Hotel Vegas
cover illustration by Jason Stout, Photos by John Anderson
features
2011 GIFT GUIDE
Give 'Til It Helps, Part 2
Here's Part 2 of our list, now check it twice and give to do good!
BY KATE X MESSER
news
Unchartered Waters
City Hall and citizen advocates look toward a new model of representation – is the seventh time the charm?
BY WELLS DUNBAR
Point Austin: Cart Arrives ... Horse Expected Soon
School district's IDEA project bereft of actual ideas
BY MICHAEL KING
City Hall Hustle: The Wages of Faith
Perfect and good face off in US Farathane incentives debate
BY WELLS DUNBAR
Quote of the Week
Civics 101
May your blood-giving and tree-recycling be unrelated
Headlines
Morton Seeks Accountability
'Revenge is a natural instinct, but it's not what I'm asking for here'
BY JORDAN SMITH
AISD Approves Its Big IDEA, 6-3
Board ignores overwhelming opposition to charter proposal
BY RICHARD WHITTAKER
No Room at Austin's Animal Inn
Lack of space already dogging new animal center
BY JOSH ROSENBLATT
Help Your PALS
One final gift guide reco for the charity-minded
BY JORDAN SMITH
Glen Maxey's Perry Tale
Glen Maxey's book recounts Perry's alleged very private life
BY MICHAEL KING
Occupying Bee Cave
Planet K ain't going away
BY JORDAN SMITH
Feds Deny Women's Health Renewal
Language intended to exclude Planned Parenthood may jeopardize entire program
BY JORDAN SMITH
Texas Mexican Mafia Gets Its 'Just Deserts'
Sixteen members and associates face 300-plus years in jail
BY JORDAN SMITH
The Hightower Report
'Rick the Reformer's revolving door
BY JIM HIGHTOWER
food
This Old House
Sam Houston and the historic jigsaw puzzle of Boggy Creek Farm
BY VIRGINIA B. WOOD
Holiday Dining Guide
Food-o-File
Jettison your DiGiorno: Bola Pizza comes to your freezer
BY VIRGINIA B. WOOD
Food Reviews
Violet Crown Cinema
Move over, Jujubes
2011 GIFT GUIDE
Mrs. Santa's Last-Minute Foodie Stocking Stuffers
What to get for the foodie who noms everything?
BY VIRGINIA B. WOOD
music
One, Two, Tres, Cuatro
Carson Brock's grandmother is looking out for him, and other tales from the 'bless their heart' file
BY MARGARET MOSER
2011 GIFT GUIDE
Collector's Disease
Now they're just reproducing vintage record art at a fraction of the size on CD, throwing an entire discography worth of albums into a small box with no bonuses, and calling it a box set. Foul!
BY RAOUL HERNANDEZ
Texas Platters
Blaze Foley
Clay Pigeons
Dixie Witch
Let It Roll
The Moonhangers
The Moonhangers
Shawn Nelson
San Juan Street
Wild Child
Pillow Talk
Sleep ∞ Over, Sleep Over
Forever
The Asteroid Shop
The Asteroid Shop
The Clouds Are Ghosts
Harbinger
The Ghost Wolves
In Ya Neck
Ghost Knife
Kill Shelter, Yes!
We'll Go Machete
Strong Drunk Hands
screens
Full-Gore Press
Mind the viscera: Austin's horror filmmaking scene is exploding
BY MARC SAVLOV
A Galaxy Not So Far Away
Austin's BioWare unleashes Star Wars: The Old Republic
BY RICHARD WHITTAKER
Screens Reviews
Film Reviews
The Adventures of Tintin
Steven Spielberg brings Hergé's comic books to animated life.
The Artist
It's a silent, black-and-white film for the 21st century, full of coy delights.
A Dangerous Method
David Cronenberg forgoes his customary viscera for the more unknowable id as Drs. Jung and Freud hash out the origins of our unconscious impulses.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Rooney Mara completely nails the role of Lisbeth Salander, and director David Fincher is no slouch either in this perhaps unnecessary remake of the Swedish thriller.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Gary Oldman is John le Carré's unflappable spy, George Smiley, in this dandy espionage tale.
War Horse
A stylistic throwback to classic studio movies, Spielberg's film about war as seen through a horse's experience of it rarely rises to the occasion.
We Bought a Zoo
Matt Damon is a widower with two kids who buys a zoo after his wife bought the farm in Cameron Crowe's latest movie.
arts & culture
Down These Mean, Ink-Stained Streets
Chicago artist Tony Fitzpatrick brings his 'Nickel History' to Slugfest Gallery
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
All Over Creation: Hit Where You Live
A recital at a holiday soiree confirms there's no place like home for art
BY ROBERT FAIRES
Forklift Danceworks
Ballet for Bay
BY ROBERT FAIRES
Ballet Austin
Big Apple scores big with 'NAT/D' 4
BY ROBERT FAIRES
Arts Reviews
A Christmas Carol: The Musical
Though touching, this homespun production was inconsistent
Poste Restante
A cocktail of a performance about what it means to send a letter
columns
After a Fashion
Cuddle up with Stephen for some holiday cheer
BY STEPHEN MACMILLAN MOSER
Gay Place: Wholly Holy Holey
Mo' gifts fo 'mos
BY KATE X MESSER
Day Trips
Daingerfield State Park is a jewel hidden in the Piney Woods of Northeast Texas
BY GERALD E. MCLEOD
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
Buzzards and vultures, bras and panties, and more and more
BY MR. SMARTY PANTS
Luv Doc Recommends: Africa Night With Zoumountchi
Sahara Lounge, Saturday, December 24, 2011
BY THE LUV DOC
Feedback
Letters to the editor, published daily
sports
Soccer Watch
Angela Kelly named new head coach for Texas soccer, and more
BY NICK BARBARO
'The Hungry Todd Rungy Show'
Documentary TV series needs your help
