless Coming Up
Congratulations to Isaac F., winner of a Grimm Season One DVD, starring David Giuntoli…
Houston Restaurant Weeks Dinner at Max’s Wine Dive
“Too good to be true” was my first thought when I heard that Max’s Wine Dive was one of the few Houston restaurants offering four courses rather than three for its Restaurant Weeks dinner menu. I assumed Max’s was favoring variety over serving quantity and that portion sizes would be…
Friday Night: Meek Mill at House of Blues
Meek Mill House of Blues August 10, 2012 The aesthetic behind Meek Mill and a large gathering is easy to define, even for someone who has only taken in one Meek song courtesy of the radio or being fed by Rick Ross — high-energy, an unmistakable high-pitched yelp that churns…
ArCH Film Festival: Featuring Architecture Getting It on with Urban Living
So far this year, nearly every cultural, political, social and professional group has seen its passions portrayed cinematically. The Aurora Picture Show Extremely Shorts Film Festival made much ado about movies in miniature. QFest sought to foster positive relations between the LGBT community and the community at large. And the…
Fear of Wine: Oenophobia = Xenophobia
In this week’s New York Times dining section, wine writer Eric Asimov — the Solomon of wine writing, as I like to call him — asks: “Should a Wine List Educate or Merely Flatter You? [and] How Adventurous Should a Wine List Be?” His op-ed came in response to a flurry…
Saturday: Identity Festival at The Woodlands
ID Fest: The Crowd (daytime) ID Fest: The Crowd (nighttime) Identity Festival feat. Eric Prydz, Nero, Porter Robinson, Le Castle Vania, Eva Simons & Adrian Lux Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion August 11, 2012 With dance music’s increasing popularity stateside it comes as no surprise that someone would get a bunch…
The Astrodome Will Live Another Year, If You Call What It’s Doing Living
So another year’s going to pass with nothing being done about the Astrodome. Another year where the citizens of Harris County will be paying three to four million dollars in maintenance fees for a place that’s being so poorly maintained that it’s not safe to enter and has just become…
Ernest Ray DeWalt, 53, Stabbed in Neck By Girlfriend, Bayou Body Count No. 129
Officials have yet to decide whether to file charges against a woman who they say stabbed her boyfriend during an argument over his drinking habits. Ernest Ray DeWalt, 53, came home to his place near downtown late Saturday night and met his girlfriend. The two began arguing, during the course…
Friday Night: Aesop Rock at Fitzgerald’s
Aesop Rock, Edison, Dark Time Sunshine Fitzgerald’s August 10, 2012 It was a characteristically hot August night in the H on Friday, but I’d wager that no place was hotter than the upstairs room at Fitzgerald’s. The club was crowded with sweating hip-hop heads anticipating hot rhymes, hot beats and…
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou: Brings Dead Rhythms to Life
The liner notes for Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou’s The Vodoun Effect claim that the Benin group is West Africa’s best-kept secret. We’ll go ahead and expand that secret to include the entire planet. Poly-Rythmo, based in Cotonou, Benin’s largest city, has been playing what most people would call African funk…
What’s Cooking This Week? Chilled Lobster Salad…Oh, and Chocolate Chip Pancakes, Too
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 ingredient’s I’ve bought (and I hate wasting food). Enter…
Texans 26, Panthers 13: Five Things We Learned
It takes looking at just one final box score to show the relative importance, or lack thereof, with early preseason scores. Patriots 7, Saints 6. So the Texans’ thorough road dismantling of a capable Carolina team may not signal much, particularly considering most first-teamers played less than a quarter. Any…
True Blood: John Lee Hooker and the Home-School Blues
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. We’re down to the last…
Mulder and Scully and 5 Other TV Couples We Wish Would Happen
In news about as shocking as a possible alien invasion, Internet gossip has recently surfaced claiming that actors David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, stars of the hit show The X-Files, may or may not be shacking up. Could this possibly be true? (We will find out because “the truth is…
Cellaring 101: The Basics of Storing Beer
The concepts of a beer cellar and aging beer are both very new even among many craft beer enthusiasts. As the craft industry continues to grow, sales surge and customer demand for a wider range of styles increases, so has the culture of storing, preserving and sharing aged beers. Beer…
Football Is Back! Texans Preseason Week One: 4 Winners, 4 Losers
At this point in the season, it’s more about effort than execution. We’re all rusty, even the media. Hell, Saturday night alone one local sports anchor mistook Keshawn Martin being the rookie wide receiver who was suspended last year instead of DeVier Posey (tweets deleted), the Houston Chronicle trolled for…
Top 7 LEGO Cuusoo Projects: Some Amazing Art
I’ve done a lot of interesting stuff on LEGO for the Art Attack readers, everything from the toy bricks’ contributions to science to the recent Brick Fiesta to Imagine Rigney’s monstrous reproduction of Rapture from BioShock. The more I meet people in the LEGO community, the more I realize that…
Does Dallas-Fort Worth Have the Worst Tippers in the State?
