Cover Story
Parlor Game
The family that plays together makes pizza together
TxDOT Approves $1.2 Billion in Stimulus Projects
Agency ignores enviros and anti-tollers
Don’t Trust The Consultants!
Last night’s Comprehensive Plan Public Forum
Big Changes in Big D
Cowboys offseason happenings
Hall Monitoring
Lake boardwalk, solar farm, and fire department staffing snafus at City Hall
Blues Mafia, Yellow Bikes
Teens on the scene
An American at Camp Nou
In Spain, soccer is a way of life
Boot Camp Challenge: Graduation
It’s over (for now)
Legendary Playwright and Screenwriter Passes Away
Native Texan Horton Foote passed away yesterday at the age of 92
Viva Las Vegas Recap
Benefiting Aids Services of Austin
APD Honors One of Its Own
Sgt. Kenny Wilson given Distinguished Command medal
Tricking Straight Women
LifeTime’s Gay, Straight, or Taken is icky.
Aztex Lose to Revs; Houston Dynamo Up Next
Following an opening-game loss, the Austin Aztex host the Houston Dynamo this Saturday
Feds Back Dunnam Against TxDOT
Agency decision to spend stimulus money could be reversed
Egge and Fleck
Ana at the Cactus, Bela goes to Africa
Hudgins: Film Incentives Really Game Incentives
Texas Film Commission boss delivers report on successes of his agency, and what’s worked in film incentives
Lights, Camera, Senate Resolution!
Movie luminaries watch Texas Senate makes March 4 Moving Image Industry Day
The Winter Soldiers March
Footage from the march to City Hall that followed IVAW’s Winter Soldier hearings
Veterans Talk About the War
Footage from the weekend’s Winter Soldier hearings hosted by IVAW
Needles Move Out of Committee
Needle-exchange bill clears first hurdle
TFN Applauds SBOE Broadcast Bill
Bill would require webcast of education board meetings
Keller Embarrasses Us All
“Killer” Keller needs it all spelled out?
Sam Raimi Is Going to Hell…
Raimi premieres Drag Me To Hell as SXSW
Now Dunnam Is Really Pissed at TxDOT
Stimulus committee chair says agency sending inaccurate information to Congress
Peter Ferry at BookPeople Tonight
The Utter Reading Series brings Peter Ferry to town
Mann Alive
Blowing in the Ash
Oh, Flat Track, How We Have Missed Thee
Hotrod Honeys dominate in Sunday night’s round robin
Wristband Update
Last chance to dance
How Much, How Soon, And Who Spends It?
House continues to debate whether ring-fencing federal stimulus from state budget building will work
Dunnam Tries to Put Brakes on TxDOT
Democratic leader says transportation agency spending federal stimulus money without oversight
Mayoral Candidate Forum Now Online
Mayoral candidates Leffingwell and McCracken field citizen’s questions on cable access program.
Last Queen Standing
We have at the latest RuPaul’s Drag Race
Travis Co. Bills Head to Committees
Big week for delegation as e-waste, education bills get public hearings
How to Slack in the Know
Slackerwood details the ins and outs and insider info on SXSW
SchoolJam Daze
Teen bands take home awards
Holder Says Ban on Medi-Pot Raids is U.S. Policy
During joint presser with DEA head, AG Holder says ban is policy
Lesbians Suck
Britain’s hot new lezzie sucky sucky fest…
This Valentine Is Not Over
Scarleteen doubles your Valentines’ dollar!
It Was Just a Matter of Time …
Barack Obama is … gay?!
Waterloo Sunset
SXSW in-stores at Waterloo Records
Flatliners
Flatliners 1990, R, 115 min. Directed by Joel Schumacher, Starring Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, William Baldwin, Oliver Platt. Medical students experiment on themselves, with near-death consequences.
Taking Off the Winter Wheels
Texas Rollergirls kick off 2009 season with rapid-fire round robin
What You See Is What You Hear
The joy that Conspirare takes in singing is visible in the choir’s PBS special
‘Misprint Magazine’s Third Annual Beard & Moustache Competition
A photo gallery by Logan Youree
Shield Bill Back Again
The House will consider a journalist shield bill next week
California Lawmaker Says ‘Legalize It!’
San Francisco Assemblyman files bill to tax and regulate pot
Bill Cosby is a Very Funny Fellow, Part II
Jazz patron Bill Cosby’s cutting contest
Get Busy, Y’all
Q&A with ?uestlove
Lady Jeanne and Me
Flute passion
Creationist Activist Goes Into Lion’s Den
Saenz to speak at Yarborough Library
Fourth Time the Charm?
