Postscripts
The University of Texas Press’ 21st annual Warehouse Book Sale takes place on Friday, April 25, 10am-6pm and Saturday, 9am-2pm. UT Press publishes books on just about any subject one can imagine, and they’re offering deals on slightly damaged books for as much as 90% off. UT Press is located at 2100 Comal — just…
Dancing About Architecture
With its history of openings and closings, La Zona Rosa has long been thought of as perfect for yet another reinvention. Among the players whose names had come up in connection with such a scheme were Tim O’Connor’s Direct Events, the House of Blues club chain, and Liberty Lunch co-owner Mark Pratz. Pratz especially had…
Motal De-Clawed
Becky Motal photograph by Alan Pogue Becky Motal has a serious image problem. People may think Ronney Reynolds is a tool for developers, Max Nofziger is a flake, and Eric Mitchell is rude, but at least the candidates have their records to point to for justification. Motal has never had the chance to cast a…
The Substance of Fire
The Substance of Fire 1997, R, 102 min. Directed by Daniel Sullivan, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Ron Rifkin, Timothy Hutton, Sarah Jessica Parker, Tony Goldwyn, Roger Rees. Uncompromising. Not a word one hears that often nowadays, except in reference to multinational corporations and superstar celebrities. Those with much can afford to be…
About AIDS
Understanding Viral Load Since last summer, talk of “T-cell counts” has given way to conversations, questions, and some confusion about viral load. So what is viral load and what does it matter for people living with HIV and for their health care teams? Viral load is a measurement of HIV particles (viruses) in blood and…
One More Image
Robert Earl Keen has never had a problem with images, but what happened one rainy Nashville evening 10 years ago went way beyond symbolic. He had endured just about every indignity a young songwriter could possibly expect. He was broke, exhausted, covered in mud, and about to shake the hand of one of country music’s…
Worlds Apart
Place 2 candidate Joe Gonzales. Not pictured: Laurin Currie The two lower-profile candidates in Place 2 are both community activists, but there the similarity ends — one, a first-time contender, has come out running hard, perhaps too hard, while the other, a fixture by now on Austin ballots, is, as usual, barely running at all.…
Hearth & Soul
Cutting A Rug Dear Suzy, I too am infected with the Turkish Rug virus. I was fortunate to be able to tour Turkey in January ’94 and bought several rugs from different areas. I have a small Pergama that needs some repair work and your article caught my eye. The web address is faded on…
The Angel & the Aggie
photograph by Scott Newton Five songs: “Undone,” “Over the Waterfall,” “I Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight,” “The Coming Home of the Son and Brother,” and “Then Came Lo Mein.” A whopping five songs, the last of which is a full-on duet, to which the delicious Margo Timmins of Cowboy Junkies fame lends her delicate…
Place 2 Endorsements
GUS GARCIA Austin American-Statesman Austin Assocation of Professional Firefighters Austin Lesbian/Gay Political Caucus Austin Progressive Coalition (Central Austin Democrats and University Democrats) AFL-CIO Austin Women’s Political Caucus Central Austin Progressive Democrats Central Labor Council Clean Water Action La Prensa SANE (Save Austin’s Neighborhoods and Environment) Sierra Club South Austin Democrats South Austin Tejano Democrats S.O.S.…
Benefits
An Exhibition & Sale of Textiles will be held through Sat, April 26 to benefit Chiapas Women’s Weavers Cooperatives, at Hill Country Weavers, 1701 S. Congress, 7-9pm (Fri); 10am-6pm (Sat). 454-8097. Sat 26 A Fundraising Auction to benefit the Victory Christian Center, at the Victory Christian Center, 7625 N. I-35, 9am (preview); 10am (auction). 458-9100.…
Recommended
Friday: Ingrid Karklins & Backbone, Laguna Gloria; Bobby Shew, UT Jazz Orchestra, Paramount Theatre; Maceo Parker, Antone’s Saturday: Little Feat, Backyard Sunday: Bob Marley Festival, Auditorium Shores Monday: Don Walser, Babe’s Tuesday: The Damnations, Damon Bramblett, Cactus Cafe; Phil Prichett, Pete’s Peanut Bar Wednesday: Tenderloin, Stubb’s Thursday: Roger Manning, Hole in the Wall; Hobble, Tallboy,…
Place 2 Contribution & Expenditure Reports
Gus Garcia Total contributions: $56,787 Total expenditures: $40,381 Figures from January 1 – March 24 Total contributions: $31,712 Total expenditures: $27,471.64 Contributions from law firm PACs: Vinson and Elkins Texas PAC, $250; Hilgers and Watkins PAC, $250; Calame Linebarger Graham and Pena PAC, $500; Strasburger and Price PAC, $500; Wiseman, Durst, Tuddenham and Owen PAC,…