Last week, Eater alerted the great foodie masses to a Web site called Lousy Tippers that contains a pretty scary database of the nation’s worst tippers. “There is a consequence,” the site preaches ominously from its header. Call it the ultimate form of societal pressure to make sure you leave…
DJ Fail: When Co-Opting a Culture Goes Wrong
Christmas has come early this year for those us who love a good bit of bad advertising. It appears that in an effort to prove just how “with it” they are, Smirnoff has released the above ad in hopes of proving that their nightlife is the best nightlife. Other than,…
Tony Jay: Playlist for the Ultimate Voice-Over Villain
I tend to talk up voice actors here in the Houston Press blogs. Part of it is because I’m trying to justify entering my fourth decade on Earth and still being mesmerized by cartoons, but a lot of it is because I think that the discipline represents one of the…
Jeremy Choate, Houston Lighting Artist, Dies in Tragic Accident
Our sister blog Hair Balls has the official HPD report for the fatal accident. Houston lighting artist Jeremy Choate, 33, died Sunday afternoon after a hit-and-run accident Saturday evening at I-10 and Studemont, according to reports by KHOU and CultureMap. “The victim in this accident died this afternoon leaving behind…
UPDATE: Unidentified Male in His 30s, Bayou Body Count No. 128
A man was shot while walking on Martin Luther King Boulevard last night, and police have little to go on in solving the crime. The identity of the male, who is in his 30s, is being withheld pending notification of family members. Police say he was walking, possibly with a…
The Screwtape Letters: C.S. Lewis’s Fight Between Good and Evil
The setup: To paraphrase that famous commercial for Levy’s Jewish Rye Bread, you don’t have to be Christian to like this dramatization of C.S. Lewis’s ironic apologia to faith. Anyone can understand the battle between good and evil, and what it means to be a decent person, whatever one’s beliefs,…
This Week in Deliciousness: Frog Fornication Fest 2012
Welcome back to the weekly roundup here at Eating…Our Words, where frog mating season is in full swing, or so we presume from their constant, torturous croaking coming from just outside the window. We’re getting to be such an expert at searching them out in the dark that we just…
VIDEO: HPMA Winners Tell All In Our “Confessional”
The 2012 Houston Press Music Award Winners HPMA Ceremony Heavy With Winners, Light on Drama Slideshow: Pics from the 2012 Houston Press Music Award Ceremony You’re about to see some very wide eyes on some very surprised people. We stuck a camera and microphone in front of the winners backstage…
Kerry Brown, Larry James Solomon: Two Charged With Murder Of Claude Lamont Kibbie
Two suspects are in custody and face murder charges in the July 26 killing of Claude Lamont Kibbie, Houston police say. Kerry Brown, 21, and Larry James Solomon, 19, have been charged with shooting Kibbie, 33, to death on the northeast side of town. Police responded to a shooting call…
Dennis Brown: Charged Only Because He Told Cops He Was Photographing Girls for Sexual Purposes
A man was taking pictures near Tyler’s Rose Rudman Trail and at Robert E. Lee High School recently, and even though he was creeping out locals by mostly shooting young women, there wasn’t much cops could do about it. The locale was a public area, after all, so it wasn’t…
Aaron Parker: When People with Giant Heads Do Terrible Things
Lost in all the shock at finding an infant child among cockroaches in a fetid home in Liberty County earlier this week has been one seemingly inescapable observation: Aaron Parker, the father of the child, whose alleged negligence may be to blame for the child’s inadequate care, has, like, a…
It’s a Twofer: National Banana Split Day and National S’mores Day
Today we can all celebrate two of the most delicious classic desserts ever made: banana splits and S’mores. Rather than making separate desserts, I decided to combine the two together. Ree Drummond, also known as Pioneer Woman, made banana boats during a campfire cooking episode of her Food Network show,…