Another shot in the Lege for hypodermic needle exchange
Event Menu
Your local food events for Feb. 27-March 5
Texas Platters
“Little Hits” b/w “China”
Looking for a School Chief
AISD zigzags its way to a new superintendent
SCJS Charges Against Keller
Download this pdf to read all of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct’s charges against Keller.
Food-o-File
La Condesa celebrates its VIP opening, and Elizabeth Winslow and Stephanie Scherzer introduce us to Farmhouse Delivery
Texas Platters
Black Panda Shake Me (Super Secret) Super Secret also minted up 7 inches of clear vinyl for this local quintet’s debut. Former Kodiaks frontman Yoshi Okai, standout of the “These Are the Days” exhibition at the Arthouse on Congress, crosses John Lydon with Damo Suzuki, barking all the way to the bank on four jagged…
Oops!
In “Dumping the Water Pump,” Feb. 20, we mistakenly cited the Austin Water Utility water and wastewater residential charge as $61.67 a year; the correct figure is $61.67 a month.
Texas Freedom Network Report
Download a pdf of the Texas Freedom Network report on sex education in Texas.
Wine of the Week
Michel Chapoutier’s biodynamic wines offer a reasonable introduction to the Rhône
Texas Platters
“Loveshines II” b/w “I’m Not a Perfect Person (Looks Like I Fucked Up Again)”
Page Two: Grand Schemes and Enthralling Documents
Film, conspiracy theories, and conspiracy theories on film coalesce as SXSW looms
Point Austin: Board Games
The AISD trustees play superintendent poker – by uneven rules
Reclaiming Texas History, One Home Movie at a Time
The missionary zeal of the Texas Archive of the Moving Image
Arts Review
Austin Shakespeare delivers a gorgeous production that savors Wilde’s wit
Playing Through
The Longhorns miss Augustin’s leadership skills more than Durant’s gaudy numbers
City Hall Hustle: Hustler’s Diary
While you were watching your 401(k)
Letters at 3AM
In Screenworld, face-to-face engagement is devalued, yet one is never alone
Arts Review
John Carroll imbues the great detective with a gravitas true to Conan Doyle’s creation
Watson Surveys Stakeholders on Cap Metro Reforms
Now is the time to act, senator says
Headlines
Quote of the Week “[T]he safest place for a woman to live is married to a man.”– Texas Freedom Network’s “Just Say Don’t Know” report quoting one of various abstinence-only sex-ed programs taught in Texas public schools • City Council will hear the city manager’s final recommendations on $20 million in proposed budget cuts today…
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
Accuracy of the musical memory, Lincoln questions the divinity of Christ, and more
Arts Review
IF+D is a good gallery with a deep vision of the role of art and laughter in your home
Pregnant Pause
Anti-abortion group is poised to siphon big chunk of indigent health-care funds
Res Publica
Good times for good citizens: Feb. 27-March 5
Bill Cosby
The comedy legend recalls one memorable night when a woman stopped laughing
Culture Club
Dances inspired by three legendary women cross cultures and generations
Judge ‘Killer’ Keller to Face Trial
Bad karma over refusal to hear appeal of death row inmate
Naked City
News briefs from Austin, the region, and beyond
Austin Arts at the Armory
Three local art galleries represent at this year’s Armory Show in New York City
We’re in the Money
Federal stimulus money is headed to Texas – now legislators have to agree on what to do with it
National Academies Report
Download the National Academies report on the sad state of forensic science
‘Birth of the Cool’
Bargains, film, and live jazz jazz up the Blanton’s toast to midcentury modernism
New in Print
Blake Bailey’s utterly absorbing and unquestionably definitive biography coincides with the release of two Library of America collections of Cheever’s novels and short stories
LegeLines
Odds and ends from the Capitol
The Common Law
Need Legal Advice? – Call LegalLine – Austin’s Free Legal Hotline
Texas Platters
… And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead The Century of Self (Richter Scale) Trail of Dead’s post-major label debut, The Century of Self, may be the Austin institution’s most conceptually complete work to date, a post-prog cathedral of mythical mini-epics, though it’s by no means the band’s masterpiece. Whereas 2005’s Worlds…
The Hightower Report
Guess Who; and Some Bankers You Might Like
Union Bristles at Cap Metro Shuffle
Are the wheels coming off the bus?
