The amateur detectives plopped onto couches, waiting to see their handiwork on national television. Nervous? A bit. Excited? Oh, yeah. For months they’d been sleuthing. Diving in dumpsters, following trails of documents, going undercover, telling lies if necessary, all in the service of God. And of their leader, a tall…
Ole Anthony has built a mythology of his life dating back to childhood. Here’s what is true: Anthony was born in Minnesota on October 3, 1938, and moved with his family to Wickenburg, Arizona, at age 10. The desert town called itself the “dude ranch capital of the world.” His…
In 1997, Britain’s The Full Monty came from nowhere and was nominated for Best Picture and a handful of other Oscars, winning Best Musical/Comedy Score. (It might have snagged more but for the confluence of excellent movies that shoved it out of Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Director:…
It’s almost hump week—that midpoint of summer when all a parent’s best schemes to keep kids busy are wearing thin. Grab your team and channel all that energy into beating the pants off other family teams at Cranium. It’s a combination of trivia, creative problem solving, scavenger hunting, charades and…
In 1896, when Dallas icon Sarah T. Hughes was born, women didn’t even have the vote. When she graduated from a girls’ college, the only profession open to women was schoolteacher. Hughes did that two years and said phooey. In 1919, she enrolled in George Washington University, studying law at…
When he heard his truck exploding around him, William Calderon thought, Oh my God, I die. The shriek of metal colliding with metal filled the cab as Calderon wrestled the steering wheel. He didnt die, but last Thursday morning, standing beside Garland Road in East Dallas near White Rock Lake,…
The dog days of summer are three months away, but we’re all for a dog-centric afternoon that promises canine comedy. With contests like “Doggie Bulldozer,” “Stupid Pet Tricks” and “Best Costume,” dog owners will be wiggling on their backs in happiness. Operation Kindness’ 12th annual walk-a-thon starts with a leadoff…
When Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark came out in 1981, Harrison Ford was already a star, thanks to the first two installments of Star Wars. But the role of Indiana Jones made Ford an action movie icon. Perfectly cast as the whip-lashing archaeologist with brains and balls, Ford…
The throbbing of animal-skin drums, some almost as tall as the boys pounding them, fills a banquet room at Cityplace while girls dressed in African wax cloth, with short grass skirts tied like bustles around their waists and bells around their ankles, stamp out an ancient rhythm. Lawyers and judges…
“SSSSSssssss…” “Stop that!” Carolyn Thomas snapped. Her best friend Dena Schlosser was driving with her eyes closed, hissing like a snake. “SSSSSSssssss…” “Open your eyes and look at the road!” Thomas said. “Put your mind on Jesus.” The weird behavior had started as soon as Schlosser and her three girls…
“SSSSSssssss…” “Stop that!” Carolyn Thomas snapped. Her best friend Dena Schlosser was driving with her eyes closed, hissing like a snake. “SSSSSSssssss…” “Open your eyes and look at the road!” Thomas said. “Put your mind on Jesus.” The weird behavior had started as soon as Schlosser and her three girls…
Before talkies, there were, uh, “silenties.” Check out the early days of cinema—Thursday, see two Harold Lloyd movies, Number, Please? (1920) and Safety Last (1923), with discussion by Rick Worland, chair of SMU’s Cinema-TV department. On Friday, Buster Keaton’s One Week(1921) and The General (1927) are followed by comments from…
Running wild through the streets has a lot of appeal. Imagine running wild through the jungle. Better yet, imagine your kids running wild through the jungle. Oh, wait, that’s fifth grade. Never mind. The Fort Worth Zoo, which beats the Dallas Zoo by a mile, gets two-leggers moving fast in…
The attorney for Emily Dowdy, a former Oklahoma University student now serving 40 years in an Oklahoma prison, testified in court last month that he had failed to present an adequate defense because he had been “intimidated” by the hostile environment created by Oklahoma City prosecutors and District Judge Susan…
Del Castillo, named “best traditional Latin band” at the recent Austin Music Awards, is anything but. Consider that they’ve also won “Best Contemporary Latin Band,” “Best World Music Band” and, simply, “Best Band of the Year” in years past at the same event. Brothers Rick and Mark del Castillo play…
When Indian musicians Sushmit Sen, Asheem Chakravarthy, Amit Kilam and Rahul Ram come together onstage, the result, according to a Wikipedia profile, is “Indo-rock fusion with jazz-spiced rhythms that integrates sufism, shlokas, environmentalism, mythology and revolution.” We like it because it has a beat you can dance to. Catch their…
It used to be a charming millinery ritual: Every spring, little girls would get new dresses, Mary Janes and Easter bonnets. Well, those little girls grew up and graduated to wearing charming and often elaborate hats to church for Easter. Think of the Annual Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at the…
Hit Stout on its one-year anniversary for Casino Night. Play blackjack, roulette and Texas Hold ’Em with chips redeemable for cool gift certificates. And give Stout credit. It’s hung on for 365 days in a location legendary as the home of Poor David’s Pub. Somehow they managed to scrape off…
Last September 1, an armada of water taxis left the Hotel Cipriani bearing America’s royalty. Movie stars attending the International Venice Film Festival were staying at the luxury island inn, and the small boats were the only way to get to the theater. Everyone was dressed for the black-tie premiere…
An argument can be made that no female writer has been more influential than newspaper columnist Heloise, “every housewife’s friend.” The uses of vinegar and the best stain removers! Organization tips and getting burned food out of a pan! Daughter Poncé took up the mantle of Queen of Household Tips…
You gotta hand it to President Clinton. He did more for the Arkansas economy after leaving the Oval Office. Friends of Bush are streaming into Little Rock to visit the Clinton Presidential Center. Now the University of Dallas and Southern Methodist University are panting after the George W. Bush Presidential…
Each March, the Fort Worth Symphony League hosts one of the biggest and best garage sales around. Yeah, the violinists and French horns cough up some second-hand treasures, but because donations are collected throughout the community, there’s plenty of quality junk like antiques, books, housewares, electronics, tools, home décor and…