6 Cool & Cheap Weekenders: Gene’s Addiction, Free Radicals, MUHAMMADALI, Etc.
Adios to Mike Campion of Gene’s Addiction, who is leaving after Friday’s show to check out the glamorous Kiss cover scene in Vegas, where Gene’s performed in a contest in front of Kiss themselves earlier this year. Good luck to Mike, but first he’s got one more show with Gene’s…
The Official Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Wedding Present Gift Guide
Tabloids and quasi-sorta tabloid Gawker are buzzing today that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie could be getting married this weekend in France during a 50th wedding anniversary hoedown for Pitt’s folks. The pair has been living in sin for nearly a decade, since Pitt and Jolie started having sex while…
VIDEO: Cops Say This Woman Shoplifted $10K Worth of “Figurines” from a West U Store
It pays to scout out a place if you’re looking to steal from it, we suppose. While you may go willy-nilly into some fancy West U boutique and come out with a bunch of overpriced crap, a little research can result in a better haul. We’re supposing the woman pictured…
Museum of Dysfunction V: A Showcase of Sorts
The setup: Mildred’s Umbrella each year embraces the monumental task of wading through hundreds of manuscripts to find gems that sparkle. This year a panel of 13 experienced troupers reviewed more than 200 short plays for its fifth Museum of Dysfunction; the winners are presented in two separate productions. Group…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 35, Fried Chicken at Haven
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…
Reviews for the Easily Distracted: The Bourne Legacy
Title: The Bourne Legacy Remake? Prequel? Sequel? More like “simu-quel.” The events in Legacy occur parallel to those in The Bourne Ultimatum. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant to the Film: Two and a half crayons out of five Brief Plot Synopsis: Secret government agency decides to mothball black ops programs…
Last Night: Rod Stewart & Stevie Nicks at Toyota Center
Rod Stewart, Stevie Nicks Toyota Center August 9, 2012 I really wish that Rod Stewart is recording the past few years of tours he’s had under his belt, because he’s in essence setting the bar for how to grow old in rock and roll without looking like a granny doofus…
Attitude: The Week in Photos (sNSFW)
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…
Chef Chat, Part 2: Candace Chang of Dolce Delights Makes Cakes the Way She Likes Them
Dolce Delights 3201 Louisiana St Tel: 713-807-7575 http://mydolcedelights.com/ This is the second of a two-part chef chat series. Read Part 1, which ran in this same space yesterday. Two years ago, Candace Chang left the world of fashion merchandising to pursue a lifelong passion: baking. During Part 1 of our…
Seriously: Are the Beatles More Popular Than Jesus?
Saturday marks the 46th anniversary of one of the more surreal press conferences in the Beatles’ career. One the eve of the band’s ’66 American tour, John, Paul, George and Ringo met with a group of reporters who only wanted to ask one question: Where the Beatles really more popular…
New Music From Scarface, Nas, Trae, Kirko Bangz, Bun B, Slim Thug, Paul Wall, Z-Ro… In 2 Songs
Let’s not dance around this too much. Two songs came out Thursday that you need to hear. The first inexplicably comes via DJ Khaled, rap DJ/producer/screamer/barterer. His new album(!?) comes out this August, which respectable Houstonians will be strong-armed into purchasing because it includes guest features from it’s newest star,…
Health Department Roundup: The Texans Grille, Tony’s, Falafel Frenzy, Teotihuacan and More
Before we opened the report for the Houston Texans Grille (12848 Queensbury), we decided the inspection result would predict the team’s fate in the coming season. This method has literally never failed, or succeeded. If it turns out to be an ineffective predictor, though, we promise to name our first…
Spice Girls Are Closing Out the Olympics: Drinks in Hand, Let’s Listen In
Remember that other Fierce Five? The Spice Girls are reportedly returning to form this Sunday for the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics. They’ll deliver a one-two punch of performances as part of the “Symphony of British Music,” a theme I can only hope proves more compelling than that…
Man Burns to Death in Heights-Area Shed As Neighbors Try to Dial 911
A man living in a shed south of the Heights died in a fire this morning even as neighbors frantically dialed 911 after hearing his screams, Houston police say. The victim’s identity is being withheld pending an autopsy on the cause of death, HPD says. Neighbors say the man had…
Honest Tea Is Coming to Houston to Test the Honesty of “Houstonites”
Next Thursday, August 16, here in Houston, Maryland-based tea company Honest Tea will be conducting an honesty experiment to see how many of us Houstonians are dirty thieves and liars. Somewhere in the city — they won’t say where, of course — the company is setting up a kiosk full…
Upcoming Events: Ultimate Umami and an Incredibly Romantic Fundraiser
What happens when two of the city’s best chefs come together for one dinner? Ultimate Umami. That’s the name of the multi-course dinner that’s taking place on Sunday, August 26, when Chris Shepherd of Underbelly joins chef Manabu Horiuchi at Kata Robata. The duo’s dinner will explore and highlight each…
