Cinema loves a good story about hired help. The Merchant/Ivory film The Remains of the Day remains the gold standard–in my opinion–but plenty of others have examined the treasure trove of material inherent in a good master and servant tale. My Man Godfrey, Gosford Park, Sunshine Cleaning and (shudder) Maid…
The best part of the Pink Ribbon Comedy Tour isn’t that the tagline is “Laughter is the Breast Medicine.” Although, every time I say that it totally cracks me up–got to love a good boob pun. No, I think that the coolest thing about the PRCT is that the comics…
The Public Trust couldn’t have chosen a more socially aware title than The New Deal: A Group Exhibition for the latest opening at the Deep Ellum gallery. But this isn’t a collection of Depression-era work. The exhibit is a nod to the gallery’s past and a glimpse of its future,…
It’s a punch line, it’s a theological argument, it’s about life and death and the cycles of both: What came first? Decorazon Gallery approaches the circle of life–both natural and inflicted–as well as rebirth, with a group photography exhibition, What Came First?, featuring Minmyo Kim, Alex Leme and Jane Fulton…
In my spice cabinet, or rather, in the tiny cupboard in my kitchen that’s crammed with glasses and bowls and spices tossed willy-nilly, there is one spice in particular that’s always running low. And that spice, my curious culinary friends, is curry powder. I’ll eat basically anything as long as…
We love The Jungle Book, but we’re not sure that it accurately reflects the life of the feral child. For one thing, we’re not sure that the animals were quite so anthropomorphic. We doubt they smiled and danced around so much. Now that we’re older, we’re ready for the grown-up…
How do you relieve anxiety? Drink wine? Smoke a joint and watch TV? Not the late Eugene Andolsek. Nearly every night for some 50 years, Andolsek created intricate geometric patterns on graph paper, using a compass to create arcs and circles and filling in spaces with colorful inks he mixed…
Originally, Deathtrap was the name for my work-in-progress script based on Springsteen’s “Born to Run” (“It’s a deathtrap/It’s a suicide rap/We gotta get out while we’re young/’Cause tramps like us/Baby, we were born to run!”). To give you an idea of where I’m headed, just imagine Top Gun with cars…
Bro, these runners are ignoring me when I scream, “Show your tits!” And what’s with the costumes? At least the contest judges are hot. Miss Dallas and that anchor chick are nice, but that Krystal Summers is smoking! I bet she–what do you mean, “Make that ‘he’?” Dude, I was…
Walt Whitman fans turning up for Leaves of Grass will be reassured to find, yes, a few bearded young men in this new photo exhibition, but they may be surprised to find that it’s about Afghanistan. Documentary photographer Jared Moossy helps connect the show’s title to his work by referencing…
Face it: Sophomore slumps aren’t just limited to burned-out college freshmen who booked it so hard their first year they have nothing left their second. Bands have sophomore slumps when they pour all their talent into their first album and are forced by their labels for a quick turnaround to…
Imagine watching history instead of reading it from a book. OK, so you do that when you turn on the History Channel. But what we’re proposing here is REALLY watching history, in the form of ancient Chinese dance routines. “It transported me back in time, in a sense of a…
From eyeballs to scribbles and a few unrecognizable objects, Glenn Downing’s drawings and sculptures are definitely a sight to see. The Texas native has traveled all over the world just to return to Texas and has brought his artwork to the gallery lovers of the metroplex. In his latest exhibition,…
If you believe Valentine’s Day is anything other than a capitalism-fueled holiday of cliche-ridden pap, you are probably going out to dinner at a somewhat overpriced dining establishment this weekend, then hopping in your mid-sized sedan to drive down to the multiplex to see the Garry Marshall film Valentine’s Day,…
During the climactic final scene of Romeo and Juliet, its impossible not to hope that maybe just this once Juliet will awaken before Romeo downs a dram of poison. But the apothecary isn’t joking when he warns, if you had the strength of twenty men, it would dispatch you straight…
You like dancing, he likes diesel–what’s a couple to do this Valentine’s Day? Well, get the best of both worlds and get on board Grapevine Vintage Railroad’s Sweetheart Express, which will leave the Cotton Belt Depot Sunday morning for an afternoon of dining and dancing. Throughout the day you also…
When the revolution comes and celebrities are lined up against the wall, most of them will be in big trouble. Steve Martin, however, will have nothing to worry about. With a few notable exceptions (Bringing Down the House, anyone?), Steve Martin has proven to be one of the most consistently…
He first came into our lives in the late ’80s with his debut album Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. He put out a few more albums before deciding it was time to stretch his acting wings with a small cameo in Terminator 2. Then he decided it was time to test…
The real-life plot of The Horse Boy goes a little something like this–after learning their young son Rowan is autistic and subsequently plunging themselves into the complicated, seemingly hopeless and expensive world of conventional therapies, Austin couple Rupert and Kristin Isaacson discover Rowan’s deep and powerful connection with horses. This…
Latchkey kids from the 1980s grew up with a very peculiar set of heroes and companions. I spent most of my after-school hours with a disparate group of Monkees, CHiPs officers, Partridges, Bradys and crinkly-nosed witches thanks to Nick at Nite’s and TBS’ endless reruns. While many of my peers…
Have you ever sat through a scary movie and thought that the lame parts took up 90 percent of the film, when all you really wanted was more gore and bloodshed? And that you really didn’t care if Susie’s boyfriend, Clyde, slept with Dolly when at least two of the…
Our last trip to Vegas was filled with the usual adult-Disneyland lights ‘n’ breasts ‘n’ booze, but also shiny new casino construction. Sadly, highway billboards indicate this awesome new space will be filled with the likes of Carrot Top and the winner of America’s Got Talent. Go to Vegas for…