Waltz With Bashir
This Israeli filmmaker creates a dreamy, animated psycho-documentary about his attempt to recall buried memories of his participation in a massacre while serving in the military.
DVD Watch
Read the book … and leave this DVD to the television archives where it belongs
Texas Platters
Texas Platters Steve Bernal Decibels (Lanreb Music) Patience is clearly one of Steve Bernal’s finest virtues. On Decibels, the longtime local cellist and bassist’s fourth album, his neoclassical compositions nurture the space they require. His technique is sparse yet demanding and intensely personal; nothing feels forced or rushed, all of which works in favor of…
Day Trips
Bob’s Oil Well in Matador has been a roadside attraction since the 1930s
Winter Soldiers Bear Austin Witness
Iraq veterans to testify about ongoing war
Spike & Mike’s Sick & Twisted Festival of Animation 2009
Again it’s time for the annual unveiling of this tasteless-and-proud-of-it cartoon collection.
Film News
There’s life in it yet: The ailing Texas film industry is looking awfully sparky these days. We like.
Texas Platters
La Zona Rosa, Feb. 20
Gay Place
Hate Prop. 8? Stop bitching, and start lobbying.
City Counseling: Best Laid Plans
Best Laid Plans
Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail
Just what’s needed in the big house – Perry’s pistol-packing granny.
The Bus Stops Here
The How’s Your News? crew rolls out its unique brand of reportage on MTV
Texas Platters
The future is now for Austin hip-hop, and it’s obvious on Zeale’s new mixtape, Haterz and Robotz, the local MC’s most complete collection to date. Boosted by the masterful precision of DJ Rapid Ric, the slick-talking Zeale raps his way through an even mix of originals and sampled cuts, all heavy on the “Retrozpect.” Team…
TV Eye
Oscar postmortem and mayor hopefuls on cable access
Whether to Laugh or Cry: Sex Ed in Texas
A new report takes an unprecedented look at the state of sex ed in Texas public schools
I’ve Loved You So Long
Kristen Scott Thomas is unforgettable in this French film about a woman who has to live with her self-hatred after committing a heinous crime.
Fion Wine Pub & Bistro
Those living near Steiner Ranch have a treasure in their back yard
Texas Platters
Ikillcars At Ease With Your Haste (What?) Local punks with far too many capitalization demands (we don’t negotiate with terrorists) make the stand off worth it on a five-tune 10-inch from Dallas imprint What? Its crisp, Bubble Studio riff emphasis (lead-off “Hartsfield-Jackson”) and fattened swath of late-1980s Red River (“San Jose, 1972”) also barfs up…
Bringing the Group to the Vision
As Pat Forgione prepares to say farewell, he looks back on his AISD decade
Laura Hall Out on Bond
Hall is out of jail after serving only a fraction of her sentence for her role in covering up Jennifer Cave’s murder
Two Lovers
Joaquin Phoenix (in what he claims is his last film role) stars as a nebbishy New Yorker caught between two very different women.
Whip In
Not your typical highway stop-and-shop, here you’ll find specialty beers, obscure wines, and locally packaged gourmet foodstuffs
Texas Platters
“Gold”
Off the Record
Mining the vaults of Austin City Limits, navigating the SXSW grid, and hanging with Jenny Wolfe After School
Defense Appeal Targets Attorney Minton in WilCo Homicide
Brandon Threet’s appeal attorney says Roy Minton dropped the ball
Chen’s Noodle House
Zhao ‘George’ Chen’s knife-cut noodles make us swoon
Texas Platters
Teen Cool/Gun Crazy (Cutthroat) Teen Cool’s New Year’s reunion at Room 710 coincided with Houston vinylist Cutthroat commemorating the defunct Austin punks on a split with Bay City trash rockers Gun Crazy. The locals “Crash and Burn Kids” and molest “Dilemma Doll” in dialing up pure ’77 self-destruction odes to rousing three-chord pow. B-sider “Talk…
After a Fashion
All style, all the time, from the Houston Ballet Ball to the Oscars
Forensic Fallibility
A new report shows that forensic science ain’t all it’s cracked up to be
Luv Doc Recommends: 2009 Texas Heritage Songwriters’ Homecoming Concert
Twenty years from now, when you look back on the time you spent in Austin (and this is, of course, assuming that the polar ice caps have melted and you own a beach house in either Amarillo or Oklahoma City), what do you think you’ll remember most – that time you dropped $600 on the…