“I Ain’t Dead Yet”: Bands Honor Beloved Barbecue Man Adam Fisher
Anyone who has ever been to a show at the Continental Club is likely familiar with barbecue guru Adam Fisher. Fisher and wife Lena have been serving simple, scrumptious brisket and sausage sandwiches for $5 almost as long as the club has been there. They also serve outside The Big…
Hope Stone’s WRECK-WE-UMMM : A Refreshing Take on Life Set to Mozart’s Swan Song
Check out our 100 Creatives interview with WRECK-WE-UMMM dancer JoDee Engle. The setup: With a penchant for youthfulness and more than a flourish of yellow, Hope Stone Dance Company invites you to its playdate with premier talent from Houston’s dance, theater and music scenes in Lemonade Stand 2012: WRECK-WE-UMMM. The…
Reviews For The Easily Distracted: The Campaign
Title: The Campaign Wow, Sounds Like It’s “Ripped From The Headlines.” Yes, they released a movie about a political campaign the same year of a Presidential campaign. That’s like…releasing a football movie the same year there’s a Super Bowl. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To The Film: Three Commie dogs…
The Houston Press Announces the 1st Annual Houston Theater Awards
Think Houston has a great theater scene? So do we. In order to recognize Houston’s vibrant and ever expanding theater offerings, the Houston Press is initiating its first annual Houston Theater Awards recognizing the best local theater and opera offerings over the last year. Tell us about your suggestions at…
Happy Apple Week: Day Five — Apple & Cheddar Scones
It’s the end of Apple Week, bringing me to the last apple-based recipe: apple and cheddar scones. Smitten Kitchen is one of my favorite blogs to read, and I’ve had my eye on the apple and cheddar scones recipe for a while. I’ve never baked scones before, but have always…
5 Simple Ways to Tell Hate Bands From Non-Hate Bands
(UPDATED) Burn the Lies: CNN Calls Hatebreed a “White Power” Act CNN caused an uproar earlier this week when it ran a hastily-slapped-together story on racist hate bands in knee-jerk reaction to Sunday’s utterly reprehensible Sikh temple shooting in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. In the story, columnist Lonnie Nasatir lumped Cookie…
The New-Look Cougars Prep for a New Day in the Sun
It’s a new day for Houston Cougars football. A new coach and a new coaching staff. A new quarterback. New receivers. New helmets. New uniforms. New logo. They’re going to a new conference next season. They’ve got one year left in the old stadium. But all of the newness brings…
Week in Photos: Stars
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…
Gothic Council Starts Gothic Book Club
Your friendly neighborhood goth is going on a little vacation next week to a magical place where deadlines don’t exist, bands answer their emails promptly, and where hopefully I’ll stop having that dream where Clippy beats me with a comma. Yes, I know I’m the guy they pay to play…
Top 5 Kid Birthday Party Food Themes
As a kid, I loved planning my birthday parties. Each year had to be different from the last and it always revolved around a theme. Whether it was a Hawaiian luau at the pool, a popcorn movie night with the girls or a pony ride down the street (it was…
Bachelorette Is Not Bridesmaids Part 2
Just in time for back-to-school, the new comedy Bachelorette hits the silver screen on September 7. Okay, one thing has nothing to do with another. Last week the trailer for the new female ensemble flick, produced by the comedy team of Will Ferrell and Adam McKay (screenwriter for Anchorman: The…
13 Wacky Texas History Facts That Texas School Kids Need To Be Taught
This week Mother Jones uncovered a handful of spurious, less-than-scientific facts that Louisiana grade-schoolers will be learning while attending the state’s new voucher schools. Obviously, people aren’t happy. A new voucher program under the watch of Governor Bobby Jindal will allot money for students from lower-income communities to attend private…
100 Creatives 2012: JoDee Engle, Dancer
A member of the Hope Stone dance company, JoDee Engle hopes for three things when she’s onstage. “I hope, number one, that I don’t fall, ” she laughs. “And I hope that people see me as being honest onstage. I think that’s the biggest thing. I really strive to be…
The (Un)United States of Sandwiches: What Do You Call a Sub?
I grew up calling any sandwich on long French or Italian bread a sub, like any normal human being would. Or so I thought, until I realized my aunt called it a grinder…and my friend called it a hoagie. WTF. This is three people, from three states (New Jersey, Connecticut…
Happy Belated Birthday, Scott Stapp: 10 Gift Ideas for a Rock Icon
Well, we’ve done it again. Creed singer Scott Stapp’s birthday came and went this week (he’s 39), and we didn’t get him a thing. Didn’t even shout him out on Twitter. After the considerable musical gifts this man has given us over the years, that’s completely unacceptable. There’s only one…
He’s Back! Bobby Petrino’s Apology Infomercial On ESPN
“You feel you’ve been rehabilitated?” “Yes, sir. Absolutely. I’ve learned my lesson. I can honestly say I’m a changed man. I’m no longer a danger to society. That’s the God’s honest truth. No doubt about it.” — Ellis Redding in his parole board hearing in The Shawshank Redemption before receiving…
Tea Party and Conspiracy Theory ‘Sploitation TV Coming Soon