Coach’s Corner
The NBA has suffered a tedious year. The scoring outage, or, if you prefer, tighter defense — brought into vogue in the late Eighties by the Pistons, refined by Phil Jackson and Pat Riley — has spread throughout the league. The difference? Detroit, Chicago and New York were all excellent teams, perfectly capable of blitzing…
Record Reviews
PAT BOONE In A Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy (Hip-O) The idea that the bombast of heavy metal is ideal for transfer to the big band format isn’t half bad. Hell, it’s not even a new idea: Joe Piscopo’s Sinatra-sings-rock bit included a snippet of “Smoke on the Water,” while “Stairway to Heaven”…
Outing Ellen
Langley, one of the three conspiracy theorists known as “The Lone Gunmen” on The X-Files Oh Lordy, the South’s gonna do it again:Thank your lucky stars you don’t live in that bastion of social morality — Birmingham, Alabama. That’s where the local ABC affiliate plans to air one 30-minute show about weather and another half-hour…
Day Trips
Wild Willie’s II Mountain in Canton created a village that springs to life two weekends a month that is part theme park and part market that the whole family can enjoy. As you wander the streets of the village you can visit the more than 70 shops, dine at one of 17 eateries, watch a…
Roadkill
Frank Erwin CenterWednesday, April 30 There’s an old music business adage that selling a million albums is the easy part and subsequent sales of two or three million is the battle. “Where we are, 10 or 15 [million], is another whole trip altogether,” says Metallica bassist Jason Newsted. “Once you’re on the top of the…
Ticket to Ride
I remember hearing some expert claim that 97% of all families are “dysfunctional” and it made me think of two things: 1) The word “dysfunctional” is meaningless, since it apparently pertains to almost every living human (and probably should be expelled from the English language) and… 2) Who are the freaks that make up that…
Page Two
Spring is here. The awkward rebirth is well along its way, everything is turning green, traffic is everywhere, the city keeps growing, summer will be upon us all too soon. This issue we offer more election coverage. This is an important election, as all elections are, but there are few points in history where you…
Road Shows
APRIL FRI 25 Maceo Parker, Antone’s FRI 25 Derrick Edmondson, Elephant Room FRI 25 Majek Fashek & the Prisoners of Conscience Band, Flamingo Cantina FRI 25 24-7 Spyz, Liberty Lunch FRI 25 Randy Beckett & Rebel Train, Ritz Lounge FRI 25 Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Nil Lara, Backyard FRI 25 Bobby Shew, Paramount…
Scanlines
Starring David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, with introduction by creator Chris Carter I never managed to jump on the X-Files bandwagon. By the time I noticed it was on, the series was full of in-jokes and sly references that I just didn’t understand. Tired of all of my Files-watching friends haranguing me about the excellence…
Public Notice
Break out the spangles, Babs. Let bad taste be your guide at Viva Las Vegas, the annual funder for AIDS Services of Austin, happening Saturday, April 26, 8pm-midnight, at the Austin Music Hall, 208 Nueces. Besides DYI fashion action, look for faux gambling, live and silent auctions, the “Love Me Tender” Wedding Chapel presided over…
AISD Notebook
The AISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved an interim plan on Tuesday to relieve overcrowding at a dozen schools sometime in May. The plan calls for an expenditure of $1.2 million, to be paid for with interest earnings on bond sales, to build or move 66 portable buildings — with the notable exception of Bowie…
Robert Earl Keen
Picnic (Arista Austin) For years now, folks ’round these parts have said that Robert Earl Keen was destined to follow in the footsteps of his old college buddy, Lyle Lovett. Welcome to Picnic, with its million-dollar single, “Over the Waterfall.” Check out the million-dollar follow-ups, too, like James McMurtry’s “Levelland,” and Dave Alvin’s “Fourth of…
Mister Smarty Pants Knows
The wolf featured for years on Wolf Brand chili products is named Kaiser Bill. The expression, “ashes to ashes, dust to dust” is based on Biblical texts such as “dust thou art and unto dust thou shalt return” (Genesis 3:19) and “I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all…
Where’s the Fire?
