Fifty Shades of Grey did for middle-aged women what the Harry Potter series has done for young children: finally made reading fun again. The series has sold more than 30 million copies and has a long-awaited movie adaptation in process. Not since the Twilight series has a work of literature…

Martin Scorsese has been directing since 1967, when he made Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. It wasn’t until The Departed, nearly 40 years later in 2006, that he finally won an Oscar for Best Director, despite many critics declaring him one of the greatest directors to ever live. Here we…

If you’re unfamiliar with the overlap of the Venn diagram of nerd and gay cultures, then you may be unfamiliar with the fame of George Takei, Mr. Sulu of the original Star Trek series. Takei is enjoying a huge resurgence in popularity in the mode pioneered by other famed elderly…

Dallas has undergone a shocking culture shift over the last few years in the area of local craft beer. In just two years the region has spawned nearly half a dozen local breweries, and the flag-bearer for the hoppy armada is Peticolas Brewing Co. In the two years since Peticolas…

During the holidays, everyone gets hung up on tradition. If one aspect of the dinner table is off on the big day, all hell breaks loose: “I don’t care if you made your own, what do you mean you don’t have the canned cranberry sauce?” “You can’t do vegetable curry…

If you’ve worked in a restaurant before, you know the crazy mechanics that go down in the kitchen that keep the whole place running. It’s an apparatus hidden from the customers (even chefs in an open kitchen try not to let the crowd see them sweat), but even fewer people…

After spending prolonged periods of time trapped inside with your family and either too much or not enough alcohol, you’re probably in need of a good date night. And after several holiday season’s worth of little lights and Christmas music, something a little classy is a welcome relief. The Samurai…

You may think you have the seasons in Dallas figured out, but North Texas weather is a fickle pickle. The city can go from unseasonably warm to crusted over with ice in a matter of days, seemingly irrespective of what month it is. So it’s not really surprising that Dallas…

It’s after dinner on Christmas day and everyone is getting antsy. Football isn’t holding the attention. The kids found their way back into the house. The booze is wearing off (or kicking in, either way it’s in transition). You all need to get out and stretch your legs but it’s…

Marathon trainees, you’re hurting right now, aren’t you? You ran intricate training schedules for months, carb-loaded like a mother and then bam! A couple of cops commune with Pete Delkus and your marathon is gone, gone, gone. The 2013 Jingle Bell Run won’t replace it, sorry to say, but it…

For your sake and the sake of your family, it’s best that you decompress before daring to spend an extended amount of time with them, gathered around turkey and sides for a dinner that’s awkward or boozy or chilly or just, God, Mom, stop. So before you make that icy…

Remember when you were little and agonized over whether you’d be on the naughty or nice list? You knew there was evidence in both corners but if pressed to defend yourself you could fluff up the “nice” talking points to save yourself. Well, screw all that. Now that we’re adults…

Dallas today may not be known for the highest degree of rockage, but it’s important to remember that once upon a time Dallas did, in fact, rock. For two decades starting in the ’50s, Dallas was the seat of music in the Southwest and the vinyl record distribution hub for…