This past week, two new television series were announced with plot lines and characters dealing with right-wing and conspiracy-centric characters, proving that even though the mainstream may shun their ideas and political motivations, TV execs know that they can translate into great ratings. And maybe even the real-life people the…
Openings & Closings: Second and Third Locations Edition, Including The Burger Guys’ New Downtown Spot
The big news this week for burger fans: The Burger Guys announced plans a second location of the popular west-side restaurant downtown. Instead of a pop-up run this time, the Guys will have a full-time restaurant in the city’s central business district in the old Korma Sutra location at 706…
The Great Taj Mahal, Still Whistlin’ the Blues
It’s been a long time so it’s hard to remember exactly, but some time in the winter of 1970-71, Taj Mahal played the Houston Music Hall. Between 1968 and 1971, he had put out five albums and become a staple of the hippie music scene. Yet with his soulful reinterpretations,…
“Pontoon”: Most Insidious Song of the Summer, or the Best
I had a bit of medical trouble late last year, so I spent the entire first six or seven months of 2012 immersed in ’80s alternative rock. I suppose it was a sort of cocoon of some kind. I was in a rotten mood most of the time, so anything…
Double Cruelty: Two Cars Hit, Kill Pedestrian, Both Drive On & Offer No Help
Houston police are looking for not just one, but two vehicles involved in a deadly hit-and-run crash in the predawn hours today. HPD says a 41-year-old man, whose identity has not been released pending notification of family members, was trying to cross the 500 block of West Tidwell about 5:35…
Sgt. Curtis Hampton: No Charges for HPD Officer Who Shot and Killed an Unarmed Blake Pate on Christmas Day
Blake Pate, an unarmed man who was shot and killed on Christmas Day by a cop, is “a victim of the Houston Police Department,” says attorney David Hodges, who is representing the victim’s family. On December 25, 2011, Pate finished dinner at his family’s home and headed towards his brother’s…
Butt-Dialing “Hide the Gun in Them Woods” Makes an Investigator’s Job Easier
A wild and wooly rural chase over some road hunting ended with one of the simpler investigations the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department has likely had to conduct. According to info released by TPWD today, wardens received a call about possible road-hunting going on near Red River and Bowie counties…
100 Favorite Dishes 2012: No. 36, Half-Pound Burger at benjy’s in the Village
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…
David and Bridget Montgomery: Funneling Construction Profits to Church Doesn’t Mean You Don’t Pay Income Tax
A federal jury has convicted a husband-wife team of tax fraud in connection with a construction business they ran which funneled profits to their church. David and Bridget Montgomery argued that if the money went to the church, it shouldn’t be taxed as income, but prosecutors for the Department of…
Free for All: Jane Alexander, Raul Gonzalez, Asia Society, Lou Berney and Baby Jesus
Two art exhibits open on Friday, the much-anticipated “Jane Alexander: Surveys (from the Cape of Good Hope)” at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, and “Raul Gonzalez: Farewell Show” at the Jack Meier Gallery. In her work, Johannesburg-born Alexander creates sculptures, installations and photomontages. She often constructs intriguing hybrid human/animal figures…
The Winners of Our “Skrillex Hugging a Kitty” Photo Contest
Last week the kind folks at Rdio sent us four pairs of tickets to the wub-wubbing IDentity Festival set for this Saturday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Why? Because they love Rocks Off and we love you. Obviously Rocks Off didn’t need the eight tickets ourselves since we already…
Happy Apple Week: Day Four — Apple Cider Floats
Throughout Apple Week I have shown you how to make basic applesauce, bake mini apple cinnamon muffins and let the slow cooker do the work for you to make homemade apple butter. Now it’s time to make an easy, sweet and delicious drink with another form of apples, apple cider…
Dallas: “Life Is Cheap In Prison, Vicente. And I’m A Very Rich Man.”
There are some definite advantages to the abbreviated TV season you find on cable networks. Freed of the constraints found on the Big Four (sorry, CW), networks like AMC and TNT can cram their shows with more action and advance the plot while their free counterparts pack on the bloat…
5 Refreshingly Easy Popsicle Recipes, Including A Boozy Pop for Adults
When it’s hot and sticky outside, I want nothing more than a frozen treat to stop me from being a total biotch to everyone in my general vicinity keep me happy. Enter the popsicle: sweet, tangy and totally satisfying frozen ice on a stick. Fresh berry filled? Awesome. Rum filled?…
(UPDATED) Do Ya Think He’s Sexy?: Great Embarassingly Awesome Pics Of Rod Stewart (Semi-NSFW)
This is an update to a Rod Stewart birthday blog from the cold and blustery January of this year. Stewart hits town this evening with Stevie Nicks. Today Rod “The Mod” Stewart turns 67 years old, and by the looks of the way he still acts in public and live…
Bye, Bye Rick Perry: How Ted Cruz Became Texas’s Most-Important Republican — and He’s Not Even Elected!