Reported by the Politics Staff and edited by Audrey Duff Boondoggle alert! Would you vote to fund the following bond proposition? “The issuance of $38,000,000 of tax supported general obligation bonds for purchasing, acquiring, and installing emergency service equipment.” With early voting for the May 3 city election in full swing, many already have. After…
Angel Dust
Angel Dust 1994, NR, 116 min. Directed by Sogo Ishii, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Kaho Minami, Takeshi Wakamatsu, Etsushi Toyokawa, Ryoko Takizawa. A bizarre, stylized trip into the mind of a serial killer and the psychic investigator desperate to find him, Angel Dust is that rare avis, a cat-and-mouse thriller that lives…
Short Cuts
Monday, April 28 is the fourth Monday of the month, so that means it’s time for the regular Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers (AIVF) meeting. The topic for this month’s gathering, which is open to the public, is “Small Gauge: Super-8 and 16mm.” The speakers include such knowledgeable sorts as Bill Daniel (filmmaker, photographer,…
Allen Ginsberg in Hell’s Kitchen
illustration by A.J. Garces I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked….” The opening of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl is probably the only line of contemporary poetry everyone at a reasonably well-read party could quote. This doesn’t make it good (though it is); but it does mean that someone passed…
Austin City Council Election Endorsements
The dreaded double endorsement. Spelman, who served on the city’s water/wastewater commission, is recognized as a strong environmentalist; however, the UT associate prof also possesses a refreshing breadth of knowledge in matters pertaining to public safety, transportation, and urban planning — three areas that are of utmost concern to our community. We applaud Bobbie Enriquez…
Walkabout
Roeg’s second film has become something of a cult classic. The story centers on two British children stranded in the Australian desert who are led back to civilization by an Aboriginal male. The fascination of the movie comes from the cultural collision that also carries a sexually charged undercurrent.
