After A Fashion
Your Style Avatar's SX kicks off stylishly
By Stephen MacMillan Moser, Fri., March 19, 2010
TFHOF 2010 Unbelievably, the Texas Film Hall of Fame, with which I've worked closely since its inception, celebrated its 10th anniversary last Thursday with a quietly kickass ceremony. Okay, granted, it wasn't as rowdy or glittering as some of the past TFHOFs, but on the other hand, it was a heartfelt celebration that was easily as memorable as some of the others. Quentin Tarantino was the major headliner, receiving the Tom Mix Honorary Texan Award presented to him by Richard Linklater and Texas roller girl Punky Bruiser. Earlier in the evening, this very glamorous woman decked out in a beautiful beaded lace jacket walked by and I called to her, "All right, hold it right there, ma'am." She turned and walked back to me, and I said: "I know you're some celebrity. You're far too glamorous for me not to know who you are." She laughed in delightfully silver tones and said, "Well, I'm related to somebody famous." "And who would that be?" I asked her. "Well, I'm Rick Linklater's mother." My jaw dropped. As an longtime admirer and acquaintance of Rick's (he's a co-founder of the Austin Film Society, which produces TFHOF), I was enchanted to meet this lovely, elegant, and cultured woman. With such charm, finesse, and poise herself, it's easy to see how she produced such talent. Bruce McGill was honored for his work by Tim Matheson. "Who?" so many people asked. Trust me, Bruce is a dynamite actor probably best remembered for playing D-Day in the legendary Animal House. But more than three decades of acting has given him more credits to his name than many A-list actors. Don't take my word for it; look it up yourself. The absolutely fabulous Catherine O'Hara was there, accepting the Star of Texas award on behalf of the Austin-filmed movie Waiting for Guffman; former Monkee and video pioneer Michael Nesmith was awarded the Warren Skaaren Lifetime Achievement Award by celebrated artist Edward Ruscha; but my personal favorite? Actor/musician Lukas Haas. It may be hard to look as far back as the early Eighties and remember the sloe-eyed child in Testament and Witness, but with dozens and dozens of movies under his belt along with TV and music projects, we have watched him grow up every step of the way. Selecting clips for his tribute was an honor that ranks way up there with some of the best that we've honored in the past 10 years. Bravo to AFS and TFHOF for a decade of putting the spotlight on Texas-related movies, casts, and crews.
THE SUNNY SIDE These days, it's hard to be able to cover everything I want to (yeah, I know I act like I'm feeling fabulous, but there's still a great deal of fatigue involved), so I've enlisted the aid of my old friend and local designer and writer Sunny Haralson to help me by providing "After a Fashion" with some dispatches from her rounds at South by Southwest. Heeeere's Sunny:
SUNNY SEZ I kicked off this year's SXSW festivities at Jo's on South Congress. I waited in line for my iced turbo and fried pie behind a young man who had recently gotten a tattoo of a smiley face – on his neck. "It didn't hurt." he said. "That part is fleshy – like your taint." "It does hurt," I thought. "It's hurting the whole world." Beauty tip: Unless you already know that you won't be getting paroled, neck tattoos tell the world, "I will cut you" and "I am happy to earn $6 an hour for the rest of my life." Is the smiley face really that important? Consider drawing it on with a Bic pen. Elsewhere, people were already wearing their official badges around their necks at 9am. I imagined them sleeping with their VIP passes still on, caressing them with love as they shower. Overheard: "How am I going to get all these skinny jeans off the front bumper of my car?"