Rick Perry, it’s so over. Sure, you’ve been fun. Hell, you’ve been great to us here at Hair Balls. Like that time you thought Solyndra, a solar company, was a country? Or when you applauded George W. Bush for all his work defending us from freedom? Oh, man. That was…
Prydz & Prejudice: Top 5 Remixes for Saturday’s IDentity Festival
Saturday the IDentify Fest returns to town to once again take EDM out of the dark of the club and into the light of day. Your humble blog writer missed last year’s show, so I’m curious to see how well glowsticks work during the daylight. While this year may not…
Houston’s 10 Best Specialty Cocktails for the Summer
With the cocktail movement booming in Houston, it seems as though you can hardly go to a bar or restaurant these days without encountering a list of cocktails. And on that list of cocktails, expect to find a list of the house specialty drinks — concoctions created by (or for)…
SLABs and Hip-Hop at the HMAAC: Voom, Voom, Voom
Last night, Art Attack swung by the Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) for the presentation of “Still Holdin’ SLAB: Cars, Music, and Community in Houston, Texas,” which was co-sponsored by the Houston Arts Alliance. I will be completely honest: I felt somewhat duped, at first. I completely skimmed…
The 10 Silliest Headlines In Rap News This Week
You are a human and you have eyeballs and you also have the Internet, so you’ve likely read some things. That’s sort of what this is, except sort of not too. We went through a ton of headlines of hip-hop “stories” from the past week, picked out the ten most…
Taiwanese Director Ya-Che Yang Discusses His New Film Girlfriend Boyfriend
Girlfriend Boyfriend stars Gwei Lun-Mei, Joseph Chang and Rhydian Vaughan; Ya-Che Yang writes and directs. The political landscape in Taiwan over the last few years inspired filmmaker Ya-Che Yang to make Girlfriend Boyfriend, the story of three friends who come of age during the country’s recent social revolution. The film…
10 Lobster Dishes to Try in Houston: No. 7, Lobster Mango Salad at Smith & Wollensky
No. 7: Lobster Mango Salad at Smith & Wollensky At Smith & Wollensky, lobster-loving patrons often gravitate toward the more traditional preparations of the crustaceans (stuffed, boiled, broiled, etc.). In so doing, they’ll no doubt enjoy their meal but nevertheless miss out on one of the restaurant’s more innovative shellfish…
HPMA Ceremony Heavy With Winners, Light on Drama
The 2012 Houston Press Music Award Winners The Houston Press Music Awards ceremony is a little like a family reunion where you go just to see what your crazy cousin from Temple might do: Will he pass out on the playground teeter-totter, throw some punches at your uncle, or be…
It’s Because I Love You Exhibit Explores The Things People Do In the Name of Love
“‘Tis said, that some have died for love…” – William Wordsworth Since the beginning of time, individuals have martyred themselves in the name of love: Antony and Cleopatra; Heloise and Abelard; who could forget Romeo and Juliet? The Blue Dozen Collective, a crew of street artists, graphic designers, painters, printmakers,…
Wine Lost and Found in Translation with Sean Beck
“The sommelier is there to ‘translate’ the wine” for the patron, says sommelier Sean Beck. Beck runs one of the city’s most respected wine programs at Backstreet Café. “You’re there to make the guests feel confident about their choice” of wine, he explains. In a city like petrochemical-based Houston, where…
Comment of the Day: Oh, These Astros Suck
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…
The Six Worst One-Game Uniforms You’ll See in the 2012 College Football Season
Look good, feel good, play good? Not in these cases. This list doesn’t include full-time offenders like Houston, who substituted a perfectly slick design for a blob. Instead, these universities — some with long traditions — will subject us to a fashion upchuck on select game days…
Video Game Atlas: Silent Hill
Once a week Art Attack will offer you a handy little travel guide to the fictional worlds of video games. Name: Silent Hill, Silent Hill Series Population: 30,000 Government: Democracy Located on the mist-shrouded shores of Toluca Lake in Maine, Silent Hill is in many ways a typical New England…
Switcharoo: 10 Artists Who Tried Other Genres
Have you ever bought an album of an artist you were familiar with and thought, “wow… that’s different?” In fact, many artists try out other genres than the one where they originally became popular as a way for them to grow as artists. But a big question remains: Will the…
Chef Chat, Part 1: Candace Chang of Dolce Delights On Learning Pastry in Hong Kong
Dolce Delights 3201 Louisiana Tel: 713-807-7575 http://mydolcedelights.com/ This is the first of a two-part chef chat series. Part 2 will run in this same space on Friday. When you drive by Dolce Delights in The Mix Midtown complex, the storefront belies what awaits you inside. With soaring high ceilings, a…
Doctor’s Dilemma: Medically Proving That Watching Pig Pornography Is Stressful
Seems as though the only thing Jerry Wilson didn’t do was make his employees watch Two Girls, One Cup. But everything else, apparently, no matter how disgusting or creepy or totally, totally against the law, was just fine. (Allegedly.) According to a lawsuit filed in Harris County in 2010: Jerry…
Pig’s Blood, Vegetables and the Perfect Family Meal at Oxheart
Dining out with children is an exercise in situational awareness. Each experience is unique, with different variables leading to different possible outcomes, DEFCON-like in their escalating threat levels. Keen observation, forward planning and prior experience are critical in determining the proper strategy. Here at DEFCON Dining, we do the grunt…
Mike Tyson On Stage As Mike Tyson and 5 Other Life Stories That Would Make Better Theater
Would you spend two hours of your life watching Mike Tyson regale you with stories of his bad relationships, ear-bitings and recent comeback? Would do it if he was live on a stage in front of you? If you answer triumphantly, “Hell yeah,” than get yourself a flight to New…
The Nut Shot: Olympic Basketball’s New Proportional Response
Policing your own. It’s a concept that has been woven into the fabric of many sports since time immemorial. The methods are often painful, sometimes barbaric, but within each game they’re understood and largely effective. In baseball, violation of the hallowed “unwritten rules” will often earn a player (or a…
Assembling the Ultimate Video-Game Band
Being resident Houston Press video-game reviewer is an awesome gig. I mean, getting paid to play video games? What’s not to love? But I still think of myself as a music journalist, and today I thought I’d combine the two. What if we could build a supergroup out of some…
George Lopez: America’s Buddhist?