Extremely Defensive Driving
illustration by Jason Stout I can’t even remember what we were celebrating now. Maybe it was the fact I’d convinced the phone company, for the 40th consecutive month, not to cut off my service. Maybe it was the addition of a new piece of used furniture. Hell, I don’t know, maybe it was just lunch…
Neighborhood Italian
Brick Oven at Blue Willow 1608 West 35th Street, 453-4330 Mon-Thu, 11am-9pm; Fri & Sat `til 11pm; Closed Sun. The Brick Oven photograph by John Anderson Shopworn clich�s about the three most important factors in real estate (location, location, and location) hold doubly true in the restaurant business. An incredible yet poorly placed eatery can…
Moneybags Moffett
illustration by Doug Potter There’s a familiar face in the April 21 issue of Business Week magazine. Number 10 on the list of the most highly paid CEOs in America, and number one in the hearts and minds of untold multitudes: James R. (Jim Bob) Moffett. The CEO of New Orleans-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold…
Boot: The Director’s Cut, Das
Boot: The Director’s Cut, Das 1997, R, 210 min. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Jurgen Prochnow, Herbert Gronemeyer, Klaus Wennemann, Hubertus Bengsch, Martin Semmelrogge, Bernd Tauber, Erwin Leder, Martin May. A revitalized, remastered version of Petersen’s classic 1981 saga of the men of WWII German U-Boat 96, Das Boot…
Articulations
Austin’s second largest ballet company suffered an unexpected blow last week when Greg Easley resigned as artistic director of Austin Contemporary Ballet. Though the move came suddenly, it reflected Easley’s growing frustration with the company’s funding, cutbacks, and actions by certain board members. Easley led ACB for four years; he was only its second director,…
Food-O-File
The Czech Republic is not the first country many people would think of when queried about ethnic influences on Texas cooking. However, from church picnics to family reunions, weddings to kolache-baking contests, Czech foods found at these gatherings comprise one of Texas’ richest ethnic cuisines. Food lovers can explore Maticka Kultura: The Foodways of Czech…
Men Who Would be Mayor
illustration by Doug Potter It’s a weeknight in March and Ronney Reynolds, Max Nofziger, and Kirk Watson are sitting before a neighborly audience from the Lakewood Homeowners’ Association in Northwest Austin. They are fielding questions that touch the heart of the issue at hand as voters prepare to send another candidate into the leather and…
Love and Other Catastrophes
Love and Other Catastrophes 1996, R, 92 min. Directed by Emma-Kate Croghan, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Frances O’Connor, Matt Day, Alice Garner, Matthew Kyktynski, Radha Mitchell. This is a warm April day of a movie, perfectly suited for a season that finds most of us in a dreamy, erotically suggestible state in…
Exhibitionism
Stephen L. Clark Photography Gallery through May 3 New York City by Elliot Erwitt Will you gain new insight into photography or dogs at Stephen L. Clark Photography Gallery’s exhibition “The Dog Show” ? I don’ t know, but it’s great fun. A yappy little beast dominates Elliott Erwitt’s photograph New York City. It stands…
Formosa Restaurant
Tarrytown Center, 2414 Exposition Blvd. D-108, 322-0344 Mon-Thu lunch, 11:30am-3pm, dinner 4:40-9pm; Fri & Sat. dinner until 9:30pm; Closed Sun. Formosa photograph by John Anderson For more than five years now, Formosa Restaurant, named for Chef Robert Chang’s native island of Taiwan, has been dishing out dressed-up Chinese food for Tarrytown patrons. The small location…
Mayor’s Race Contribution & Expenditure Reports
Ronney Reynolds Total Contributions: $275,298 Total Expenditures: $117,465 Figures from January 1 — March 24: Total Contributions: $124,104 Total Expenditures: $95,898 Contributions from PACs: Turner, Collie & Braden PAC, $3,000; BM & OH – Electo PAC, $2,500; Strasburger & Price PAC, $2,000; Texas Government PAC, $1,500; Small, Craig, & Werkenthin PAC, $1,000; Southern Union Company…
Paradise Road
Paradise Road 1997, R, 125 min. Directed by Bruce Beresford, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Glenn Close, Frances Mcdormand, Pauline Collins, Julianna Margulies, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Ehle, Elizabeth Spriggs, Joanna Ter Steege. The story of the women interned in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps during World War II undoubtedly speaks as a 20th-century testament to…
Whatever Now
