Mary Roach is one of those rare nonfiction writers with a sense of humor. Among all the gloom and doom cluttering the nonfiction section these days, Mary Roach writes books about dead people that are uproarious. Roach’s Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers is a witty book about what…
Oh, to be a princess. After overindulging in raspberry tarts, Princess Lenore tells her father that the only thing that will make her feel better is having the moon. Our dad would just give us some Pepto and tell us it was our own damn fault, but then again we’re…
Did John Waters sell out? Or did our ever-more-metrosexual age merely render him irrelevant? Certainly long before Hairspray took up residence on the Great White Way in 2002, Waters had abdicated his throne as America’s elder statesman of underground smut in favor of a more lucrative career as a neutered…
In the observation room of the spacecraft Icarus II, passengers sit on a bench in front of a large, rectangular screen displaying a view of what lies ahead. They gaze at the spectacle as you might marvel at special effects on some ostentatious plasma monitor. A seething orb of gas…
I wanted to hate I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, truly I did. Two straight guys pretending to be gay (insert fiscal excuse here); been there, done that (insert all known variants on The Odd Couple here). Rampant homophobia hiding behind liberal pleas for tolerance—blech. And it’s true that…
From his humble beginnings as a stand-up comedian in the D.C. area, Tommy Davidson has risen to become a well-known actor, comedian, musician and singer. As an original cast member on Fox’s In Living Color, Davidson was known for his spot-on impressions of Sammy Davis Jr. and Michael Jackson. He…
Kathy Griffin has this story about taking her dogs to a resort in Palm Springs that kills. Really, it’s just so funny that it hurts to watch, and it’s even better because it’s something that could happen to any one of us. Sure, she’s famous for her often vicious send-ups…
Young Annie Sullivan, hired by the Kellers in 1886 to tame their wild, blind and deaf daughter Helen, was practically blind herself, raised in a poorhouse and stubborn as the mule in their barn. But stubborn gets the job done when you’re playing impossible odds and can hardly see the…
Take Neil Simon, throw him in a big gay musical stewpot with the greatest choreographer ever–Bob Fosse–and stir in that chick Paige Davis from TV’s Trading Spaces and what do you get? Well, besides a pretty strange-tasting stew, you get Sweet Charity, a really weird musical about a girl who…
Oh, Broadway—what other entertainment entity can combine the all-American drama of baseball, the cheesy thrill of overproduced song and dance numbers, and the creepy Satanic fantasy of Faust? You’ll find all of this in Damn Yankees, perhaps the quintessential Broadway musical, which kicks off a local run as the second…
You, dear readers, are good people, so we’re gonna give it to you straight: We have a big problem keeping our innermost fears in check. Like the time we saw a cockroach in our friend’s salad at a fancy restaurant (It was just a date. Whoops.). Or the time when…
Kung fu is cool. As long as you always say you’re defending yourself, you get to kick as many asses as you want. Plus, you get to speak out of sync with the voiceover and you get rewarded with accessories. Sunday at 10 a.m. see the 10th Annual 2007 International…
I hate being on this cinematic bandwagon where everything Pedro Almodóvar does is complete genius. But it’s fairly true. And if it’s not genius, then his stuff is still pretty damn good and interesting to watch. His recent Volver proved to the rest of the world that Penelope Cruz really…
Just in case you missed it, the Science Place is no more. Don’t worry, though, it hasn’t gone the way of the dinosaur—it really just merged with its neighbor (The Dallas Museum of Natural History) to form the awesomeness that is the Museum of Nature and Science. After a lot…
With this heat and humidity, what could be better than donning flannel pajamas? There’s nothing like warm fabric sticking to your sweaty skin, but, hey, you might not notice thanks to the potential of winning some fat cash. GayBINGO is going Annette Funicello-like with Pajama Party night. So bust out…
The first thing you’ll notice when you pull up the Weimaraner Rescue of North Texas Web site is a disclaimer that says that they can’t currently accept any more rescue dogs. Then there’s actually a list of dogs that they can’t rescue. If you’re an animal lover (or if you…
You live in a remarkable time. Not because humanity is exploring new media at the dawn of the digital age or forming more open, democratic societies that place more emphasis on social equality. No, you’re fortunate because of Harry Potter. You are in the midst of the debut of an…
Denton is home to one of the best music schools in America and is known for its critically acclaimed musical acts. It’s also a quirky place, so it’s no surprise that one of its most acclaimed and longest-enduring legacies performs polka fusion music. Brave Combo has oom-pah’d folks into a…
Wasn’t wireless technology supposed to make it easier to organize information? Since we must move forward, not back, Hawk Electronics is offering a class on how to optimize your electronic information by converting files for all your portable devices. Plus, you can try out some of their new stuff—which is…
The best country singers always come from tiny, one-horse towns, whether it’s Mount Olive, Alabama (Hank Williams), Kingsland, Arkansas (Johnny Cash), Ferriday, Louisiana (Jerry Lee Lewis), or Abbott, Texas (Willie Nelson). If you haven’t already, add Tokio, Texas, resident James Hand to that illustrious list. After releasing his first nationally…
A baby waves his hands giddily, impossibly balanced on telephone lines next to an enormous black bird. Girls standing on a branch call out their show-off friend walking upside-down below. Dallas artist Jayme Nourallah’s paintings and collages set children or childlike figures in surreal, often precarious settings. Her artwork—put on…
Broadly, a griot can be defined, according to Merriam-Webster, as a storyteller. But a griot offers not only a story, but also a cultural education, historical references and African tribal spirit in his stories. Artist Ariston Jacks refers to himself as a “visual griot” as he aims to juxtapose all…