The last three years have been eventful for comedian George Lopez. He divorced his wife of 17 years amid rumors of his infidelity. (Ann Lopez saved her husband’s life in 2005 when she donated one of her kidneys to him after his failed due to a degenerative disease.) He signed…
How Do You Judge a Wine Bar? A Coffee Shop? A Tex-Mex Restaurant?
That’s the question — or, rather, series of questions — that arose at a recent dinner. My friends and I had chosen a new-ish Tex-Mex restaurant that night and the chips and salsa that arrived first were appallingly bad. So bad, in fact, that we were left dreading the rest…
No Fences: Garth Brooks & the Fuzzy Math of 10 Mega-Concerts
Fifteen years ago this week, the greatest country music artist of all time, Garth Brooks, made history by playing a free concert to a massive crowd in New York’s Central Park. Now, not just anybody gets to play Central Park, but Brooks had the megawatt stroke in the entertainment biz…
2012 Houston Press Music Award Winners
Like everything else about this city, the size of the Houston music scene can sneak up on you. It always seems so far-flung and diffuse most of the year, because our performers and venues are spread out across some 700 square miles. But then Music Awards time rolls around and…
Julie Delpy Rocks New York
“My son is sick right now, covered in zits. It’s not contagious — I mean, it’s contagious, but don’t worry: Grown-ups don’t catch it. It’s called mouth-foot-and-butt disease or something.” Julie Delpy materializes on the patio of Hollywood’s Chateau Marmont on a wave of nervous energy. Hair pinned up away…
The Old, Good Total Recall
Just because it made loads of money, stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, and features a three-titted mutant doesn’t mean Total Recall isn’t ruggedly individualistic art. Just look at its outsider pedigree: Total Recall was loosely based on a 1966 short story from the flushed mind of Philip K. Dick, produced by the…
Whitney Houston, Actress
In anticipation of the remake of the 1976 girl-group melodrama I (which didn’t screen in time for our deadline) — Whitney Houston’s posthumous film appearance and her return to movies after a 15-year absence — we look back at the handful of celluloid performances by the woman once known as…
Killer Joe And What’s Wrong With Hollywood
“I’ll just tell you straight out, Killer Joe is the most disturbing film I’ve ever made,” William Friedkin admits. This is really something, coming from a filmmaker who has spent much of an eclectic career testing audience limits. The Exorcist riled Catholics and had theaters stocking barf bags in 1973;…
Compliance
Like antidepressants, artificial sugars, Botox, and other miracle inventions of the past century, corporate culture became an omnipresent fact of life before anyone could know how it would affect the human body and brain on an extended timeline. One way to look at writer/director Craig Zobel’s second feature, Compliance —…
The 2012 Houston Press Music Award Winners
As announced from the stage at Warehouse Live earlier Wednesday evening, here are the 2012 Houston Press Music Award winners. Congratulations to all. BEST LP/CD/EP Free Radicals, The Freedom Fence BEST MIXTAPE One Hunnidt, #keepit100…
Quite a Show at Sushi Tora
You have to know that Sushi Tora doesn’t take itself too seriously from the second you see a black T-shirt for sale in the front window emblazoned with Engrish words in a bright-blue font: “You had me at herro.” Your second indication should be the framed concert posters that line…
Special Best Of Edition
Dear Mexican: So often when we see Mexican bands perform in the U.S. and Mexico, the crowd at some point starts chanting “¡Cu-le-ro!” (“Ass-hole!”). Why does the crowd yell “Cu-le-ro” at a band that they seemingly adore and paid a lot of money to see perform? Even fellow Latinos are…
Aesop Rock at the Finish Line
It’s been five years since Aesop Rock has released a new album. Pretty soon, he’s going to need a vacation. That’s because despite the long gap between solo records, San Francisco’s indie-rap icon never really stopped working. Since recording 2007’s None Shall Pass, Aesop Rock has toured the world, produced…
Celebrating the Bard
HAMLET For the Houston Shakespeare Festival, director Steve Pickering sets the world’s most famous play in Edwardian Denmark, using WWI as background. It fits the mood, as warlike Fortinbras prowls through Europe, eyeing Hamlet’s troubled royal house. It also allows costumer Clair Hummel to overlay a lively period look —…
The Bourne Legacy