Heather Woodbury is standing on the brink, looking into the current which may whisk her away to a new level of recognition and appreciation. The New York performer and writer has been touring her one-woman show, The Heather Woodbury Report, for over a year. She has been lauded by critics and audiences on both coasts…
Phoenicia Bakery and Deli
2912 South Lamar, 447-4444 Mon-Fri, 9:30am-7pm; Sat 9:30am-6pm; closed Sun. At Phoenicia, there’s no place to sit and eat other than the astro-turfed front stoop, a shrewd move since it keeps people like me from hunkering down and feasting all day long. It’s actually a grocery store with edible treasures from around the world -…
Mayor’s Race Endorsements
Kirk Watson The Austin Chronicle Austin American-Statesman Austin Police Association Austin Professional Fire Fighters Association Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas Austin Women’s Political Caucus Save Our Springs Coalition PAC South Austin Tejano Democrats Save Austin’s Neighborhoods and Environment (SANE) Sierra Club Austin Lesbian/Gay Political Caucus American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (Austin)…
McHale’s Navy
McHale’s Navy 1997, PG, 109 min. Directed by Bryan Spicer, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Tom Arnold, Tim Curry, David Alan Grier, Dean Stockwell, Ernest Borgnine. The term “brain-dead” flies to one’s lips as a description for McHale’s Navy, but that’s letting the guilty parties off way too easy. True cretinism is morally…
Booze, Bad Guys, and Bamboozlement
illustration by Roy Tompkins The beauty of the detective genre is that you can do with it pretty much as you please. Raymond Chandler tossed the initial wrecking ball, and the experimentation continues in his wake. Sub-genres erupt out of sub-genres, all following a basic plotline as entrenched as the Himalayas. “Eco-noir,” tough-as-nails female detectives,…
Bonus Tracks
LESTER FLATT & EARL SCRUGGS The Essential Flatt & Scruggs: `Tis Sweet to be Remembered (Columbia/Legacy) LEFTY FRIZZELL Look What Thoughts Will Do (Columbia/Legacy) CHARLIE RICH Feel Like Goin’ Home: The Essential Charlie Rich (Columbia/Legacy) Country music’s foundations are in three places: the hills, the honky-tonks, and the church, but two CDs each of Flatt…
Naked City
Last call for early voting is Tuesday, April 29. Ongoing info on the city council campaigns can be found on the Chronicle’s Election Board, /election/, and the city’s webpage, http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/election… A delegation of folks from hither and yon is banding together to support Zapatista women in Chiapas in their efforts to create weavers’ cooperatives as…
Volcano
Volcano 1997, PG-13, 105 min. Directed by Mick Jackson, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Gaby Hoffman, Don Cheadle, Jacqueline Kim, Keith David, John Corbett. British transplant Mick Jackson, director of the celebrated BBC post-nuke saga Threads, returns to the disaster epic in this laughably ridiculous take on what…
In Person: Walker & Williams
I just got off the phone from a press teleconference with one of my heroes — Alice Walker, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple, and most recently Anything We Love Can Be Saved: A Writer’s Activism. Oh, the wonders of modern technology! As we press types huddled at our desks across the nation,…
Only Happy When It Rains
photograph by Shannon McIntyre “I’m so disappointed you didn’t show up!” Jean Caffeine’s gleefully chastising this writer for sleeping off the previous night’s excesses while she and her crackerjack new band (bassist Lars Goransson, guitarists Andrew Dyken and Dennis Ku, and drummer Rob Gaines) navigated the Electric Lounge stage. “The band is really smoking now,…
The Five Who Tried
Kirk Becker Ted Kircher John Johnson Ray Blanchette Jennifer Gale all photographs, except John Johnson, by Alan Pogue The only reason to call homeless person Kirk Becker a fringe candidate is because his jeans have fringe hanging from the knee-holes. His ideas, concerns, and thought processes are surprisingly normal, if you overlook the fact that…
The Daytrippers
The Daytrippers 1996, NR, 87 min. Directed by Greg Mottola, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Hope Davis, Pat Mcnamara, Anne Meara, Parker Posey, Liev Schreiber, Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci, Marcia Gay Harden. Writer-director Greg Mottola’s first feature is a deceptively quiet and funny film that sticks in your memory long after you think…