The Bourne films have more than just overstayed their welcome and outlasted the Ludlum books — they’ve been Van Halenized, with an abrupt change of front man and a resulting dip in personality. The only big-ass popcorn franchise of the past decade to have not been spawned on computers, the…
Killer Joe
At one point in Killer Joe, a hideously funny tabloid noir set on the outskirts of Dallas County, Chris Smith (Emile Hirsch) is let into the family double-wide by a relation whose face has just been pummeled into a Rorschach blot of dried gore. He doesn’t stop to ask what…
Rod Stewart, Stevie Nicks
Now free from the shackles of his multi-volume Great American Songbook albatross, Rod “The Mod” Stewart tours with a set list full of his own biggest hits plus a few choice covers. He’s taking his swing at Tom Waits’s “Downtown Train” on this jaunt, if that perks your interest; of…
IRS Pain for Brown Aide
Highlights from Hair Balls POLITICAL ANIMALS IRS Pain for Brown Aide More troubles for Park. By Terrence McCoy City Council Member Helena Brown’s volunteer “senior adviser,” William Park, who was barred from the investment industry last year and has come under criticism for his apparent influence over the councilwoman, owes…
Meek Mill
Signing with Rick Ross’s Maybach Music Group is like taking a blood oath with a mob family. There’s unlimited earning potential, plus you’ll be protected as long as you hustle hard and stay loyal. Meek Mill became a made guy last year, signing the MMG contract inside one of Ross’s…
Capsule Art Reviews: “A Golden Time of Day,” “Interstitial Spaces: Julia Barello & Beverly Penn,” “New Prints: Gallery Artists,” “Perry House: Elegance/Violence,” “Six Apart,” “UNIT,” “Woven Landscapes”
“A Golden Time of Day” There is a great little photograph of Sammy Davis Jr. up at McClain Gallery now. It’s pop perfection — the musician is decked out in a red vest and shoes, his arms out to his sides and his left foot kicked up in a freeze-frame…
Billy Joe Shaver
Billy Joe Shaver has a tab on his Web site called “Owed to Billy Joe,” a list of maybe 200 of his songs that have been recorded by other artists. It could well be a way for the wily old five-and-dimer to make sure that his publishing is in order…
Keep Cool and Caffeinated
TOP 10 August is nearly here, and the summer ain’t getting any cooler. But at least your coffee can. I’m not the type of person who can make it through a morning without getting caffeinated, but it requires a special kind of fortitude to grimly chug a few cups of…
Wolfgang Gartner
Skrillex ain’t the only one getting rich and famous off EDM’s recent resurgence and 2011 crossover into the mainstream. Witness the rise of Wolfgang Gartner, whose pulse-pounding electro-house joints have been invading both pop culture and the consciousness of clubgoers over the past year. Not only did the Grammy-nominated DJ…
Capsule Stage Reviews: KOOZA, Life Could Be a Dream, The Lion King, Steel Magnolias, The Wrong Side of the Law
KOOZA In KOOZA’s loose narrative, a shy, foppish character known as The Innocent discovers a world of magic, acrobatics and illusion. He’s not only awed by the fantastic, but also finds a sense of self and purpose. If that story doesn’t sound compelling, that’s because it’s really not. There has…
Matisyahu
Matisyahu’s latest album, Spark Seeker, practically screams “fresh start.” There’s no more full beard, and the man once christened “the Hasidic reggae superstar” recently relocated from the East Coast to L.A. “Let yesterday burn and throw it in the fire,” he sings on “Live Like a Warrior,” one of many…
The Campaign
The Campaign begins with an on-screen quote attributed to Ross Perot: “War has rules. Mud-wrestling has rules. Politics has no rules.” The Texas billionaire/private-campaign-financing pioneer dropped this truism not during his historic third-party run for the presidency in 1992 but in the midst of his far less successful 1996 campaign…
White Linen Fight
Jackie Harris has her machete out again, if only figuratively this time. Years ago, Harris brandished one literally. Tired of having patrons parking in or blocking her driveway, she strode with cold ferocity and with great blade in hand into the cantina next to her Sunset Heights bungalow and asked…
Crosby, Stills & Nash
Pared down to just David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash (Neil Young is now touring with Crazy Horse), a night with these three geriatric strummers whose list of influential cuts starts with 1969’s “Marrakesh Express” is a good way to knock a few legends off of your concert bucket…
